British TikToker praises Thai gas man’s effort to master the English language
A British Tiktoker shared a video of a Thai gas attendant and applauded his dedication to improving his English communication skills.
The British teacher, Dan Thomas, took to TikTok under the handle scootinthailand last Sunday, August 13, to share a video of the gas station attendant with a caption in Thai saying…
“Greatly appreciated! I would like to encourage everyone to practice communication like him. P.S. Am I speaking Thai correctly? Feel free to drop your comments.”
Thomas explained that the petrol station is in the northern province of Chaing Mai where he lived and worked as a teacher.
In the video, the young petrol attendant, identified as Suthat, can be observed putting fuel into Thomas’s motorcycle while engaging in a conversation with the foreigner, and the words on his vest revealed that Suthat was an intern.
Thomas talked to Suthat in Thai while Suthat responded in English. Suthat clearly sought the opportunity to practice English when serving Thomas as he attempted to find the topics to talk to him about.
The dialogue captured in the video reads as follows:
Thomas: “Gaslohol 91, please.”
Suthat: “91? Full?”
Thomas: “Yes, please.”
Suthat: “Are you teaching? Where? Do you have a lot of students? How many? Thousand? My school has 3,000.”
Thomas: “Ah, where is your school?”
Suthat: “(The school’s name was not disclosed) I am learning about motorbikes. My school is gonna build more study buildings for more students. It will be a big, big school.”
Thomas: “Your English is good!”
A lot of Thai netizens praised Suthat in the comments section saying he is a role model for others who want to practice speaking English. Many provided words of encouragement, urging Suthat to persist in his efforts.
Thomas revealed in the comments section that he was afraid of spending too much time talking with Suthat because there was a big queue at the petrol station. He added that he was an English language teacher and could see Suthat’s dedication to practice.
English is used much more than in the past in Thailand, especially in the workplace and service industries as Thailand welcomes a lot of foreign tourists and expats. However, the majority of Thai people do not use English in their daily lives, and many more do not dare to communicate even for fear of making mistakes.
In response to the challenge, there’s a growing movement among Thai people to encourage each other to speak English with confidence, emphasising the importance of mutual support and abstaining from mocking accents or judging others.
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