Lack of critical thinking makes Thailand's competitiveness ranking slip

By Wichit Chaitrong
The Nation

 

 

Thailand could improve its competitiveness among nations by tackling its weakest points – a lack of critical thinking in teaching, failure to dominate any markets, and unsafe drinking water, according to Switzerland-based World Economic Forum.

 

 

Thailand’s ranking among 141 economies has dropped to 40th place from 38 in 2018 in the just-released WEF Global Competitiveness Index.

Singapore tops the rankings, overtaking the United States, while Vietnam jumped 10 spots to 67th

 

place, according to a survey by the WEF, which seeks to promote public-private cooperation.

 

Kobsak Pootrakool, deputy secretary-general to the prime minister for political affairs, on Wednesday (October 9) acknowledged Thailand’s ranking slipping even as some scores rose. “It’s like a running competition – if our pace is slower, others will overtake us, so we have to run faster,” he said.

 

Assistant Professor Wilert Puriwat, dean of the Chulalongkorn Business School, which is allied with the WEF, said that, If Thailand wants to improve its ranking, labour skills must be improved. 

 

“The survey found that skills among new university graduates have declined, especially in the area of critical thinking,” he said.

 

The way students are taught needs to change, he said, noting that Thailand’s score on critical thinking in the classroom was the world’s lowest at 37 out of 100 points. In assessing skills possessed by the future workforce, the survey names Finland first for critical thinking in teaching, with 89 points.

 

“We’ve failed the exam and it can’t be fixed by simply retaking the test – we need to restart learning,” Wilert said, alluding to Thai students routinely performing poorly on tests compared to foreign counterparts, a lag blamed on the traditional reliance here on rote learning through memorisation.

The WEF urged Thailand to encourage creative and critical individual thinking in the classroom instead.

 

Finland ranks second for skills of current workforce, scoring 75.8 points compared to Thailand’s 52.2. The WEF recommended better staff training and increased attention to digital skills.

 

Noting the only a few large Thai companies dominate the domestic market, muscling aside smaller contenders, Wilert said Switzerland provides a model for spreading dominance among many firms by helping smaller ones gain market share. Switzerland ranks first in the sharing of market dominance, he noted.

 

“This will take time since the few big firms have dominated the market for so long,” he said.

 

Although tap water has become widely available widely across the country, it is not as safe to drink as that found in developed countries, said Wilert.

The index covers four main categories. 

 

First is proving an “enabling environment” and assesses institutions, infrastructure, ICT adoption and macroeconomic stability. Second is “human capital” and examines health and skills. 

 

In the third, product markets, the labour market, the financial system and market size are compared. Fourth is the “innovation ecosystem”, which looks at business dynamism and capacity for innovation. 

 

In all there are 103 separate factors examined for which up to 100 points can be awarded.

 

Thailand’s 68.1 GCI ranking places it in the top 40 among the 141 economies surveyed, but it it progressing more slowly than other countries, Wilert noted.

 

 

Its identified weaknesses are in institutions, innovation capability, product markets and skills. Its strengths are the financial system, public health and macro-economic stability.

 

The score for institutions dropped from 55.1 in 2018 to 54.8 this year, the ranking from 67 to 60. Corruption and an inefficient legal framework for challenging regulations were the key damaging factors, the WEF said.

 

The score for infrastructure fell from 69.7 to 67.8 and the ranking from 71st to 60th place due to continued reliance on an inefficient railway service.

 

“Improvement in the rankings will come if there is rapid progress in several areas, such as reducing corruption, improving infrastructure and workforce skills, and boosting the level of domestic market competition,” Wilert said.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/business/30377258

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2019-10-10

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can't have critical thinking without free thought and speech... laws and culture need to change, 

So Thailand has adequate infrastructure, health and labour market. This must come as a surprise to some outside of Bangkok. 

 

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Lack of critical thinking makes Thailand's competitiveness ranking slip

 

I was reading yesterday about how some academics and opposition members were doing some critical thinking about solutions to the trouble in the south.

But the military who are the real puppet masters had them charged with sedition for their trouble.

So much for Thailand's critical thinking and freedom of speech. Proof enough that General Apirat is running the show and is a major retardant to Thailand's free thinking and economic development.

The future is looking bleaker by the day.

 

https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30377212

Education by rote; don't raise your hand in classrooms or you get canned; and so on. Some societies do not want people thinking outside of the box. Just sayin'

...critical thinking?---well, when I see good looking chick my critical thinking dissipates like morning fog.

1 hour ago, webfact said:

The way students are taught needs to change, he said, noting that Thailand’s score on critical thinking in the classroom was the world’s lowest at 37 out of 100 points.

'Needs to change.'

Next year the government might respond by teaching kids how to knit fog.

Looks like the "unsafe drinking water" is to blame ??

2 hours ago, webfact said:

The WEF urged Thailand to encourage creative and critical individual thinking in the classroom instead.

Sadly free thinking is discouraged in classrooms...

Oh my. Critical thinking? Look at administrative and governmental "solutions" to problems and you'll see this is a top down problem.

Are you in charge of this sinking ship Prayute?Is this your responsibility?Does the buck stop with you?Are all your hubs and twenty year plans and strategies taking Thailand forward or backwards?

As I see it Thai learning is mostly concerned with knowing who you have to get down on your knees to, standing to attention in front of the flag, marching to the beat of the drum and knowing your place in society. Most of all you have to understand that as a student you couldn't possible have a good idea, know how to fix a problem or be better informed than anyone in a uniform. No matter what age a student must wear the clothes of a child reminding them of their inferiority.

Thailand is a playground for the rich and powerful.  If you are not one of them, you are a serf.  The article is a nice idea, but those in power enjoy a status quo where their children are educated by tutors, go to elite schools and then off to some other country, leaving the average Thai crumbs. 

 

A Thai friend who had to leave school at 10 years old to support her family said development is only for Bangkok, not for any other areas. 

"Same same, but different".  Thais really do often reason irrationally and illogically.  Their social structure from birth literally frowns on disagreement or dissension.  Goodness they can't even openly discuss changes to the "constitution" that was forced on them without being threatened with sedition charges.

You only have to teach in the public schools here to understand why there is zero critical thinking and why Thai students perform at the bottom of the heap.  In a class of 40 students, for example, when you give a quiz you will typically only have 3 or 4 students who actually answer the questions.  The rest of the students will copy those students' papers.  When you check the results it will be obvious there will be 3 or 4 groups of matching papers with identical mistakes in each group.  Sad but true.

 

Public schools also can't fail a student, or hold him/her back from continuing on to the next grade level.  I was shocked to find that some of my rural Isaan high school students couldn't even read/write Thai language, much less English!  And yet, the Ministry of Education continues to be absolutely clueless as to the 'why'.

 

T. I. T. ????????????

Thais don't understand the concept of critical thinking...the teachers have no idea what it means..government officials ditto.

Being too greedy and dishonest.....oh and singaporeans also can speak inlit krub!

Has anyone read 1984? Cheap liquor, prostitution, lottery tickets........ 

 

How can you nurture the development of critical thinking or creativity when free thinking, genuine analysis, and criticism (including criticism of one’s self) is wholeheartedly discouraged and, even worse, rendered illegal? 
It will never never never happen. Not the people’s fault - but the seriously warped and self-indulging establishment and ‘system’. 

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand’s score on critical thinking in the classroom was the world’s lowest at 37 out of 100 points.

Thailand is really racking up the bottom positions in all sorts of areas from driving to business.  No wonder Vietnam will pass them soon.

"sigh" Well for start they could spell weaknesses properly 

13 minutes ago, englishoak said:

"sigh" Well for start they could spell weaknesses properly 

Probably some reference to living in a 'daze'.

You should know you have major problems when your access to dirty water is higher than critical thinking in teaching 

I'm sure @Yinn will come explain this is all a misunderstanding. ????

 

I'm still debating if I should homeschool (best) my children or skip (neutral) schooling altogether. 

Many of us here have said it numerous times, but it bears repeating: it is no accident that Thai education and critical thinking 'skills' are at rock bottom. The Thai system was designed that way. It is part of the faux-elite's tacit plan. Keep the 'peasants' stupid - and you can have your way with them and exploit them in all and every regard, and they will grovel and thank you for your abuse, with a lovely big smile and high wai. One sees it all the time.

There will be no resistance.

And the worst of the non-resisters will be the Masters Degree holders and Ph.D.s. They largely go along with the system and feather their own nest. 'I'm all right, Jack'.

Who needs critical thinking here? The whole country is a no-go area for genuine thought (let alone critical thought!). It is banned, verboten, the highest of all crimes.

 

Cuba 1953. Personally I'm looking forward to 1957/8.

Lack of critical thinking makes Thailand... easy to govern

Don't expect any changes soon, apart from Thailand falling further down any rankings.   Lost cause; the game's up, they lost the plot years ago and it's too late to turn it around !

“... The way students are taught needs to change, he said, noting that Thailand’s score on critical thinking in the classroom was the world’s lowest at 37 out of 100 points. In assessing skills possessed by the future workforce, the survey names Finland first for critical thinking in teaching, with 89 points. ... “

 

Rick bottom. And it shows.

As a teacher in Thailand, I would occasionally put an obviously wrong answer up on the board and watch their little brain gears start to grind.

1 hour ago, Jimbo in Thailand said:

You only have to teach in the public schools here to understand why there is zero critical thinking and why Thai students perform at the bottom of the heap.  In a class of 40 students, for example, when you give a quiz you will typically only have 3 or 4 students who actually answer the questions.  The rest of the students will copy those students' papers.  When you check the results it will be obvious there will be 3 or 4 groups of matching papers with identical mistakes in each group.  Sad but true.

 

Public schools also can't fail a student, or hold him/her back from continuing on to the next grade level.  I was shocked to find that some of my rural Isaan high school students couldn't even read/write Thai language, much less English!  And yet, the Ministry of Education continues to be absolutely clueless as to the 'why'.

 

T. I. T. ????????????

keep them stupid and they will stay in line