Strong skills matter
Re: "Not that simple", (PostBag, May 12). I thank Khun Paul for taking me to task when I said, "Learning a foreign language shouldn't take more than two years." He correctly points out that "Thai students have been learning English for up to 15 years in public schools, and most pupils are hardly fluent in the language".
However, I submit that such dismal results are more an indictment of our public education as a whole than of foreign languages alone.
Consider that "Almost two-thirds (64.7%) of Thais aged 15-65 can barely read and understand short texts to solve a simple problem such as following medical instructions" (World Bank, 2025). Their survey was in Thai, with respondents representing our workforce as a whole, regardless of educational achievement.
On the other hand, over 240,000 Peace Corps Volunteers have gone through intensive language training since the agency's 1961 founding, collectively learning 90-100 languages/dialects.
Most programmes require at least intermediate-mid-level competency in speaking to swear in, focusing on practical communication for daily life and work, enough to handle basic conversations, give directions, and discuss familiar topics.
Training is immersion-heavy and designed to develop functional speaking ability rather than quick classroom fluency, which is exactly what a tourist guide would need.
The PC language training usually lasts 250-350 hours. If we spread it out over 2 years, that's just 2.5-3.5 hours weekly. Eager beaver guides would want to put in more than that, so my allowing two years is certainly achievable and may even be conservative.
