Article written by the mother of a student at The Village.
The Village International Education Centre – A Haven for Special Needs
If you have a child with any kind of special need, it is always difficult to find the right school for him or her. In Asia it seems to be particularly difficult. Although there is a wide choice of very good international schools, very few of these schools are able to provide the right support for children with moderate to severe learning difficulties.
Placing a child with special needs in a mainstream school is the only option for many families. When we arrived in Bangkok we went down the same route with our son who has complex learning difficulties. Although the school we chose was very supportive and had some provision for special needs children, it soon became clear that our son was not going to be able to progress in this setting. He was teased by the other children who could not understand why he was different from them. His self-esteem was very low and he lost motivation to learn.
At this point we were considering moving back to the UK, but, just in time, we discovered The Village on Sukhumvit Soi 42 (Ekkamai). This is a Centre for children with any kind of learning difficulty, such as dyslexia, emotional/ behavioural problems, Down’s syndrome, cerebral palsy, Asperger’s syndrome and autism. The Centre is run by Harshi Sehmar, who himself had a negative experience of school in the UK, having struggled all the way through with undiagnosed dyslexia. It was only once Harshi went into further education and started training as a teacher in special needs that he was able to find the right support for his own learning difficulty.
The Village started off as one room with one student and Harshi. It has grown into a Centre with 28 students, an educational psychologist, a clinical psychologist, a speech therapist, a family counsellor, 7 qualified teachers (all with special needs training and 3 with Masters in special needs), and 13 teaching assistants. The Centre also has 2 school buses, an ICT unit and fresh food is cooked on the premises every day.
Since our son has been attending The Village the change in him has been remarkable. He has made a lot of progress with his reading and writing and his self-esteem has improved no end. He is so much happier and he even complains at the weekend when he can’t go to school. Next week he is going on a school Residential trip to Khao Yai, where he will be taking part in all kinds of adventurous activities with his friends.
One of the great things about The Village is that everyone there understands each others problems and they all respect and support each other. There is no element of teasing or bullying. The students are made to feel proud of their achievements. They are given the opportunity to focus on their strengths, whilst getting the right help for their individual weaknesses. The stress-free happy environment, the quality of the teaching and the dedication of the staff all go together to ensure that each child develops to his or her full potential.
If you would like more information about The Village you can contact Harshi Sehmar on 02 391 4453 or at
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Letter written to the Director of The Village, June 2007
Dear Harshi
Just to let you know (maybe you already know). Ayesha is confirmed and has accepted the place at Brunel University. She is already in the UK and I join her in 2 weeks times to drive her around to help her to get to Uxbridge to enrol. She has a place in the Halls of Residence – and all the paperwork is getting sorted out. She seems very focussed on this course and happy to be doing it. And we are confident she will do well. And she has a clear goal – to be an Occupational Therapist working with children with learning difficulties etc. It will be interesting to see whether she still wants to do this by the end or whether the experience of working as an OT across a range of issues will give her other ideas. She has matured so much over the last 6 months. Leaving her in Bangkok speeded up the process and she visited us a few weeks ago and we had the best time with her we’ve ever had. She was just lovely and very calm (!!).
This is all thanks to you and your school. And I hope you will keep in touch with her and us. She is another success story that you can refer to.
Good luck with everything and kind regards
Cath and Simon
Hello, my name is Keith and I have recently become part of the Village Education Center. I have used the words “become part of” because I am more than just a student. For example, myself and the two other upper students of the school help out with the younger children of the school by playing sports with them, taking time to talk with them and even giving them support on class work that they are having trouble with, all in all just being their friend. If I could compare the Village Education Center with any other school I have been to, I would definitely say that, from the start, you feel welcome. They make it easy for you to fit in and there aren’t ever any arguments or problems among teachers and students like most schools tend to always have. It’s a nice small school in a good location of Bangkok. I would recommend it to students who don’t want a bunch of unnecessary distractions going on in the classroom and school. If you want a relatively quiet place that is still fun to be in and still focusing on just building your strengths and getting a degree so you can get out in the world and make something of yourself, then this is probably the best place for you.
Keith
I am Kirk Burton. I am English I have been living in Thailand for nearly 3 years and it’s good. I enjoy my time in Thailand and have not yet decided whether I want to stay here or not. I have just successfully passed my GED Exam with help from my teachers in the Village. What do I think about the Village? When I first arrived at the Village I did not like it at all, the small class sizes, the kids, all with some kind of special needs, the teachers everything was strange to me. Not what I was used to. After a while I adapted; it turned out to be a decent place. They actually treat you as a person. Being here has helped me a lot. I have got to meet children with autism, which I knew nothing about before. I went into their class and helped out. I did PE with them, football, swimming, reading, maths and something called circle time. It was great. This experience has been invaluable to me. I think that The Village is a good place for anyone who wants to find out about them selves. -
Kirk
My name is Ayesha Jane Cox and I’m 17 years old (nearly 18). My nationality is British and I was born in a small town in Devon, England. I’ve been living in Thailand with my parents for about 10 months and I am loving it! I’m in the process of finishing my G.E.D exams and have found the whole experience quite valuable. Coming to the Village has really opened my eyes to new horizons and I’ve really enjoyed my time here. At first, I was taken aback at what I was witnessing and was trying to come to terms with it all, but I eventually understood what this school was about and what is was doing for these kids. It was warm and welcoming and very homely. I’ll never forget my time spent here and I appreciate everything I’ve learnt in the process. My interests include listening to music, watching movies, relaxing and occasionally doing bit of swimming on the side.
Ayesha
My name is Divya Kumar, I’m 17 years old. I was born in the south of India in a place called Kerela. I have been living in Thailand for the past 8 years. I started studying in the Village in September and have just successfully completed my GED science exam. Coming to this school was a big deal to me since I was always surrounded by lots of people, and had a very carefree approach to life. As I came in I saw small class sizes and no children of my age. I had mixed feelings. But after coming to this school regularly I changed my point of view on the place. It’s a very warm and homely atmosphere. The school helps individuals on a whole, unlike international schools where you have to keep up with everybody else and no one stops for you. Since “Everything happens for a reason” I have taken this into account and learnt to appreciate things. The Village helps you discover yourself so you are prepared for the real world. My interests include listening to music, relaxing with a good book, socializing and dancing.
Divya
