Features

100 Days in the Hot Seat

New Regents School principal talks about his move to the Land of Smiles

Checking out what Regents’ kids are capable of.

Alex McInnes
“Excellence in everything we do,” Mr. Iain Blaikie, the new principal of Regents International School Pattaya exclaims when asked about what he would like to achieve while he is in the top job.
It’s clearly not a catch phrase. Oozing ambition, Blaikie paints a picture of the school he has recently clocked 100 days at, as an environment bursting with potential, a place that is already great, but a place he intends to make the best international school in Thailand.
After spending 23 years as a principal at three different schools in the English school system, he looked at international options to keep the passion burning. “I could have stayed in England, gone grey and still have felt like I was making a difference, but as a principal you get to do a fair bit of travelling and after seeing Thailand I thought it stood out as a place where I could work and be happy. Here I am.”

Another day, another meeting.

Despite his wealth of experience, Blaikie is focused on immersing himself in a myriad of different meetings, conferences, classroom visits and business trips; surreptitiously gathering data required to bring forth an action plan that will see the school become the best it possibly can be. “I would like to see myself as the pilot of the aircraft. A lot of work went in to get it airborne, I am not the star of the show, but I am the conduit that will take us to where we need to go.”
When asked specifically how he intends to take Regents forward, the response is swift. “Students.”
“Every decision we make relates to the student and their opportunities for learning. Schools who look past this fact are barking up the wrong tree. To give students the best possible opportunities we need the best resources and the most important resource we have at Regents is our teachers. Excellent teachers make all the difference. You may have all the money in the world and the best infrastructure but if your teachers are poor, it’s a pointless exercise. Students are happier when they have good teachers who care about them. Happy kids, equal smart kids.”
Is this part of his vision of a perfect school then? “Yes and no. Everyone knows perfection is unattainable but this is my idea of a high achieving, balanced school where people feel valued and are treated with the utmost respect at all times. A school that both students and staff can be proud of and a place where everyone feels they belong. Regents captures this idea perfectly.”
An occasional pre-misconception regarding Regents is that being the largest school on the Eastern Seaboard (and the most expensive) is a disadvantage, as parents look to place offspring in more ‘intimate surroundings’, erroneously thinking a smaller school will give their kids a more ‘personal’ education. Although Blaikie sees the logic in this, he says the same rules do not apply at Regents.
“Regardless of size, no one cares more about our students than the staff currently at Regents and I would challenge anyone to ask a parent or student here currently who thinks any differently. In fact, I see it as an advantage. Our size enables more variety, more subjects, better sporting opportunities and an outdoor education programme that is the envy of our competition.”
Getting value for money is clearly the most important thing to a parent considering the prospect of sending their offspring to a specific school. Providing an education worth paying for is clearly a topic that resonates with the new Regents’ principal. “The school is growing, all the time. If people were not getting value for money they would vote with their feet and I would expect them to. As you mentioned, there are other schools in the region, but Regents is the number one choice. We won’t sit on our laurels and say ‘job done’, we intend to evolve as the needs of our students do.”
Some of the biggest ‘evolutions’ undertaken in the last year can be put down to the massive investment Nord Anglia Education has placed in Regents International School Pattaya since purchasing the school last year. 80 million baht ($2.4M) in capital investment has been put into projects such as a 400 meter all-weather running track, new playground areas in Early Years (Kindergarten) and a massive revamp in the boarding houses.
“The funds currently being injected into different areas around the school is phenomenal and it really adds substance to a widely held belief in upper-management that we can become one of, if not the best international school in Thailand.”
According to Blaikie, the overhaul in the boarding houses is the real ace in the hole as it adds yet another dimension to what can be offered to parents showing an interest in the school.
“The boarders at Regents are from all over the place. They’re amazing and because I live on campus I get to see how much they enrich the school with culture, different ideas and talents other institutions I have worked for just don’t have.”
“We really want to grow the boarding school and reach out to as many prospective parents that we have a really good alternative to conventional private schooling on offer.”
With such a massive workload already achieved and so much more still on the table does Blaikie see himself as a permanent fixture for the foreseeable future at Regents International School Pattaya? “You bet! I am here for the duration. I don’t see myself as a flash in the pan; I have no regrets regarding my decision to come to Thailand whatsoever. The days seem to whizz by, I never feel like a Monday is a Monday. With all that we are accomplishing, every day has the potential to be a great day.”

Kids battle for cash prizes at Central Center dance contests

Children were encouraged to be more assertive and use their spare time productively with two dance contests organized by North Pattaya’s Central Center.

Jetsada Homklin
Kids were encouraged to be more assertive and use their spare time productively with two dance contests organized by North Pattaya’s Central Center.
The Nov. 22 “B-Boy Kids Battle” had kids under 12 compete one-on-one for 22,000 baht in prize money, while teams of children ages 13 and under dueled in the “Cover Dance Kids” contest Nov. 23, with 38,000 baht in prizes up for grabs.
The B-Boy Kids Battle was judged by actor and B-Boy dancer Roy McCoy Chin Chin Wuth, a four-time Singha Battle of the Year winner, and Gongza Laorngyod Wonngngen.
Kritch Khumsawad, 11, topped all 27 contestants in the B-Boy battle, taking home 10,000 baht. Wisuth Khumsawad, 11, won 7,000 baht for second place and Vichean Phurin, 13, won the 5,000-baht third place.
The Cover Dance Kids contest was judged by Academy Fantasia coach Ching Srirakhun Chingthong, The Star dance coach Bank Saroj Rojpresertkul, and choreographer Eay Siriluk Rukprayoon.
Team Double S placed first among the 12 teams competing, taking home 20,000 baht and the winner’s shield from Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome. Second place went to Team G Dragons, who earned 10,000 baht, and Team I Dass Kids won 8,000 baht for third place.

Early Years Parent Workshops to be offered by Regents International School Pattaya

Alex McInnes
January is always a busy month at Regents and it’s about to get even busier in Early Years (Kindergarten) as a new initiative to get parents involved in their children’s schooling gets underway.
Coordinated by head of Early Years and Assistant Principal Karyn Walton, the workshop aims to give parents an understanding of what the Early Years curriculum entails in a British school and how it differs from the Primary and Secondary curriculums.
“Three-way communication between school, parent and child is critical at a young age. By creating a forum to discuss important issues we can exchange information much easier than we have been previously,” Mrs. Walton said.
Committed to providing as much assistance to parents as possible, Regents International School Pattaya will ensure the workshop will be run in three separate languages - English, Thai and Japanese - the most commonly spoken in Early Years.
“We have a fluent speaker running each component. Not every parent speaks English and we want to get maximum participation.”
Parents who don’t have young children at Regents are also welcome to attend. The first installment will be held on the 8th of January, at the start of term 2.

100 Days in the Hot Seat

Kids battle for cash prizes at Central Center dance contests

Early Years Parent Workshops to be offered by Regents International School Pattaya