SURVEY: Should Thailand change the school year permanently?

[Lingba]

7 hours ago, tonray said:

Would not work because Songkran (this year not withstanding) is a cultural event where many students are taken back to the provinces to visit relatives, pay respects to elders, etc etc. It would be like banning Red and Green Fanta bottles on the sidewalk or making Pla Ra illegal

The international schools with Thai students have a 2 week term break at that time so it can work

[tso310]

6 hours ago, Kerryd said:

No.
One of the reasons for the current schedule I believe has to do with agriculture. Specifically rice. 
The current school year is designed to allow all those students to help out with the rice planting and crop tending at the start of the rainy season, which is usually also the hottest time of the year in Thailand.
The other break comes in October - harvest time before the "dry season" begins.

In the "West", the school break centers around the 2 hottest months of the year (July/August).

 

I have to agree with you on that. I would say though I haven't seen anyone manually harvesting rice for a few years. Part of the reason is that they are all in Samut Prakan, Chon Buri and Chanchengsao working in the factories leaving granny looking after the kids in the village. I would also say the drying of rice on rural roads is pretty dangerous particularly at night. Although I have seen a few "borrowed" flourescent traffic cones in use

Keeping the school year out of the monsoon season with the terrible way bikes are used up here is a no brainer. If the wife wants to go to Tesco I always say no if it means coming back when schools are emptying or wait until they have all gone back to the villages. The number of overladen bikes doing a sharp u-turn, if I had a baht for everyone I've seen etc. In heavy rain with the drainage the roads employ it would be carnage. Its bad enough with ancient pickups that have bald typres and the original brake pads.

[Chicken George]

No way! March and April we choke with smoke in the North. Gives us a chance to get away

[alien365]

I thought they tried it with the universities and didn't like it, so started reverting back to the usual calendar. 

[bbi1]

Absolutely they should change it to January! What type of an idiot starts the school year from May, in the middle of a calendar year. Makes absolutely no sense. It should start end of Jan, after the Xmas/New Year holiday like other normal countries.

[rickudon]

School holidays may have originally been planned to let children help with planting and harvesting rice, but when did you last see a child planting/harvesting rice? I haven't in Thailand. Youngest workeer i have seen was in their 20's with 40 plus being more normal.

[bbi1]

 

Quote

Quite a number of years ago, the Thai government was considering changing the school year to run in conjunction with most of the Western countries.   That would mean running from roughly August/September to May/June.  Traditionally, the school year is roughly May to March.  The proposal did not materialize. 

 

 

What the hell? Who starts their schooling around August/September ? That's another stupid time of the year to start school! Starting at the beginning of a calendar year in Jan makes common sense.

Edited April 12, 2020 by bbi1

[bbi1]

7 hours ago, Kerryd said:

In the "West", the school break centers around the 2 hottest months of the year (July/August).

No it's not! I've got news for you, the US isn't the entire "West" no matter how much the the Yanks might think they represent the "West" and however much they wanna think they are the centre of the universe.

Edited April 12, 2020 by bbi1

[bbi1]

7 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

Do people realise there is another hemisphere in the south where the seasons are reversed. Summer and school breaks coincides with the end of the calendar year, crops are planted/harvested opposite to the northern hemisphere.

When people refer to "the rest of the world" They are not only talking about the US.

Probably not since most Yanks think that they are "the world" and the centre of the universe.

Edited April 12, 2020 by bbi1

[BobbyL]

I hope not. I enjoy having my 'summer holiday' working in an international school from late June - mid August whilst 99% of the children / students in Thailand are still at school / university.

 

It makes it far quieter and nicer going to places in Thailand during that time. 

[marcusb]

43 minutes ago, alien365 said:

I thought they tried it with the universities and didn't like it, so started reverting back to the usual calendar. 

Yes, a university I worked at implemented the new calendar about 5 years ago. Everyone disliked it. School during the hot season and yippeee holidays in the rain season.  It wasn't good. I believe they slowly switched back to the standard calendar. 

[Matzzon]

12 hours ago, Scott said:

In your opinion, and given the current delay in school, do you think it would be wise to change the academic year to correspond closer to Western countries?

At first, why should they change 1 thing to be in line, when nothing else is?

Second, it would not be a good solution, due to that summer and the hot season falls perfect with the school year as it is now. Also the short break is very adjusted to that children shall be able to be of assistance with harvesting of the rice in many provinces.

[Kerryd]

13 minutes ago, bbi1 said:

No it's not! I've got news for you, the US isn't the entire "West" no matter how much the the Yanks might think they represent the "West" and however much they wanna think they are the centre of the universe.

Well for starters, I'm not a 'yank", I'm a Canadian.

UK Summer break - 22 July - 1 Sept
Germany Summer Break - 25 June to 7 August or 30 July to 9 Sept (varies from state to state)
Canada - Late June to early Sept
Sweden - June 10/15 - August 17
USA - late June to Early September (varies from state to state)
Italy - 8 June - 17 Sept (wow !)
France - 5 July - 31 August
Norway - 19 June - 19 August
Spain - 18 June - 12 Sept
Holland - 4-18 July to 16-30 August (varies between North, Central and Southern regions)
Belgium - 1 July - 31 Aug

Yawn. Seems a lot of countries in the "West" have extended summer holidays between the June-Sept period. 


 

[DJ54]

Not a teacher but think the long break is too especially here in

NE village. There are very little structured activities sports etc.for children and run around sometimes to see what they can get into....

 

Three children from wife’s family 2 and 5 grade and 1 in 7. Younger

ones never have homework... seems odd.

[daveAustin]

Nope. Screw harmonising with the west. Main reason the heat and added lethargy and comfort levels.

[Myran]

Why? What would be the point?

[ParkerN]

Seems reasonable, becoming a better (or more aligned anyway) world citizen should always be welcome.

 

But I think it will take a little more than just being 'term-aligned' to fix the problems Thailand has with educating it's citizens.

 

Changing the traditional governments, ministers and permanent secretaries would be a useful start, though that too in itself would not resolve the problems.

 

To paraphrase, you can take a Thai out of the 3rd-world, but you can't take the 3rd-world out of a Thai. A change in mindset is required and Thais are inextricably wedded to their 3rd-world mindset. Odd though that may seem to a non-3rd-world person. Like me for example.

Edited April 12, 2020 by ParkerN

[Ventenio]

3 hours ago, LukKrueng said:

Should it change to match western countries? I'd say no. 

 @Ventenio ties western countries summer break to christianity - I think he's totally wrong. Summer break is during summer, the hottest time of the year. Therefore in the northern hemisphere school break is July- August whereas in Australia and new Zealand it's December - January and in Thailand March- April

@LukKrueng  Actually, I think you are totally wrong.  LOLOL.  Go back and read my post, i NEVER tied Christianity to summer break.  But I did tie it to the school year.  Schools have many breaks around the Xmas, Easter, blah, blah, blah...Christian stuff.  

 

I can go read my post again, but what in the world would Christianity have to do with summer???????????????? LOLOL

[Somtamnication]

These kids get ready for school by 6 am. Arrive by 7ish, come home after 4 pm. Dawn to dusk for a lot of them. Ridiculous.

 

 

[khunPer]

It's a great opportunity to change school year now, when opening of next academic year has already been delayed to July, so just little more than one more month to get in line with many other countries.

 

Thai holidays, like Songkran, can still work in a changed school year; just like many Western countries celebrates Easter with a holiday, which this year almost equals Thai New Year.

[LukKrueng]

3 hours ago, Ventenio said:

@LukKrueng  Actually, I think you are totally wrong.  LOLOL.  Go back and read my post, i NEVER tied Christianity to summer break.  But I did tie it to the school year.  Schools have many breaks around the Xmas, Easter, blah, blah, blah...Christian stuff.  

 

I can go read my post again, but what in the world would Christianity have to do with summer???????????????? LOLOL

My bad. I was probably thrown off by your opening statement:  Thailand isn't Christian, which affects Western school years

 

My point was that the year break is usually during the hottest time in the year, which in Thailand it's March- April. 

Other posters mentioned the break to be aligned with agricultural cycles. That might have been the reason way back but I think it stays this way around the world due to the weather

[Trek800]

In Prince of Songkhla University Hat Yai they were following international start and end dates of the school year so it would be better for foreign students. But Not too many International students there and local students were complaining that they have to be in school when others have summer holiday and have their holiday on a rainy season. So now every year they are moving start of a new school year little bit closer to the date when it starts for the rest of a country.

[Hanuman2547]

Keep the school year as it is.  The weather is too hot during the Thai summer and many schools, especially in the provinces, don't have A/C.