Update: Mr Peter has set up a Facebook page to enable you to contact him directly.
https://www.facebook.com/khrupeterthailanguageclass/
Update: New intake for Thai language class for 2018 is on Sunday, 4 March 2018.
Please contact Mr Peter’s facebook page above should you require more information.
Venue: Wat Chetawan Petaling Jaya
Time: 10am
MY REVIEW OF THE CLASS:
If you would like to learn the Thai language, there are classes available at Wat Chetawanวัดเชตวัน in Petaling Jaya, Selangor. The temple is located in Jalan Gasing. Beginners class will start on the first week of March each year.
Sunday class by Peter (local retired teacher)- only at Wat Chetawan.
Venue: Multipurpose Hall, Wat Chetawan, Jalan Gasing, Petaling Jaya
- Intermediate at 1 pm – 2.30 pm- you should have knowledge in written and spoken Thai
- Beginners class– 2.30 pm – 4 pm – if you are new to the language, you can still attend this class as we have beginners still joining this month
All the Thai classes in PJ are held at Multipurpose Hall of Wat Chetawan.
Direction of the hall: from the temple’s office, you would see a store selling flowers and amulets next to the office. Behind is a space where you see a Buddha statue. The multipurpose hall is the building behind the store that sells flowers. Photo as shown below- the location is the building right behind:
Additional information on Peter’s class:
1. No profit and it is a charitable class
2. Taught by local qualified teacher for beginners
3. RM30 per month- it is per month and even if participants attend all the 3 classes, the amount is still only RM30.
My personal experience
I agree with some non Thai native speakers who mentioned that the most effective way to learn the Thai language is by being able to read their writing and develop one’s own convention to spell out the words. This is because, in Thai language, there are various tone marks and rules- and if one is unable to read, one can only speak based on what one hear- often, one’s hearing may not be accurate and causes the tone to be off….which can totally give a different meaning.
Therefore, if you are serious about learning the Thai language, my advise is to invest some time to learn up the alphabets, tone marks, tone rules and you would be able to speak accurately.
Another thing is if you rely on learning Thai by referring to the romanized phrase books, you may end up being much more confused than ever. This is because a number of Thai words just cannot be romanized due to the complexity of the prounciation. Even when we learn the tone rules, we need to develop our own convention in pronouncing the words. Therefore, if you learn from various books, different authors may use a different set of convention and spelling. For example, chicken is called “kai” in Thai but some books romanized as “gai” as well. If you can read know how to pronounce ไก่ because you have learned the Thai vocab and the tone marks, you would be able to pronounce it correctly yourself.
I strongly recommend the Thai language class taught in Wat Chetawan- for the past year, I’ve had the privilege and good fortune of attending the beginner’s class taught by Mr Peter, a retired schoolteacher. And I must say the dedication and passion to teach are evident. Learning beginners from a teacher who is also a Malaysian is easier because he understands the limitation and constraints of Malaysians who wishes to learn the Thai language. He is able to teach in a way that makes it easy for Malaysians to pick up the language. Each class he would introduce slowly and systematically the grammar rules or the alphabets.
Teachers like Peter is hard to find nowadays- today, even if you are willing to pay you also cannot get a teacher that is so dedicated to teach.
Before that, I tried to learn on my own but lack of like minded company as well as difficulty in comprehending the language resulted in not much improvement. When learning under Mr Peter, because he does give us a little homework to do and because every week we do attend the class, it gave me the discipline to really pick up and do my homework. Initially I was a slow learner (I always am when initially learning up a language). But within 3 months of the class, when I visited Thailand, I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to read the Thai texts, even though slowly from my favourite Thai books. This had motivated me to continue learning the language through focusing on texts that I enjoy reading.
After learning the alphabets, the grammar rules, you can then attend the intermediate class where you would be taught on more vocabulary. Because the teachers would read from the Thai words, if you cannot read the basic words, it may be a little difficult. But once you can read, learning the vocabulary becomes a breeze.
This is a very useful and good information. I am interested to join, can you please tell how do I register?
Thanks.
Hi Michelle,
for the beginner’s class, I understand that the next class would be held at Wat Chetawan, Jalan Gasing n on the 27/10/10 (Sat.) at 10 am & 2
pm. It is being taught by teachers from Thai.
I am interested to learn Thai. Hope to learn it before I go to Thailand for holidays.
Hey Yin. I’m actually in Thailand now in a backpack trip. And I have to say, I love the Thai culture, people, language, and almost everything about the Thais….
Are there any possible near classes in December 2012? I’d like to pick up the language as I will be.returning here soon again.
Thanks.
Regards,
Sam.
Hi Sam, yes Thailand indeed have beautiful culture. As far as I know there are Thai for beginners at Wat Chetawan in Jalan Gasing on Sunday from 2.r0pm to 4pm. But the class had been going on for quite a while s you may find it hard to understand.i
Hi Yin. Is there a person I can contact whether I can still fit in to the beginner class?
Cause I’d be frustrated if I need to wait till next year. Haha.
Hi Yin,
I am interested to learn thai language, can i join the beginner class?
Sammi
26/12/2012
Hi Yin,
Are there private classes from Mr Peter? How do we contact him? Find him at the temple in person on Sundays / Hp / Email?
As for the beginner’s Class, is there any intake for January 2012?
If yes, do we need to buy any books / printed materials?
I am interested in Learning the language.. Can understand a little of the spoken language, and also can speak a little thai about daily conversation 🙂
Hi Sammi,
You may- but it is advisable to join the beginners class on Sunday, from 2.30pm to 4pm at Wat Chetawan.
Yes Roger, I would suggest you look for Peter at the temple.
It is actually fun to learn in a group- we get more motivated as well….
Hi,
I would to know the class is still on-going right now. I would like to join the class. Thanks.
Hi Yin,
Will the class continue throughout 2013? 🙂
Dear Pam and Kenzo, I would need to check with the class monitor and get back to you via email.
Hi Yin
I would like to attend the beginners class as I do travel regularly to Thailand for holidays. May I know who could I contact to get more information about the classes? Many thanks.
Email sent to you on the details. Thanks
Hi I would like to join the beginner class. May I know how to register?
Hi Jin, you just need to show up. It is Rm30 per month for materials and also donation to temple for using their facilities. I understand this Sunday at 2.30pm got beginners attending.
Hi, can I still join the class?
I’m interested to learn thai:)
Yes, should not be a problem
Hi, where is the location of the class in kampung baru?
Hi Sham, I need to check first but only can have the answer earliest this saturday where I will post it on the page update above.
Update on 16 Mar- I have checked for you- it is located near Restoran Garuda and the time is same as the one at Wat Chetawan.
I am confuse, you mentioned the date 16 & 17 March in Wat chetawan, did you mean they have different location every week? :I don’t drive in KL , if I go by bus / train which station is the most convenience to stop and get taxi to get there?
jix
Hi Jix,
The classes have different days for you to be able to choose a slot that you can attend. For example, at Wat Chetawan you can attend the Sun beginners class by Thai teacher from 9am to 1pm, then stay back for Peter’s class (intermediate class is 1pm to 2pm and beginners class start at 2pm). For Wat Chetawan, the nearest train station (LRT Kelana Jaya Line) is Taman Jaya in Petaling Jaya. From there, you can take a cab to the temple.
Hi Yin,
Do I just come there or do I have to book a seat / pre-register first … Is there any number I can call to register or in case I got lost 🙁 …
If there is weekdays class for beginner I can join would be really great! but I gathered so far the schedule is strictly over the weekend. Since the 2 last weekend in March I will be away from KL ; thus, the earliest I can join is in 1st week of April weekend … so question is =========== “If I join in the first week of April would that be too late ? ======
jix
Hi there, I just found your blog & am interested to learn Thai. However, I noticed that the beginner class already started today. Is it possible to join in after the first class have started? Thanks
Hi Cally
It is as there are still have beginners joining.
Hi Yin,
Sorry, I noticed your update for beginner joining was for Mr Peter’s class. I’m only available for the 9am slot at Wat Chedawan because I have to go to work after class. Was wondering if the 9am slot still available? Thanks
hi yin,
yes, i read the messages thread for cally … but what about joining in april…will that be too late for the beginners class?
thanks.
jix
Hi Cally and Jix
You should be able to join. Cally you can join the 9am class. That was why they have 3 slots to cater for the convenience if different people.
Jix, till last week I heard there were still beginners. You come and then see if you can catch up.
Hi Yin
My dad is 50 and he interested to learn Thai. Can he join?
How to register for the class?
Thanks.
Hi Han, of course he can. Why not you ask him to come over at Wat Chetawan multipurpose hall at 2.30pm on Sunday. If he want ro join, then need to contribute RM30. If only want to look and see, let the class monitor know.
Do note next weekend classes (30 & 31 Mar) are cancelled due to Cheng Beng.
Hi,
I am interested to learn Thai, are there any new classes for beginner?
Thank You
Hi Yin
Are you able to check whether the Songkran will be celebrated in Wat Chetawan on both Saturday and Sunday (13 & 14 Apr) or just Sunday 14 Apr?
Sorry, I have been searching for information around the net and your site is the closest possible site which can give the information.
Thank you.
Hi Mike, I managed to get more info on this which I shall publish in this blog shortly
Hi Kelvin, the classes are as indicated above
Hello Yin
Thank you very much for the information.
Too bad the Songkran event will only be held on Sunday and I have some other obligatory work at the same time.
hey yin i think the answer is here. thanks!!!!
i am daphne,i would like to learnt thai,but i think i need to start from beginner level,the location i prefer is kl,kampung baru as i stay at cheras. can i know whether the beginner class just start or already started for quiet sometime, how can i register myself?
Hi Daphe…the class already start sometime. If you are a total beginner, I recommend you attend Peter’s beginner class on Sunday 2.30pm to 4pm at Wat Chetawan PJ. I understand just few weeks ago there are total beginners. Just show up and usually Rm30 would be collected from the first class itself.
Hi…Can i know when the beginner class start?
Thanks
Dear yin,
Can you help to provide me the detail for beginner thai.language class?
May be you can email me. I have been looking for years…
Yes…I have emailed you the contact details.
Hi Yin,
Thx for the info.
I would like to attend the class too. May I have the contact please?
Thank you very much.
Joe
Hi Yin, can I have the contact to join beginner class? Thanks
thanks god, im looking for Thai Language school for long time, finally i found it.
Just to double confirm that address is on Jalan Gasing?
Hi Lawrence, yes the temple is located along Jalan Gasing.
Hi Yin,
I’m interesting on learning thai language, is it too late to join the class now? or i should better wait for next intake?
Same here, I’m interested for the next beginner intake. If there is any, do you mind sending me an email of application? Thanks, Yin 🙂
Hi, is the beginner class still available? Many thanks!
Hi Yin,
I’m interested of learning Thai language. I went to the Wat few times but didn’t notice they provide Thai classes. May i check with you if I want to join beginner class, when is the next intake or can I join current class? Thanks, appreciate your reply.
Paul