Hi Campers,
If ever you post a negative review of a camp you need to be aware that the company in question might retaliate with a threat of court action for defamation, particularly in Thailand. Indeed, many campers say they experienced this during the 2017 Invasion saga. This can be really scary if you're unprepared. So here are some hints on how to handle it.
The most important point to remember is that if what you say is factually accurate, it's going to be very difficult for any company to win a defamation case. Apart from anything, once in court it will become immediately apparent that you are the victim, such that the court is much more likely to sympathise with you. In addition to that, the last place any company that has short-changed their customers wants to be is in court, because any misdeeds are quickly going to come out in the washing. Think carefully, how can a company take you to court, having ripped you off, and then demand that you pay them more because you told the world the truth! What kind of justice would that be?
Also important is that, in the modern world, reviews on social media (e.g. this blog) are standard and common place. It's something every company has to accept. The point is that any review or comment needs to be objective and any opinions based on facts. And, of course, the facts themselves must be accurate. It is also important to keep the tone civil and not to degenerate into abuse. Reviews and feedback play a huge role in our lives, so be confident that you are providing the world a service by making your opinion heard.
Fortunately, Philip Crabb no longer works with Invasion. However, in days past, he was always the most notorious individual for threatening people with defamation. Basically, he'd do something rotten to you (like take your money for nothing) and then threaten you with defamation if you squealed. He'd also be very quick to tell you that in Thailand defamation laws are very strict, and that the onus would be on you, the defendant, to prove your innocence. This would be terrifying for a 19 year old travelling for the first time in Asia. Images of being locked up in a Thai prison would flash into their minds and Philip would do everything to nurture that image. So usually Philip's threats worked. People backed off. However, eventually enough comments appeared on social media, and clearly they stuck, particularly the ones linked to Island TEFL, Philip's former company. And clearly it was a wide range of people posting. I'm pleased to say, Philip has never yet succeeded in getting anyone into court.
So don't be worried, because even in Thailand the basic principles as described above still hold true. I was actually in Thailand when they introduced the laws. It was in 2006 during the military coup. The laws were mainly brought in to protect the King, because there were sections of society that wanted to do away with the monarchy altogether. I'm sure everyone knows about the battles between the Red Shirts and the Yellow Shirts. The prime purpose of the laws wasn't really concerned with everyday cases like yours, but those with political implications.
However, if you're back in the UK, those complications certainly don't apply. Just be confident about your right to free speech and your duty to inform the world at large of any wrong doing. I've put a couple of links below to websites that give good information about defamation. Don't let the bullies win!
Happy Camping!
EFL Greg
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/defamation-law-made-simple-29718.html
https://solicitors.guru/articles/27-law-defamation-explained/
Showing posts with label TEFL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TEFL. Show all posts
Wednesday, 4 April 2018
Tuesday, 27 March 2018
Example Emails about Invasion
Hi Campers,
I just thought I'd post a few typical emails I received about Invasion. I've kept the authors anonymous for reasons of confidentiality, but I can assure you they're all genuine.
"I booked to do a 3 week TEFL qualification in Thailand with a company called "Summer Camp Thailand" who work under an umbrella company registered here in the UK called "Invasion Ltd"
I was in Thailand and partaking on this programme between the 9th August to 30th August 2017
There were many issues from when our intake arrived in Bangkok. The teaching itself, and the TEFL qualification was very disorganised. Having learnt nothing, we were already disappointed but this wasn't the biggest issue.
During camp, on the 25th August before we were set to leave for our mini break in Cha-Am, we were told that there'd been a last minute change to our accommodation and that we had been "upgraded". On the same day, we received an email from a one "Mr Phillip Crabb" telling us that our accommodation wasn't an upgrade, and we were being moved due to a cash flow problem at Invasion Ltd.
A group of us spoke to the reps on site. The English reps who were employees of the English "Summer Camp Thailand" company were insisting it was an upgrade and told us to ignore any emails from Mr Phillip Crabb as he was no longer an employee of Summer Camp Thailand. So we did just that but our problems only grew.
We had all spoken to our families back home to make them aware that we were moving destinations to Hua Hin, as opposed to Cha-Am. When we arrived at our new destination it was blatantly obvious that everything Phillip Crabb said in his email was true.
We arrived at this hotel, which was a 40 minute drive from the beach and local restaurants/ bars and a 15 minute walk away from the nearest shop as Phillip had surprisingly truthfully stated. The bus driver had to come out of the vehicle and lift electrical wires above the coach in order for the coach to access the accommodation.
After 14 hours of travelling and anxious family members concerned about our whereabouts, the wifi didn't accommodate the amount of people in our intake (67 people). So I had to wait another 10 hours before I could update my family members on my whereabouts.
We were given keys to our rooms. Our bed sheets were stained with blood and other bodily fluids and one person from our intake found a dead frog in their bed. The free food that was advertised was nothing more than basic rice which wasn't covered, therefore covered in bugs. Most of the rooms were infested and there was no hot water. Later we would learn that the air condition and hot water were only installed the day prior to us arriving.
Of course we brought all of these issues up with the reps on site, who called in a gentleman called "Harry Lote" to explain the changes to us. He arrived in a truck, followed by another truck that was supposed to be taking us to Hua Hin centre later that evening. On the truck that he got out of, were large Leo beers and it was obvious that he was intoxicated which made us all a little uncomfortable as he was supposed to be the head rep, and assistant director of the company "Summer Camp Thailand". He explained that Phillip Crabb was a disgruntled previous supplier of the TEFL certificates, and due to switching suppliers, Summer Camp Thailand decided to switch our accommodation too.
The old accommodation that we were supposed to be staying at was 5 minutes from Cha-Am beach and night markets. It has an outdoor swimming pool and had been used by all the previous intakes with no complaints as far as I am aware. It was very very obvious that we were moved to this new accommodation in Hua Hin due to the cash flow problem at Invasion.
The whole ordeal had us very stressed. I'd sent out numerous emails to Summer Camp Thailand here in the UK that weekend and they've only just responded now, and their response doesn't shed any light on the situation.
The programme fee we paid was £699. We paid this fee for the original itinerary that was on their website and to receive a 120 hour internationally accredited TEFL certificate whilst we were there (which we still have yet to receive). In light of the certificate itself, some people did more hours than others. So I'd done 3 days of 8 hours each day then an additional day of 5 hours. Yet some of the intake only did 2 hours each day at different schools.
Now after 10 minutes of googling, I've come across some of your blogs. This man [Philip Crabb] has been working under Invasion Travel Ltd, providing the TEFL part of the course. Since the first email he has sent, he has sent many more emails asking for money in order for us to receive this TEFL certificate that we have ALREADY paid for.
He has also breached the data protection act by giving out our emails and details to people on the subsequent intake for Camp C - Summer Camp Thailand and a reporter from Manchester.
As we still haven't received these certificates, our details were handed out without our consent and we stayed at an accommodation that wasn't listed on the itinerary or agreed to, I'm in the process of seeking a refund from the company.
Given that they are not willing to give us a partial refund, I'll be seeking a to initiate a charge back with my bank. Summer Camp Thailand have been incompetent at answering the questions that I have and are blatantly not responding to my queries."
I'll put more up shortly. Meanwhile, please read my comment below.
Stay safe,
EFL Greg
I just thought I'd post a few typical emails I received about Invasion. I've kept the authors anonymous for reasons of confidentiality, but I can assure you they're all genuine.
"I booked to do a 3 week TEFL qualification in Thailand with a company called "Summer Camp Thailand" who work under an umbrella company registered here in the UK called "Invasion Ltd"
I was in Thailand and partaking on this programme between the 9th August to 30th August 2017
There were many issues from when our intake arrived in Bangkok. The teaching itself, and the TEFL qualification was very disorganised. Having learnt nothing, we were already disappointed but this wasn't the biggest issue.
During camp, on the 25th August before we were set to leave for our mini break in Cha-Am, we were told that there'd been a last minute change to our accommodation and that we had been "upgraded". On the same day, we received an email from a one "Mr Phillip Crabb" telling us that our accommodation wasn't an upgrade, and we were being moved due to a cash flow problem at Invasion Ltd.
A group of us spoke to the reps on site. The English reps who were employees of the English "Summer Camp Thailand" company were insisting it was an upgrade and told us to ignore any emails from Mr Phillip Crabb as he was no longer an employee of Summer Camp Thailand. So we did just that but our problems only grew.
We had all spoken to our families back home to make them aware that we were moving destinations to Hua Hin, as opposed to Cha-Am. When we arrived at our new destination it was blatantly obvious that everything Phillip Crabb said in his email was true.
We arrived at this hotel, which was a 40 minute drive from the beach and local restaurants/ bars and a 15 minute walk away from the nearest shop as Phillip had surprisingly truthfully stated. The bus driver had to come out of the vehicle and lift electrical wires above the coach in order for the coach to access the accommodation.
After 14 hours of travelling and anxious family members concerned about our whereabouts, the wifi didn't accommodate the amount of people in our intake (67 people). So I had to wait another 10 hours before I could update my family members on my whereabouts.
We were given keys to our rooms. Our bed sheets were stained with blood and other bodily fluids and one person from our intake found a dead frog in their bed. The free food that was advertised was nothing more than basic rice which wasn't covered, therefore covered in bugs. Most of the rooms were infested and there was no hot water. Later we would learn that the air condition and hot water were only installed the day prior to us arriving.
Of course we brought all of these issues up with the reps on site, who called in a gentleman called "Harry Lote" to explain the changes to us. He arrived in a truck, followed by another truck that was supposed to be taking us to Hua Hin centre later that evening. On the truck that he got out of, were large Leo beers and it was obvious that he was intoxicated which made us all a little uncomfortable as he was supposed to be the head rep, and assistant director of the company "Summer Camp Thailand". He explained that Phillip Crabb was a disgruntled previous supplier of the TEFL certificates, and due to switching suppliers, Summer Camp Thailand decided to switch our accommodation too.
The old accommodation that we were supposed to be staying at was 5 minutes from Cha-Am beach and night markets. It has an outdoor swimming pool and had been used by all the previous intakes with no complaints as far as I am aware. It was very very obvious that we were moved to this new accommodation in Hua Hin due to the cash flow problem at Invasion.
The whole ordeal had us very stressed. I'd sent out numerous emails to Summer Camp Thailand here in the UK that weekend and they've only just responded now, and their response doesn't shed any light on the situation.
The programme fee we paid was £699. We paid this fee for the original itinerary that was on their website and to receive a 120 hour internationally accredited TEFL certificate whilst we were there (which we still have yet to receive). In light of the certificate itself, some people did more hours than others. So I'd done 3 days of 8 hours each day then an additional day of 5 hours. Yet some of the intake only did 2 hours each day at different schools.
Now after 10 minutes of googling, I've come across some of your blogs. This man [Philip Crabb] has been working under Invasion Travel Ltd, providing the TEFL part of the course. Since the first email he has sent, he has sent many more emails asking for money in order for us to receive this TEFL certificate that we have ALREADY paid for.
He has also breached the data protection act by giving out our emails and details to people on the subsequent intake for Camp C - Summer Camp Thailand and a reporter from Manchester.
As we still haven't received these certificates, our details were handed out without our consent and we stayed at an accommodation that wasn't listed on the itinerary or agreed to, I'm in the process of seeking a refund from the company.
Given that they are not willing to give us a partial refund, I'll be seeking a to initiate a charge back with my bank. Summer Camp Thailand have been incompetent at answering the questions that I have and are blatantly not responding to my queries."
I'll put more up shortly. Meanwhile, please read my comment below.
Stay safe,
EFL Greg
Friday, 9 March 2018
Invasion Ltd
Hi Campers!
I have now received several reports about the appalling way Invasion treated the August/September intake last year that I can only conclude that as a company Invasion fall a long way short of what they claim to be and how they advertise themselves (click here). I had given them the benefit of the doubt up till now, but no longer so. In addition to the organisational failures, I'm also getting lots of reports about drunken behaviour by some of the reps at some of the camps, as well as drug taking. There was also, of course, the infamous "gun" incident back in 2016.
I'm sure that when Lee McAteer and Nick Steiert started out they were genuine in their wish to create something properly meaningful for youngsters in the form of the Camp experience. Great idea! However, money and power do corrupt, and they seem now only to be concerned with their profits. Any true concern about their customers and students seems to have gone completely out of the window. Basically, they're just ignoring everyone. Rather than being "of the people", they now seem to be adopting a high and mighty stance. The sheer number of testimonials to this is now overwhelming. Rather than list them all one by one, I'm putting a couple of links here so that people can read the complaints against Invasion themselves. Also read my posts, "Invasion and Camp Thailand" and "Invasion and Ethics", both in October last year. The comments there are particularly revealing, as also are the ones back in 2016. In fact, please read the whole of this blog if you have time.
First, there is a Facebook page, "Camp Thailand and Invasion travel fiasco support". you may need to join the group to get full access. For some reason it's down at the moment, but they say it will be up again shortly. In addition to this is the Rip-off Report (click here), which is quite detailed and goes pretty deeply into what happened. However, the second half of it needs to be read with a pinch of salt because it is obviously written by Philip Crabb himself, who was undoubtedly one of the main culprits in the whole saga/fiasco. He mentions "OUR company, English For Fun" and the inevitable "internationally accredited" reference to his own TEFL course, etc. So you may need to read between the lines there. Nevertheless, the overall report is pretty damning for Invasion. It's all in strong contrast to the massaged write-ups on the GoAbroad review site.
I have written to Invasion to ask them for their side of the story, but sadly they have not replied. It now seems to be their standard policy not to respond to any enquiries related to August/September of 2017. Looking back, the writing was already on the wall by the way they covered up the "gun" incident in 2016 (see my posts of June 2017 and October 2016). Just the fact that they were willingly working with a man as notorious as Philip Crabb already gave some indication of their level of ethicality. They cannot simply blame everything on him, they need to take responsibility themselves. It's important that everyone at every stage of the Camp experience has the highest degree of integrity and is fully vetted beforehand.
Of course, I personally wish people would read my blog before signing up for these camps. Sadly, most people only read it after the event. Anyway, if anyone is reading this prior to going somewhere under Invasion's steam I strongly recommend them to rethink. In fact, I would recommend everyone to boycott Invasion completely.
Good luck for the future!
EFL Greg
I have now received several reports about the appalling way Invasion treated the August/September intake last year that I can only conclude that as a company Invasion fall a long way short of what they claim to be and how they advertise themselves (click here). I had given them the benefit of the doubt up till now, but no longer so. In addition to the organisational failures, I'm also getting lots of reports about drunken behaviour by some of the reps at some of the camps, as well as drug taking. There was also, of course, the infamous "gun" incident back in 2016.
I'm sure that when Lee McAteer and Nick Steiert started out they were genuine in their wish to create something properly meaningful for youngsters in the form of the Camp experience. Great idea! However, money and power do corrupt, and they seem now only to be concerned with their profits. Any true concern about their customers and students seems to have gone completely out of the window. Basically, they're just ignoring everyone. Rather than being "of the people", they now seem to be adopting a high and mighty stance. The sheer number of testimonials to this is now overwhelming. Rather than list them all one by one, I'm putting a couple of links here so that people can read the complaints against Invasion themselves. Also read my posts, "Invasion and Camp Thailand" and "Invasion and Ethics", both in October last year. The comments there are particularly revealing, as also are the ones back in 2016. In fact, please read the whole of this blog if you have time.
First, there is a Facebook page, "Camp Thailand and Invasion travel fiasco support". you may need to join the group to get full access. For some reason it's down at the moment, but they say it will be up again shortly. In addition to this is the Rip-off Report (click here), which is quite detailed and goes pretty deeply into what happened. However, the second half of it needs to be read with a pinch of salt because it is obviously written by Philip Crabb himself, who was undoubtedly one of the main culprits in the whole saga/fiasco. He mentions "OUR company, English For Fun" and the inevitable "internationally accredited" reference to his own TEFL course, etc. So you may need to read between the lines there. Nevertheless, the overall report is pretty damning for Invasion. It's all in strong contrast to the massaged write-ups on the GoAbroad review site.
I have written to Invasion to ask them for their side of the story, but sadly they have not replied. It now seems to be their standard policy not to respond to any enquiries related to August/September of 2017. Looking back, the writing was already on the wall by the way they covered up the "gun" incident in 2016 (see my posts of June 2017 and October 2016). Just the fact that they were willingly working with a man as notorious as Philip Crabb already gave some indication of their level of ethicality. They cannot simply blame everything on him, they need to take responsibility themselves. It's important that everyone at every stage of the Camp experience has the highest degree of integrity and is fully vetted beforehand.
Of course, I personally wish people would read my blog before signing up for these camps. Sadly, most people only read it after the event. Anyway, if anyone is reading this prior to going somewhere under Invasion's steam I strongly recommend them to rethink. In fact, I would recommend everyone to boycott Invasion completely.
Good luck for the future!
EFL Greg
Monday, 23 October 2017
Invasion and Ethics
Hi Campers!
Following the events of August and September, I think Invasion really need to be doing some serious soul searching. First they need to establish what their core values are and then make sure they apply them with full integrity. Clearly they have been coming up short on the ethical front in recent months.
First of all, how did they get into bed with their previous TEFL providers (English For Fun) in the first place? EFF's track record was well known to all before they linked up. Did Invasion seriously believe there would be no problems ensuing from that liaison? Clearly, it was a deal based on expediency at the time rather than one that matched their core values.
Secondly, Invasion have failed miserably in their response to the complaints of campers taking part in the August camp in Chiang Mai. Rather than offer measly £250 vouchers, they should offer full refunds. Only this way can they realistically hope to keep customers and hold on to their market share. Word gets around quickly on social media these days.
At the very heart of all Invasion's venture must be ethicality towards the campers themselves. Most of the campers are youngsters who have never travelled to Asia before, and have anxious parents at home worrying about them. To cut corners and condone sub-standard behaviour at camps is simply not acceptable (see previous posts).
In the future, Invasion must make ethicality and the maintenance of high standards an absolute must, not just an optional extra. If they can do this, we wish them luck going forward with their new TEFL partners. If they can't, they must expect to see an inevitable decline in the number of participants on their camps, and deservedly so.
Let's hope there's some improvement in the future.
EFL Greg
Following the events of August and September, I think Invasion really need to be doing some serious soul searching. First they need to establish what their core values are and then make sure they apply them with full integrity. Clearly they have been coming up short on the ethical front in recent months.
First of all, how did they get into bed with their previous TEFL providers (English For Fun) in the first place? EFF's track record was well known to all before they linked up. Did Invasion seriously believe there would be no problems ensuing from that liaison? Clearly, it was a deal based on expediency at the time rather than one that matched their core values.
Secondly, Invasion have failed miserably in their response to the complaints of campers taking part in the August camp in Chiang Mai. Rather than offer measly £250 vouchers, they should offer full refunds. Only this way can they realistically hope to keep customers and hold on to their market share. Word gets around quickly on social media these days.
At the very heart of all Invasion's venture must be ethicality towards the campers themselves. Most of the campers are youngsters who have never travelled to Asia before, and have anxious parents at home worrying about them. To cut corners and condone sub-standard behaviour at camps is simply not acceptable (see previous posts).
In the future, Invasion must make ethicality and the maintenance of high standards an absolute must, not just an optional extra. If they can do this, we wish them luck going forward with their new TEFL partners. If they can't, they must expect to see an inevitable decline in the number of participants on their camps, and deservedly so.
Let's hope there's some improvement in the future.
EFL Greg
Friday, 6 October 2017
Invasion and Camp Thailand
Hi Thailand Campers!
Following my last post I've received a lot of disturbing news. It seems there's been a real bust up between Invasion and Philip Crabb. In fact, Invasion have dispensed with his services altogether and are now using Greenway China to provide the TEFL component of their Camp experience. I don't actually know anything about Greenway, so I can't honestly vouch for them. What I can say, though, is that Invasion should be applauded for parting company with Philip Crabb and his English For Fun farce. We have been pressing for this for a long time on this blog, so let's hope this move heralds a brighter future.
Meanwhile, Invasion is in quite a state of turmoil, in that there have been several complaints from campers and from parents about the messy way the August / September course turned out. Apparently, there was trouble about visas as well as the switch in hotels from Cha-Am to Hua Hin. It seems that Invasion had some genuine cash flow problems, probably as a result of overextending themselves with too many camps. This was compounded by the possibility that Philip Crabb was embezzling money sent to him by Invasion. At this stage, we have no proof of that. However, it seems the possibility alone was enough to make Invasion act.
Overall, it seems Invasion are trying to do their best in difficult circumstances. For example, they have offered dissatisfied campers vouchers for £250, etc. However, Invasion need to be much more open, honest and communicative in dealing with their camp participants. I'm getting reports of unanswered emails and robotic responses to phone calls. That's just no way to treat customers. They really need to work on their PR
Whatever happened to cause the bust up, Philip Crabb clearly has his own agenda, the main component being to claim Camp Thailand as his own. In fact, many of you may already have noticed that there are two Camp Thailands now, Summer Camp Thailand https://summercampthailand.com/ run by Americamp and Camp Thailand http://www.campthailand.org/ run by Philip Crabb. What it seems Mr. Crabb is trying to do now is to create as much of a stir as he can about Invasion in the hope that they go out of business, leaving him 100% control of Camp Thailand. He even tries to claim that he created the whole project. This is complete poppycock, he is merely a provider of sub-standard TEFL courses, nothing more. For future reference have no doubt that Invasion/Americamp's version of Camp Thailand is the original one.
I'll make more comments about developments in my next post. Meanwhile, please do post your comments or email me directly.
Keep camping!
EFL Greg
Following my last post I've received a lot of disturbing news. It seems there's been a real bust up between Invasion and Philip Crabb. In fact, Invasion have dispensed with his services altogether and are now using Greenway China to provide the TEFL component of their Camp experience. I don't actually know anything about Greenway, so I can't honestly vouch for them. What I can say, though, is that Invasion should be applauded for parting company with Philip Crabb and his English For Fun farce. We have been pressing for this for a long time on this blog, so let's hope this move heralds a brighter future.
Meanwhile, Invasion is in quite a state of turmoil, in that there have been several complaints from campers and from parents about the messy way the August / September course turned out. Apparently, there was trouble about visas as well as the switch in hotels from Cha-Am to Hua Hin. It seems that Invasion had some genuine cash flow problems, probably as a result of overextending themselves with too many camps. This was compounded by the possibility that Philip Crabb was embezzling money sent to him by Invasion. At this stage, we have no proof of that. However, it seems the possibility alone was enough to make Invasion act.
Overall, it seems Invasion are trying to do their best in difficult circumstances. For example, they have offered dissatisfied campers vouchers for £250, etc. However, Invasion need to be much more open, honest and communicative in dealing with their camp participants. I'm getting reports of unanswered emails and robotic responses to phone calls. That's just no way to treat customers. They really need to work on their PR
Whatever happened to cause the bust up, Philip Crabb clearly has his own agenda, the main component being to claim Camp Thailand as his own. In fact, many of you may already have noticed that there are two Camp Thailands now, Summer Camp Thailand https://summercampthailand.com/ run by Americamp and Camp Thailand http://www.campthailand.org/ run by Philip Crabb. What it seems Mr. Crabb is trying to do now is to create as much of a stir as he can about Invasion in the hope that they go out of business, leaving him 100% control of Camp Thailand. He even tries to claim that he created the whole project. This is complete poppycock, he is merely a provider of sub-standard TEFL courses, nothing more. For future reference have no doubt that Invasion/Americamp's version of Camp Thailand is the original one.
I'll make more comments about developments in my next post. Meanwhile, please do post your comments or email me directly.
Keep camping!
EFL Greg
Saturday, 16 September 2017
Invasion and Summer Camp C in Chiang Mai
Hi Everyone,
I have recently learnt that Americamp is owned by Invasion Ltd. I didn't actually know this. They have their head offices in the Manchester region too. Anyway, it seems they have just done the August Summer Camp Thailand Camp C in Chiang Mai, using Philip Crabb as their TEFL provider. Apparently, however, they had a falling out with Philip Crabb and told students that they were changing to another TEFL provider. If this is true, I must say hats off to Invasion/Americamp for removing Philip Crabb as one of their partners. Let's hope this will lead to a brighter future.
However, Invasion need to provide the TEFL certificates for this course pretty promptly, because I've heard from students who were on the course that Philip Crabb is trying to get them to spend a further £49 each to get their certificates from him. He claims that Invasion owe him a lot of money, which is why he needs to charge. However, this is something students have already paid for in the original course fees. So we are strongly recommending anyone on that course not to pay Philip Crabb this extra amount. Philip Crabb needs to sort out his problems with Invasion privately, not pass them on to the students. Remember, the TEFL certificates are worthless anyway.
In addition to this, Invasion also changed the location of their packaged break in Cha-Am, changing it to inferior accommodation in Hua Hin, which caused a lot of discontent amongst campers. Why this was necessary is unclear, because one would imagine that a company as large as Invasion would always have plenty of cash available, particularly if you're paying £700 a head. I am told there were 67 students on the course. That's a total income of about £47,000!
Do watch out for this kind of thing and make sure providers keep to their promises and offer refunds when they don't. As I've mentioned before, the TEFL world can be a shady place with low standards. The original hotel was Peerapa Place in Cha-Am, right near the beach and nightlife areas, whereas the "upgrade" was The Greenway Resort located about 40 km from Hua Hin itself. Apparently, in the latter place, in addition to the poor location, the sheets were dirty, the food was poor and there was limited wifi. The place used in Chiang Mai was The Eco Resort and most comments were pretty positive. Again, though, campers here were asked to pay extra for air-con, which is completely unacceptable. The hotel also confirmed that air-con was free anyway. Do Google them all.
Importantly, as per usual, the TEFL course itself was reported as being disorganised and incomplete. Otherwise, the camp that Invasion offered sounded quite good. But please do post your comments. What was your experience? Do you have anything to add to the above report? Any comments about facilities, arrangements, prices and people are all welcome.
Enjoy,
EFL Greg
I have recently learnt that Americamp is owned by Invasion Ltd. I didn't actually know this. They have their head offices in the Manchester region too. Anyway, it seems they have just done the August Summer Camp Thailand Camp C in Chiang Mai, using Philip Crabb as their TEFL provider. Apparently, however, they had a falling out with Philip Crabb and told students that they were changing to another TEFL provider. If this is true, I must say hats off to Invasion/Americamp for removing Philip Crabb as one of their partners. Let's hope this will lead to a brighter future.
However, Invasion need to provide the TEFL certificates for this course pretty promptly, because I've heard from students who were on the course that Philip Crabb is trying to get them to spend a further £49 each to get their certificates from him. He claims that Invasion owe him a lot of money, which is why he needs to charge. However, this is something students have already paid for in the original course fees. So we are strongly recommending anyone on that course not to pay Philip Crabb this extra amount. Philip Crabb needs to sort out his problems with Invasion privately, not pass them on to the students. Remember, the TEFL certificates are worthless anyway.
In addition to this, Invasion also changed the location of their packaged break in Cha-Am, changing it to inferior accommodation in Hua Hin, which caused a lot of discontent amongst campers. Why this was necessary is unclear, because one would imagine that a company as large as Invasion would always have plenty of cash available, particularly if you're paying £700 a head. I am told there were 67 students on the course. That's a total income of about £47,000!
Do watch out for this kind of thing and make sure providers keep to their promises and offer refunds when they don't. As I've mentioned before, the TEFL world can be a shady place with low standards. The original hotel was Peerapa Place in Cha-Am, right near the beach and nightlife areas, whereas the "upgrade" was The Greenway Resort located about 40 km from Hua Hin itself. Apparently, in the latter place, in addition to the poor location, the sheets were dirty, the food was poor and there was limited wifi. The place used in Chiang Mai was The Eco Resort and most comments were pretty positive. Again, though, campers here were asked to pay extra for air-con, which is completely unacceptable. The hotel also confirmed that air-con was free anyway. Do Google them all.
Importantly, as per usual, the TEFL course itself was reported as being disorganised and incomplete. Otherwise, the camp that Invasion offered sounded quite good. But please do post your comments. What was your experience? Do you have anything to add to the above report? Any comments about facilities, arrangements, prices and people are all welcome.
Enjoy,
EFL Greg
Tuesday, 29 August 2017
Accreditation and Pricing
Hi Campers,
I was just looking at Americamp's Camp Thailand website and noticed that they've put up a whole load of blurb about TEFL certificates in relation to accreditation. I think it's been up a while actually. Click on TEFL They're no longer claiming that their certificate is "internationally accredited", which is a major step forward. I congratulate them on their honesty. However, what they've put up instead is a pretty vague piece that really tells us nothing at all, just a series of generalities with nothing specific. Basically, it's a load of hogwash designed to pull the wool over your eyes, cloaked in that kind of formal language that makes it sound oh so credible. "School and authorities"? Yes, the schools they give free lessons at. "The Ministry of Education"? Take it from me, there's no way the ministry gets involved in farang run TEFL schools. Their concern is state schools and private schools running the proper national curriculum. EFL courses are not part of their domain. The point is that Camp Thailand's courses are completely unaccredited and it's pot luck how good any one course will be. Worst case scenario is if Philip Crabb himself gives the course.
While here, I'd like to remind all you potential campers that you'll be spending over £700 for only three weeks of "training" and activities. So are you really getting your money's worth? Remember that, while accommodation is included in the price, it is bunk beds in a dorm, and even then you have to pay extra if you want air-con. You can stay in a 3 star hotel in central Bangkok for just £20 a night. So surely they could afford to give you something better than 5 in a room with no air-con for your £700? The TEFL course isn't worth more than £100 and the same goes for the excursions. Camp Thailand's expenses are simply the rent for the premises and some low salaries for their workers. Even the trainer won't get more than a $1,000 a month. So you can see just how much money is going directly into the pockets of Philip Crabb and Americamp. They're cutting costs any which way they can to maximise their own profit. Philip Crabb is interested in one thing only, and that's your money. You're being well and truly fleeced. You really need to open your eyes to that.
So once again, we recommend that you avoid this kind of overpriced summer camp and set out independently. Do an online TEFL course, preferably not English For Fun's, and go direct to a Thai placement agency for a free placement and orientation course. Do the excursions at your own leisure during your year in Thailand. It's such a wonderful country. Just take that bold step to be independent. Thailand is a very safe country if you stick to common sense precautions. You should have a wail of a time.
Good luck, campers!
EFL Greg
I was just looking at Americamp's Camp Thailand website and noticed that they've put up a whole load of blurb about TEFL certificates in relation to accreditation. I think it's been up a while actually. Click on TEFL They're no longer claiming that their certificate is "internationally accredited", which is a major step forward. I congratulate them on their honesty. However, what they've put up instead is a pretty vague piece that really tells us nothing at all, just a series of generalities with nothing specific. Basically, it's a load of hogwash designed to pull the wool over your eyes, cloaked in that kind of formal language that makes it sound oh so credible. "School and authorities"? Yes, the schools they give free lessons at. "The Ministry of Education"? Take it from me, there's no way the ministry gets involved in farang run TEFL schools. Their concern is state schools and private schools running the proper national curriculum. EFL courses are not part of their domain. The point is that Camp Thailand's courses are completely unaccredited and it's pot luck how good any one course will be. Worst case scenario is if Philip Crabb himself gives the course.
While here, I'd like to remind all you potential campers that you'll be spending over £700 for only three weeks of "training" and activities. So are you really getting your money's worth? Remember that, while accommodation is included in the price, it is bunk beds in a dorm, and even then you have to pay extra if you want air-con. You can stay in a 3 star hotel in central Bangkok for just £20 a night. So surely they could afford to give you something better than 5 in a room with no air-con for your £700? The TEFL course isn't worth more than £100 and the same goes for the excursions. Camp Thailand's expenses are simply the rent for the premises and some low salaries for their workers. Even the trainer won't get more than a $1,000 a month. So you can see just how much money is going directly into the pockets of Philip Crabb and Americamp. They're cutting costs any which way they can to maximise their own profit. Philip Crabb is interested in one thing only, and that's your money. You're being well and truly fleeced. You really need to open your eyes to that.
So once again, we recommend that you avoid this kind of overpriced summer camp and set out independently. Do an online TEFL course, preferably not English For Fun's, and go direct to a Thai placement agency for a free placement and orientation course. Do the excursions at your own leisure during your year in Thailand. It's such a wonderful country. Just take that bold step to be independent. Thailand is a very safe country if you stick to common sense precautions. You should have a wail of a time.
Good luck, campers!
EFL Greg
Wednesday, 28 June 2017
Americamp and Camp Thailand
Hi EFL World!
Let's just have a quick look at Americamp's relationship with Camp Thailand. Although Camp Thailand comes under Americamp's general umbrella, it is actually at least half owned and run by Philip Crabb. The CEO of Americamp is Lee McAteer, and for his operations in Thailand he has teamed up with Philip Crabb, who runs the show there. He also has a rep called Dean Hallworth there, but his power is limited.
Up to now, this blog has been pretty complimentary towards Americamp and the aspects of their camps that they organise directly. However, it is clear that there is something amiss with the way Philip Crabb is running operations at his end. Typical complaints so far against him are:
1. He claims his TEFL certificate is "internationally accredited", but this is completely unfounded. It's not accredited in any meaningful sense of the word, and is basically a junk qualification.
2. Most of the trainers for the courses are unqualified. Instead, they are often just random teachers are in the area at the time who happen to be looking for a job.
3. Similarly, Philip Crabb himself has no formal EFL qualifications, and is best known in the EFL world for being fired by a school in Bangkok for coming in drunk.
4. Even now Philip often attends sessions either drunk or clearly hung over.
5. Philip usually fails and expels a student quickly in order to create fear and compliance among the other students. The student will invariably be someone who has caused some kind of problem or asked some awkward questions.
6. Later, he often does the exact converse and passes students without even looking at their submissions. The "blank document" incident in 2016, when he passed a student who submitted a blank document, is well-known.
7. He tries to extract extra money from students anyway he can, with all kinds of extra charges for towels, taxis, air-con, etc.
8. Most importantly, in 2016 one of Thai staff pulled a gun on some girls students because they did not use Philip's own expensive taxi service. We now have this evidenced from three separate sources.
9. His history with Island TEFL, which he ran as Philip Dunne before acquiring Camp Thailand, is truly shocking. Google and lots of results will come up. They can't all be lying.
10. He charges as much as £500 for a five day orientation course before placement in a school by an agency. An identical orientation course can be obtained directly from the agency completely for free.
I will leave it to the reader to decide whether the above is merely sharp practice or outright criminality. The point is that Philip Crabb is clearly not a man you should be entrusting yourself to or giving your money to. It also reflects back on Americamp that they continue to work with him. It shows that they themselves lack any real ethicality. Clearly it's just about money at the end of the day.
So we conclude that, even though there are some wonderful positives about the Camp Thailand experience, potential campers should boycott Camp Thailand, and use another provider until such time as Americamp disown Philip Crabb.
In my next post, I'll quote from some of the numerous emails I have received.
Stay wise!
EFL Greg
Let's just have a quick look at Americamp's relationship with Camp Thailand. Although Camp Thailand comes under Americamp's general umbrella, it is actually at least half owned and run by Philip Crabb. The CEO of Americamp is Lee McAteer, and for his operations in Thailand he has teamed up with Philip Crabb, who runs the show there. He also has a rep called Dean Hallworth there, but his power is limited.
Up to now, this blog has been pretty complimentary towards Americamp and the aspects of their camps that they organise directly. However, it is clear that there is something amiss with the way Philip Crabb is running operations at his end. Typical complaints so far against him are:
1. He claims his TEFL certificate is "internationally accredited", but this is completely unfounded. It's not accredited in any meaningful sense of the word, and is basically a junk qualification.
2. Most of the trainers for the courses are unqualified. Instead, they are often just random teachers are in the area at the time who happen to be looking for a job.
3. Similarly, Philip Crabb himself has no formal EFL qualifications, and is best known in the EFL world for being fired by a school in Bangkok for coming in drunk.
4. Even now Philip often attends sessions either drunk or clearly hung over.
5. Philip usually fails and expels a student quickly in order to create fear and compliance among the other students. The student will invariably be someone who has caused some kind of problem or asked some awkward questions.
6. Later, he often does the exact converse and passes students without even looking at their submissions. The "blank document" incident in 2016, when he passed a student who submitted a blank document, is well-known.
7. He tries to extract extra money from students anyway he can, with all kinds of extra charges for towels, taxis, air-con, etc.
8. Most importantly, in 2016 one of Thai staff pulled a gun on some girls students because they did not use Philip's own expensive taxi service. We now have this evidenced from three separate sources.
9. His history with Island TEFL, which he ran as Philip Dunne before acquiring Camp Thailand, is truly shocking. Google and lots of results will come up. They can't all be lying.
10. He charges as much as £500 for a five day orientation course before placement in a school by an agency. An identical orientation course can be obtained directly from the agency completely for free.
I will leave it to the reader to decide whether the above is merely sharp practice or outright criminality. The point is that Philip Crabb is clearly not a man you should be entrusting yourself to or giving your money to. It also reflects back on Americamp that they continue to work with him. It shows that they themselves lack any real ethicality. Clearly it's just about money at the end of the day.
So we conclude that, even though there are some wonderful positives about the Camp Thailand experience, potential campers should boycott Camp Thailand, and use another provider until such time as Americamp disown Philip Crabb.
In my next post, I'll quote from some of the numerous emails I have received.
Stay wise!
EFL Greg
Monday, 24 April 2017
Deleted Post - by Americamp !!
Hi Campers !!
We've just had a stunning experience on our blog! Our Camp Thailand Review post of October 2016 has been deleted in the UK. Also some comments on the Camp Thailand post of January 2016 have vanished. The stated reason on the blog post is that it is the result of a "legal request", presumably from Americamp. It seems this only applies to the UK, because elsewhere, including here in Thailand, the post is up and running as normal.
I can only assume that the reason is the mention of the incident in which a Thai worker at Camp Thailand is alleged to have pulled out a gun on some girl trainees for not using Philip Crabb's taxi. I would guess the legal reason would be that the incident is unproven. However, we clearly stated in the original post that we could not verify the incident independently. All journalists and news channels do this kind of thing. Just watch CNN, they're always saying that they are unable independently to confirm something when they rely on external sources. So I am genuinely surprised that a UK court of law has passed this order.
What's really surprising about this is that we've had absolutely no direct communication from anyone. You would have thought Google would have sent us an email explaining what had happened. Or perhaps something from the lawyer involved. And hopefully something from Americamp themselves. But, no, absolutely nothing!
I'm particularly surprised that Americamp have at no stage tried to contact us directly. If you have a problem with someone, surely the first course of action is to speak candidly with that person and try and find a solution. Only if that doesn't work would you embark on the expensive and laborious task of legal action. The fact that Americamp have chosen such a roundabout route indicates to me just how morally bankrupt they are. They are clearly unsure of their position and so are clutching at legal straws to eradicate an inconvenient review. I think they would do much better to deal with the root of the problem, which is clearly the set up at Camp Thailand.
I hope my readers will read all the posts on my blog, which are actually pretty complimentary towards Americamp. It's primarily the TEFL side of the Camp Thailand that we consider suspect, because of its unsatisfactory course standards and trainer behaviour. We feel it is essential that in a democratic society that recognises free speech our comments and opinions be allowed unfettered.
Happy camping!
EFL Greg
We've just had a stunning experience on our blog! Our Camp Thailand Review post of October 2016 has been deleted in the UK. Also some comments on the Camp Thailand post of January 2016 have vanished. The stated reason on the blog post is that it is the result of a "legal request", presumably from Americamp. It seems this only applies to the UK, because elsewhere, including here in Thailand, the post is up and running as normal.
I can only assume that the reason is the mention of the incident in which a Thai worker at Camp Thailand is alleged to have pulled out a gun on some girl trainees for not using Philip Crabb's taxi. I would guess the legal reason would be that the incident is unproven. However, we clearly stated in the original post that we could not verify the incident independently. All journalists and news channels do this kind of thing. Just watch CNN, they're always saying that they are unable independently to confirm something when they rely on external sources. So I am genuinely surprised that a UK court of law has passed this order.
What's really surprising about this is that we've had absolutely no direct communication from anyone. You would have thought Google would have sent us an email explaining what had happened. Or perhaps something from the lawyer involved. And hopefully something from Americamp themselves. But, no, absolutely nothing!
I'm particularly surprised that Americamp have at no stage tried to contact us directly. If you have a problem with someone, surely the first course of action is to speak candidly with that person and try and find a solution. Only if that doesn't work would you embark on the expensive and laborious task of legal action. The fact that Americamp have chosen such a roundabout route indicates to me just how morally bankrupt they are. They are clearly unsure of their position and so are clutching at legal straws to eradicate an inconvenient review. I think they would do much better to deal with the root of the problem, which is clearly the set up at Camp Thailand.
I hope my readers will read all the posts on my blog, which are actually pretty complimentary towards Americamp. It's primarily the TEFL side of the Camp Thailand that we consider suspect, because of its unsatisfactory course standards and trainer behaviour. We feel it is essential that in a democratic society that recognises free speech our comments and opinions be allowed unfettered.
Happy camping!
EFL Greg
Friday, 18 November 2016
Latest
Hi Everyone,
Originally, I started this blog to review all camps in Thailand. However, we've only received reviews about Camp Thailand. This strongly suggests that Camp Thailand are the market leaders. Nevertheless, as you know from previous posts, there has been quite a lot of negative feedback, such that I myself have recommending boycotting it until further notice. I also commented on a student forum https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=4121707#primary_content So how should you potential campers respond to this?
Firstly, it's important to know that most of the experiences offered by the camp can be got independently, at a mere fraction of the cost. There's nothing to stop you going to any of these elephant camps, etc, under your own steam and experiencing them at your own leisure. Having your own freedom is one of the joys of travelling. The camp experience offers a certain amount of security together with the big group experience. For example, you're sure to make new friends and meet interesting people. But is it worth spending close on £1,000 on this, particularly as the TEFL aspect is so suspect?
Our advice, if you're having second thoughts, is to team up with a group of friends and travel independently. Don't be frightened of travelling in SE Asia. It's one of the safest places in the world if you're careful and follow sensible, common sense precautions. It can also be so much more exciting and rewarding to experience a developing country in a freewheeling kind of way, rather than the packaged version the camps will give you.
If you want to teach in a school, just an online course will be enough. Just go round to any school and offer your services for free or something minimal and there's a really good chance they'll take you on. If you want to teach for several months or a whole year, go direct to a well established placement agency, who should place you for free. Schools like English For Fun and Island TEFL, etc are exploiting your lack of knowledge to make a financial killing. Don't be conned.
Be a real traveller! Good luck.
EFL Greg
Originally, I started this blog to review all camps in Thailand. However, we've only received reviews about Camp Thailand. This strongly suggests that Camp Thailand are the market leaders. Nevertheless, as you know from previous posts, there has been quite a lot of negative feedback, such that I myself have recommending boycotting it until further notice. I also commented on a student forum https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=4121707#primary_content So how should you potential campers respond to this?
Firstly, it's important to know that most of the experiences offered by the camp can be got independently, at a mere fraction of the cost. There's nothing to stop you going to any of these elephant camps, etc, under your own steam and experiencing them at your own leisure. Having your own freedom is one of the joys of travelling. The camp experience offers a certain amount of security together with the big group experience. For example, you're sure to make new friends and meet interesting people. But is it worth spending close on £1,000 on this, particularly as the TEFL aspect is so suspect?
Our advice, if you're having second thoughts, is to team up with a group of friends and travel independently. Don't be frightened of travelling in SE Asia. It's one of the safest places in the world if you're careful and follow sensible, common sense precautions. It can also be so much more exciting and rewarding to experience a developing country in a freewheeling kind of way, rather than the packaged version the camps will give you.
If you want to teach in a school, just an online course will be enough. Just go round to any school and offer your services for free or something minimal and there's a really good chance they'll take you on. If you want to teach for several months or a whole year, go direct to a well established placement agency, who should place you for free. Schools like English For Fun and Island TEFL, etc are exploiting your lack of knowledge to make a financial killing. Don't be conned.
Be a real traveller! Good luck.
EFL Greg
Links to Other Sites
Hi Campers,
I was just googling around for useful looking websites and found this one. This is the link to a page from the International TEFL Academy. I don't honestly know how good their courses are, but their advice for assessing whether a course meets the standard or not is spot on.
Start with this one https://www.internationalteflacademy.com/faq/bid/109035/5-Key-Tips-to-Help-You-Pick-the-Right-TEFL-Certification-Course-and-Not-Get-Ripped-Off and then follow their other links.
Here are the links to some of the various sites of Camp Thailand we've mentioned or reviewed so far in this blog:
https://www.americamp.co.uk/programmes/camp-thailand/
https://summercampthailand.com/
http://www.englishcampsthailand.com/
Some of them lead you to the same place.
Always remember to research thoroughly before committing your hard earned cash anywhere!
EFL Greg
I was just googling around for useful looking websites and found this one. This is the link to a page from the International TEFL Academy. I don't honestly know how good their courses are, but their advice for assessing whether a course meets the standard or not is spot on.
Start with this one https://www.internationalteflacademy.com/faq/bid/109035/5-Key-Tips-to-Help-You-Pick-the-Right-TEFL-Certification-Course-and-Not-Get-Ripped-Off and then follow their other links.
Here are the links to some of the various sites of Camp Thailand we've mentioned or reviewed so far in this blog:
https://www.americamp.co.uk/programmes/camp-thailand/
https://summercampthailand.com/
http://www.englishcampsthailand.com/
Some of them lead you to the same place.
Always remember to research thoroughly before committing your hard earned cash anywhere!
EFL Greg
Wednesday, 12 October 2016
Camp Thailand Review
Hi, EFL Greg here!
We've had quite a few reviews of Camp Thailand now, with a mixed bag of reports. Everyone seems pretty agreed that the activity part of the camp, i.e. the excursions and elephant trips, as well as even the live teaching in the schools, is pretty well set up, and has been a positive experience for most campers. Most of this is directly under the control of Americamp, who seem to be providing a reasonably genuine service.
However, it's the TEFL side of Camp Thailand that is seriously suspect. This is run by Philip Crabb together with his Thai wife, and we've had several reports of unacceptable course standards and severe bias in the treatment of students. See the comments on the Camp Thailand post. In addition, it has now been conclusively proved that the TEFL certificate issued by EFF (English For Fun, formerly Island TEFL) is wholly unaccredited, and is basically a junk qualification.
From the reviews we've received, Philip Crabb, formerly Philip Dunne, seems to be running the place like a dictator, ruling by fear. Anyone who causes him any kind of problem quickly gets removed from the Camp, whether it be a a student or an employee. There are no refunds incidentally. The most disturbing incident, however, occurred just recently when he or his wife actually had some of the Thai workers pull out a gun on some of the girl students just because they weren't using the camp's own taxi and were liaising with a former teacher and employee banned by Philip. We cannot verify this independently. However, we've heard about this incident from two separate sources. So it needs to be taken seriously. It's possible Camp Thailand is even paying off the police. The incident was apparently quickly hushed up by both Americamp and Camp Thailand.
So because of the atmosphere of fear that Philip Crabb specialises in creating and the sub-standard courses he is fraudulently offering, we're recommending that prospective campers vote with their feet and boycott Camp Thailand until such time as Americamp have dealt properly with the situation and brought Philip Crabb to heel. Anyone who knows anything more about any of the above should come forward and post.
It's always important to remember that in developing countries like Thailand, and even more so Cambodia, law enforcement is weak. In fact, corruption is rampant, particularly within the police force. So don't expect that you will automatically get justice in the event of any criminal or illegal action inflicted upon you.
Always be careful when committing yourself and putting yourself in the hands of people you don't know, particularly when travelling alone to a developing country.
Good luck with whatever camp you finally decide on.
Greg
Thursday, 30 June 2016
Accreditation
EFL Greg again!
So your TEFL certificate's going to be "internationally accredited", is it? It's easy for any course provider to make a claim like that, but is it really true? First of all, it's unlikely that a course that advertises itself as half fun on the beach and half study is likely to meet international standards. Also, if it has almost zero training with real Thai students, again it's coming up short by international standards. Most importantly, though, any truly accredited course will have an external assessment by that accrediting body at the end of the course. For example, your last teaching session should be observed by someone external to the school you're paying fees to. Everyone knows this is the case with the CELTA and Trinity qualifications. If a school makes it look easy, they're almost certainly duping you. They're making a false claim as a means to acquiring your hard earned money.
A great example of this is English For Fun's (formerly Island TEFL) claim to be accredited by the University of San Diego. Our review committee recently contacted USD directly, and they confirmed that they do not accredit Island TEFL. Nevertheless, the claim is still clearly there on the Island TEFL website and the English For Fun log-in page. And, remember, these are the same people who will be running Camp Thailand.
So we advise all prospective EFL trainee students to research the academic credentials of the school. The best way is simply to contact the accrediting organisation directly.
Good luck with your hunt.
EFL Greg
So your TEFL certificate's going to be "internationally accredited", is it? It's easy for any course provider to make a claim like that, but is it really true? First of all, it's unlikely that a course that advertises itself as half fun on the beach and half study is likely to meet international standards. Also, if it has almost zero training with real Thai students, again it's coming up short by international standards. Most importantly, though, any truly accredited course will have an external assessment by that accrediting body at the end of the course. For example, your last teaching session should be observed by someone external to the school you're paying fees to. Everyone knows this is the case with the CELTA and Trinity qualifications. If a school makes it look easy, they're almost certainly duping you. They're making a false claim as a means to acquiring your hard earned money.
A great example of this is English For Fun's (formerly Island TEFL) claim to be accredited by the University of San Diego. Our review committee recently contacted USD directly, and they confirmed that they do not accredit Island TEFL. Nevertheless, the claim is still clearly there on the Island TEFL website and the English For Fun log-in page. And, remember, these are the same people who will be running Camp Thailand.
So we advise all prospective EFL trainee students to research the academic credentials of the school. The best way is simply to contact the accrediting organisation directly.
Good luck with your hunt.
EFL Greg
Wednesday, 20 January 2016
Camps in Thailand
Hi EFL World!
A new trend has been developing recently in the EFL world, and that is the summer camp as a way of combining EFL training, practice and adventure activities all in one package. It's certainly a great idea and very attractive to youngsters today, particularly gap year students. So, as there are quite a few of them, we thought it might be a good idea to have a site committed specifically to reviewing these camps. Often testimonials on the websites themselves are massaged up and don't give a properly objective overview. Hopefully, through this site prospective students or trainees can get a clearer idea of what to expect, and will be better informed when making a decision or choice.
Please submit reviews to our email address (below) and we will post it if it meets our criteria, which are as follows:
1. Please be specific with regard to the name of the camp, as many of them have similar sounding names, many of them almost generic in nature.
2. State clearly when and where you attended.
3. Who ran the course?
4. Did you feel it represented good value for money?
5. Did you actually receive everything that was advertised? If not, what?
6. What was the customer service like? Did they help you overcome difficulties?
7. Describe the main features, positive and/or negative.
8. Please be objective. Make sure you can support any negative comments, and please don't degenerate into using abusive language.
I hope we can get a good mix of comments about a variety of camps.
Look forward to your responses.
Greg Watson
Secretary,
Camps in Thailand Review Committee
gregeflwatson@gmail.com
A new trend has been developing recently in the EFL world, and that is the summer camp as a way of combining EFL training, practice and adventure activities all in one package. It's certainly a great idea and very attractive to youngsters today, particularly gap year students. So, as there are quite a few of them, we thought it might be a good idea to have a site committed specifically to reviewing these camps. Often testimonials on the websites themselves are massaged up and don't give a properly objective overview. Hopefully, through this site prospective students or trainees can get a clearer idea of what to expect, and will be better informed when making a decision or choice.
Please submit reviews to our email address (below) and we will post it if it meets our criteria, which are as follows:
1. Please be specific with regard to the name of the camp, as many of them have similar sounding names, many of them almost generic in nature.
2. State clearly when and where you attended.
3. Who ran the course?
4. Did you feel it represented good value for money?
5. Did you actually receive everything that was advertised? If not, what?
6. What was the customer service like? Did they help you overcome difficulties?
7. Describe the main features, positive and/or negative.
8. Please be objective. Make sure you can support any negative comments, and please don't degenerate into using abusive language.
I hope we can get a good mix of comments about a variety of camps.
Look forward to your responses.
Greg Watson
Secretary,
Camps in Thailand Review Committee
gregeflwatson@gmail.com
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