Graduates plan to sue Loei Rajabhat University over teaching licences

By The Nation

 

 

A group of graduates are taking legal action against Loei Rajabhat University’s Faculty of Education Khon Kaen centre after they were denied teaching licences.

 

The Central Administrative Court has scheduled a preliminary hearing for November 7 in the case that involves 125 graduates.

 

Pannida Senawuth said on Tuesday that she and seven other graduates from the centre’s Thai, English and computer science programmes had passed the teacher recruitment exams. 

 

During the October 2 orientation ceremony, however, they were told that they were disqualified because their study programmes failed the Office Higher Education Commission (OHEC) assessment and Teachers Council of Thailand’s certification.

 

The eight graduates are suing OHEC and Loei Rajabhat University for compensations and to get a court injunction to stall their disqualification from the project.

 

She said: “We are sadden that the hard work throughout the five-year course, in the hope of becoming teachers and our families’ financial support, will be in vain. 

 

“We passed the recruitment exams but we couldn’t be approved as civil servant teachers because of the lack of licences,” she said adding that the Teachers Council of Thailand had granted her and seven others the certificates to teach but the OHEC would not approve them as civil servant teachers.

 

Ratree Pengjaemjaeng, 48, whose daughter Prapawee is among the plaintiffs, said she invested a lot of money to support her daughter’s bid to become a teacher and eventually the family’s breadwinner. However, her hopes were shattered when Prapawee was disqualified. 

 

“We didn’t know that the study programme had a problem because the university never told us. The university and related agencies should help us,” she said.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30330501

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-10-31

 

Actually I don't understand why this is even in the administrative court. 

The action of acting as a certified school and teaching unapproved curriculum with the promise of a certification is illegal under 120 and 147 of the criminal code. 

The penalty is 20000 baht and or prison for 1 year. 

That is on each count by the way. 

This would apply to the heads of the school and all the teachers teaching them. It is a serious criminal offence. 

Not to mention that if the ohec did give them their licences for an unapproved curriculum, then that would be another offence and the people at ohec would then be breaking the law themselves. So what the students are asking for is against the education law. They need a new lawyer that understands education law. 

Edited November 2, 20178 yr by greenchair

40 minutes ago, greenchair said:

So what the students are asking for is against the education law.

good point, must be the 'compensation' part...

2 hours ago, YetAnother said:

good point, must be the 'compensation' part...

Same thing. if they want compensation they should prosecute, in that case the university would probably settle before it got to court if facing prison time. I think do not only want compensation. 

They want the licence that they worked for 5 years for. Do you understand how terrible this is for them. They will have to start a new University Degree for 5 years. They will be ready for work in 5 years. 

It should be filed as a criminal case in the courts.