School Crisis Needs More Than Idle Talk

[marshbags]

I was going to post this in the Teaching Forum but feel it would be better served here as it effects parents of all professions on Thai visa and will be therefore more accessable and informative, in general terms.

IMHO of course.

No disrespect to the teachers who do a tremendous job, even more so than we thought, when you consider what they are up against with the highlighted ( At last ) shortages and their related problems.

Courtesy of The Nation

Thu, April 5, 2007 : Last updated 0:10 am (Thai local time)

Quote:-

Lack of seats in secondary schools is a chronic problem in an education system that is fraught with challenges

For several years in a row, the problem of too many primary school graduates competing for too few seats in secondary schools in fast-growing suburbs of Bangkok has been given Band-Aid treatment: cramming as many students as possible into overcrowded classrooms. In many suburban schools, the typical class size is between 50 to 60 students, which is way above the maximum of 40 stipulated by the Education Ministry. As a result, the quality of teaching has plunged and the number of underachieving students has soared. With such huge class sizes, it is simply impossible for teachers, weighed down by punishing workloads, to give individual students the attention that they need to properly learn their lessons, leading to a large number of students failing to attain a passing grade. School administrators then sweep the dirt under the rug by lowering their standards to ensure that even the slowest laggards advance to the next level.

This explains why so many secondary school graduates are found to be functionally illiterate. The Education Ministry and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, which jointly provide education services in the capital city, have done virtually nothing to improve the situation. In the meantime, teachers who are breaking their backs and earning barely enough to make ends meet, suffer from low morale and lack the motivation to provide quality teaching.

But the problem of too many students and not enough seats is part of a vicious cycle that is making a mockery of the country's education reform efforts.

The ministry knew that a total of 83,638 primary school students in Bangkok would go on to enrol in secondary schools at the Matthayom 1 level this year. Anyone capable of doing simple math at the ministry would be able to tell right away that the 976 schools in Bangkok with the capacity to seat 77,920 students based on a requirement that each class take in a maximum of 40 students, would not be able to accommodate all primary school graduates. The only logical conclusion is that more schools need to be built and more teachers hired.

The prevailing attitude among top educators at the Education Ministry seems to be out of sight, out of mind. Suburban schools and their teachers are again asked to make the sacrifice by cramming in as many students as possible into their classes. In doing so, they lower their standards and continue to churn out too many misbehaving, functionally illiterate students who lack the discipline and the wherewithal to become responsible productive citizens when they grow up - let alone to further their studies.

The Education Ministry should shake itself of its lethargic inefficiency and explore ways to not only increase the number of seats in public schools but also to improve the quality of education. At the same time, it should also encourage would-be entrepreneurs to get into the private school business to help balance the equation by providing them with investment incentives.

Another innovative idea that is being successfully implemented in the United States and other countries is a public-private collaboration under which developers build schools and then lease them back to school districts for a profit. Such an approach would reduce the government's burden of spending a huge amount of taxpayers' money on school buildings. It would also afford the Education Ministry the flexibility to scale down the number of school seats according to demand, as these buildings constructed by the private sector could be converted for other purposes when they are no longer needed.

Educators in this country have known for several years that Thailand has fared poorly in most educational quality and competitiveness rankings compared to many countries in the region despite the fact that it spends a higher portion of its gross domestic product on education - 5 per cent - than these countries. This suggests that Thailand still has much room for improvement in terms of education management. It must be remembered that education reform in this country must encompass more than getting education planners, school administrators and teachers to mindlessly parrot such mantras as "education management efficiency", "education quality assurance" or "child-centred learning" as if reciting them was all that mattered. To make education reforms happen, they must translate such lofty concepts into everyday reality.

Unqoute.

If only the authorities would listen and take on board what the professionals of teaching and the academics are constantly trying to address.

It is very important that overseas tutors are listened to and in turn their views are respected and they are not fobbed off by the " Puyai " who obviously have other vested interests.

Simply put, instead of money going into their personal bank accounts, it should be put back into ..................

Education, and by doing so help the teachers to do the best they can in helping all students enhance their knowledge to the maximum of their potential.

Only then will they be able to build a better system capable of accommodating the demands / requirements of an ever growing population.

marshbags

Edited April 5, 2007 by marshbags

[PeaceBlondie]

Agreeing with the article, but I'm a bit puzzled about the huge number of students. Apparently, unless schools are literally falling down, there are more students than ever. Yet, according to the population experts at the UN, Thailand cut its birth rate in half from 1975 to 2000, and the current birth rate is probably below replacement rate. Shouldn't there be fewer students?

Yes, even the more 'prestigious' govt. schools, where I taught, had up to 52 students per class, in 2004 and 2005. The less prestigious (abominably, despicably illiterate) schools must have over 60 in some classes, by now. Thai teachers are also being retired without replacements, for quite a few years now. Some classrooms are literally falling apart, the textbooks are horrid, cheating is nearly universal, and even mentally retarded children probably would pass the course.

Marshbags has titled this topic, "School Crisis Needs More Than Idle Talk." It is a crisis, but it's not a new one. Thai poo-yai educators are great at idle talk, like politicians.

Farang parents, if you can spend a million baht per year per student, and live in BKK or Chiang Mai, your child might learn something. Otherwise, they won't. 99% chance, they won't. And, unless you're a farang who spends several million dollars per year in Thailand, you probably can't do much about it. But start locally and let your child's teachers know you want your kid to learn. Good luck.

PS: if your nephew is thinking about moving to Thailand to teach English, just say no.

[dave111223]

Agreeing with the article, but I'm a bit puzzled about the huge number of students. Apparently, unless schools are literally falling down, there are more students than ever. Yet, according to the population experts at the UN, Thailand cut its birth rate in half from 1975 to 2000, and the current birth rate is probably below replacement rate. Shouldn't there be fewer students?

It could be that there are fewer kids, but more of them are actually going to school now.

[kmart]

This Ministry Of (supposed) Education really needs a kick up the arse. It seems to be an inactive post for out-of-favour slug-wit politicians to have the misfortune to get drafted into. Does nobody give one single shit about the future of this country?

Edited April 5, 2007 by kmart

[onzestan]

Agreeing with the article, but I'm a bit puzzled about the huge number of students. Apparently, unless schools are literally falling down, there are more students than ever. Yet, according to the population experts at the UN, Thailand cut its birth rate in half from 1975 to 2000, and the current birth rate is probably below replacement rate. Shouldn't there be fewer students?

IMHO no and the reason is simple. Because of the economic growth of Thailand, and the explosion of succesfull lower middle class businesses, allows a lot more Thais to pay for a better education for their children, than ever before.

The next step is even more expensive, and that's sending the children abroad.

regards

onzestan

[ThaiGoon]

Yeah, I have not yet heard a single thing the current Education minister has done since he took office six months ago. It's pretty sad. But I still believe that parents still have as big a role in any kids' future success as their teachers do.

[Ijustwannateach]

One of the problems is that we're talking about schools in Bangkok. There are plenty of countryside schools, but if the parents are serious about their kids they'll try to get them into a Bangkok school for better quality- there are a huge number of young people living with aunts, uncles, other relatives, friends, even by themselves to do this in Bangkok. So the competition is artificially high because it is being driven up by the entire student population of Thailand.

[MaiPenLai]

I think it is a free market system that is working as all other systems do all over the world. There are multiple tiers and based on your ability to pay for quality, you get what you pay for.

A discriminating parent here does what parents elsewhere have to do to get the best education for their child including but not limited to relocation of the student and/or family to facilitate that end.

Thai parents know that if their child is at a government school that has multiple programs, and their child is in the most inexpensive program that their child is getting less. It is a matter of priorities and ability to pay for a quality education. I have had Thai parents tell me face to face that their child is destined to be a noodle stand owner ( class system ) or as well inherit the family business ( again class system ) and therefore they have no need for XYZ education.

The education system here suffers from the same problems as do many other countries. It is less about funding and more about accountability. Count how many Education ministers Thailand has had in the last 8 years, Each with his own completely different spin on educational philosophy and many times completely contradictory to the last one. Gentlemen I respectfully suggest it is about continuity and accountability at all levels.

If you take the time to look closely at how Thai's view education and take into account the must pass system that most foreigners abhor, It is very pragmatic. Grades 1-12 are primarily about socialization / domestication and secondarily about education. The line in the sand as it were is the university level entrance exam. It makes perfect sense to most Thai's and is nothing if not practical taking into account Thai culture.

This thread comes at a perfect time of the year to take into account another significant factor. In the next few weeks we will all be celebrating Songkran. Bangkok will become a ghost town as people return to their home province to enjoy the holiday. Bangkok is just where the money is and many Thai's believe Bangkok is where an education is to be found.

I don't disagree at all that the education system is flawed, But I do think from a Thai cultural perspective that it is much less urgent than is believed. After all Thai's say " We have the rice" loosely translated into, why hurry we have time.

I would always support any change that actually leads to real improvement in the system but I have to ask myself if there is such a school shortage then why aren't the Thai capitalists maximizing this opportunity? We all know that private schools here make copious amounts of money and the shortage at the grade 6-12 level has been ongoing for some time. That is the topic for another thread! The problems associated with educating at that specific level.