Thai Children’s IQ Considered Normal

[Austhaied]

I guess it must have been a southerner that used a calculator to add my purchase of items worth 6 and 17 the other day in 7-11 then.

I have seen similar incidents of this too many times to mention.. basic math...I feel sorry for them.

[ThaiGoon]

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/05/23...es_30034940.php

Thai science whizzes now truly among the stars

Three Thai students will have minor planets named after them, the Washington DC-based non-profit organisation Science Service said

Natnaree Siriwon, 17, Korawich Niyomsatian, 18, and Nathaporn Supokaivanich, 18, won the honour for securing the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) awards.

The trio are students at the prestigious Triam Udom Suksa School.

Intel ISEF is the world's largest pre-college celebration of science. Held annually in May, Intel ISEF brings together nearly 1,500 students from more than 40 nations to compete for scholarships, tuition grants, internships, science field trips and a grand prize.

Having one's name on a planet is part of the prize for taking home a top Intel ISEF award. Prizes include US$3,000 (BtBt103,000) in cash and an all-expenses paid trip to attend the European Union Contest for Young Scientists in Valencia, Spain, in September.

The three-member team from Thailand has been recognised for their "Secret in Mimosa's Leaf Folding Pattern" project, which can detect earthquakes by examining the plant's leaf-folding pattern.

...............................

Since I love Thailand and care about the future of Thailand so much I doubt that this story is accurate as well. It must be something that Thailand's education ministry has made up. Thai students and Thais can't be this smart. There must be something wrong in this story. Either this story is entirely inaccurate or these three Thai students must have cheated. I know this because I have taught a few Thai students. And I know everyone of them is not bright so every Thai must be dumb as well. This is why Thailand will always be a thrid world country and I love it to death. And I'm very very smart myself like everyone from my country and my race. Every person who works at a fast food joint or a retail store in my country never uses the cash register to calculate the simple math for the change as well. I love Thailand and Thai people.

[kalaminsa]

Thai children's IQ average low

The average intelligence quotient (IQ) of Thai children, somewhere between 87 and 88 points, remains in the "low average" category when ranked internationally, Vice Minister for Education Watchara Phanchet said on Wednesday.

He said this at a seminar on how to make children smart, and cited a survey conducted in 2002 as the source of his information.

"We have to develop children both intellectually and physically because they are our country's future," Watchara said.

He was speaking to more than 800 educators, health professionals, parents and representatives of a network for disadvantaged children at the seminar held by the Mental Health Department's Rajanukul Institute.

The 2002 survey found that only 80 per cent of children under five years old had normal visual, muscular and touchperception development, he said. It also found that the average IQ of children between six and 12 was 87 points.

The average IQ for children between 13 and 18 was 88 IQ points, the study found.

In a 2001 survey, children from six to 12 were found to have low levels of patience, discipline, concentration and selfreliance, while those between 13 and 18 had insufficient creativity, analytical ability, conscience, problemsolving skills and emotional control.

Watchara said these problems were the result of parents leaving teachers in charge of their children's development. Teachers are not trained to maximise children's potential at the right age, he said.

"We plan to raise Thai children's [average] IQ to at least 100 by 2008," he said.

Mental Health Department chief ML Somchai Chakraphan said those with IQs in the 70 to 79 point range were in a borderline group as an IQ below 70 points signalled mental disability.

In a bid to boost children's IQ, Somchai said his department last year launched a fiveyear intellectual development plan for children in 20 provinces. "We have passed on useful knowhow to nursery and kindergarten teachers," he said.

Somchai said mothers could boost their children's IQ by eating nutritious food during pregnancy and stimulating their children's development at the right age.

"Some parents tend to carry their babies in their arms all the time out of concerns that their babies might fall and hurt themselves. That's not right. If it's time for your babies to start crawling or running, let them do so because it encourages their development," he said.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/07/19...es_30009114.php

[ThaiGoon]

The 2002 survey found that only 80 per cent of children under five years old had normal visual, muscular and touchperception development, he said. It also found that the average IQ of children between six and 12 was 87 points.

"We plan to raise Thai children's [average] IQ to at least 100 by 2008," he said.

[chiangrai57020]

EXTRACT FROM THE NATION, JULY 19, 2006 THAI CHILDREN'S IQ AVERAGE LOW

The average intelligence quotient (IQ) of Thai children, somewhere between 87 and 88 points, remains in the "low average" category when ranked internationally, Vice Minister for Education Watchara Phanchet said on Wednesday.

He said this at a seminar on how to make children smart, and cited a survey conducted in 2002 as the source of his information.

"We have to develop children both intellectually and physically because they are our country's future," Watchara said.

He was speaking to more than 800 educators, health professionals, parents and representatives of a network for disadvantaged children at the seminar held by the Mental Health Department's Rajanukul Institute.

The 2002 survey found that only 80 per cent of children under five years old had normal visual, muscular and touchperception development, he said. It also found that the average IQ of children between six and 12 was 87 points.

The average IQ for children between 13 and 18 was 88 IQ points, the study found.

In a 2001 survey, children from six to 12 were found to have low levels of patience, discipline, concentration and selfreliance, while those between 13 and 18 had insufficient creativity, analytical ability, conscience, problemsolving skills and emotional control.

Watchara said these problems were the result of parents leaving teachers in charge of their children's development. Teachers are not trained to maximise children's potential at the right age, he said.

"We plan to raise Thai children's [average] IQ to at least 100 by 2008," he said.

Mental Health Department chief ML Somchai Chakraphan said those with IQs in the 70 to 79 point range were in a borderline group as an IQ below 70 points signalled mental disability.

[ThaiGoon]

I may need to change my glass as I'm having double vision.

[backflip]

"The really depressing thought is that, by definition, 49.99999999% of the population is below "average" intelligence."

No, that's not the definition at all. You are confusing "mean" (average) with "median" (the point at which half of the population falls above and half of the population falls below). The mean and median are the same only if the population follows a perfect "bell curve" distribution.

[El Taco Loco]

Well, I love my students to death. They make me laugh and I teach them as best I can. But let me tell you, they have no clue about the realities of the world outside of their Ultraman, Poweranger and Thai soap operas. No foresight on their daily routines, much less 5 years from today.

They are the dumbest M1/M6 I have ever taught. IQ issue or cultural-we-will-keep-you-at-a-lower-caste attitude of their local Kanmans and village councils?

[ThaiGoon]

Well, I love my students to death. They make me laugh and I teach them as best I can. But let me tell you, they have no clue about the realities of the world outside of their Ultraman, Poweranger and Thai soap operas. No foresight on their daily routines, much less 5 years from today.

You are their teacher. Why don't you help them learn about the world outside Ultraman, Poweranger and Thai soap operas? What stops you? Aren't teachers supposed to teach and help make their students become better and more knowledgeable? Or that's not your task. It's only Thai teachers' task?

They are the dumbest M1/M6 I have ever taught. IQ issue or cultural-we-will-keep-you-at-a-lower-caste attitude of their local Kanmans and village councils?

Yeah, let's blame everyone else except their oh-so-great farang teachers.

[ThaiGoon]

And FYI, there's no farang teachers at schools like Triam Udom Suksa. And the kids there seem to manage to have the highest scores every year in university entrance exams. I wonder if there's any correlation.

[Plus]

I thought IQ by definition should average at 100. Then you compare individuals with the average.

Maybe they compared Thailand to the worldwide average, but is there worldwide valid IQ test? What about language differences? There are lots of question like "Choose the closest meaning" that do not translate very well.

It's not difficult to make an IQ test that's not culture or language specific. Most of them are based on puzzle logic, math, or memory which is very universal in concept.

It is probably not very difficult, but I haven't heard of any such culturally unbiased tests administered worldwide to determine world's average IQ. If it's not on wikipedia, it probably doesn't exist.

I suspect Thais just translated one of the English tests as best as they could. Not a big deal, but there should be an error margin for language related questions.

The very first brainteaser on UK Mensa was this:

"Look at each of the following words, there is a connection between them. What is it?

TIMBER BENCH LIZARD SAMPLE"

[Prakanong]

And FYI, there's no farang teachers at schools like Triam Udom Suksa. And the kids there seem to manage to have the highest scores every year in university entrance exams. I wonder if there's any correlation.

Correlation or causal factor? ;-)

Which university exams though - Thai or foreign?

[ThaiGoon]

And FYI, there's no farang teachers at schools like Triam Udom Suksa. And the kids there seem to manage to have the highest scores every year in university entrance exams. I wonder if there's any correlation.

Correlation or causal factor? ;-)

Which university exams though - Thai or foreign?

Thai. Not sure about foreign. But every year there's a number of graduates from Triam Udom Suksa who go on to study at schools like MIT, Harvard, Stanford, all the Ivy League schools, U of Chicago and Northwestern. ;-)

[Plus]

Demonstration school students had higher than average IQ, I wonder if they tested international schools? Probably not.

[ThaiGoon]

I wonder if they tested international schools? Probably not.

Yeah, I wonder.

On a serious note, I think these surveys usually focused on Thai students. So I don't think they ever tested international schools. It would be interesting to get the results to compare though.

Edited May 23, 2007 by ThaiGoon

[Prakanong]

And FYI, there's no farang teachers at schools like Triam Udom Suksa. And the kids there seem to manage to have the highest scores every year in university entrance exams. I wonder if there's any correlation.

Correlation or causal factor? ;-)

Which university exams though - Thai or foreign?

Thai. Not sure about foreign. But every year there's a number of graduates from Triam Udom Suksa who go on to study at schools like MIT, Harvard, Stanford, all the Ivy League schools, U of Chicago and Northwestern. ;-)

Just asking because schools often publish the numbers going to those type of schools and not just the private international schools doing this type of marketing

[Steely Dan]

And FYI, there's no farang teachers at schools like Triam Udom Suksa. And the kids there seem to manage to have the highest scores every year in university entrance exams. I wonder if there's any correlation.

Correlation or causal factor? ;-)

Which university exams though - Thai or foreign?

Thai. Not sure about foreign. But every year there's a number of graduates from Triam Udom Suksa who go on to study at schools like MIT, Harvard, Stanford, all the Ivy League schools, U of Chicago and Northwestern. ;-)

I once read a book called 'Thai Reflections' about the Thai education system. Now it comes as no surprise to me that there are an elite in Thailand who are educated at the best institutions (outside Thailand). In order to run a system which is both an oligarchy and a feudal society it is not desirable to have an inquisitive or well educated populace. My wife who is Thai and of Chinese origin was given encouragement and access to education by her parents, who though poor saved their money for this purpose, hence she has a profession and is well paid and successful, she is however an exception not the rule. In order to improve IQ the human aptitude for deductive reasoning and critical thinking needs to be developed from the ground up - this is down to parents as well as schools and is a truly massive undertaking.

[mark lamai]

Thai Multiple Choice IQ Test.

As approved by the Ministry of Fantasy

1. How many sides on a square

(a) 4

( between 0 and 199

© less than on a 10 tuk-tuks

2. If A=B , B=C, C=D ad D=E, what does A+E equal?

(a) 2B

© CD

© 4B-2C

[Jimjim]

Thai Multiple Choice IQ Test.

As approved by the Ministry of Fantasy

1. How many sides on a square

(a) 4

( between 0 and 199

© less than on a 10 tuk-tuks

2. If A=B , B=C, C=D ad D=E, what does A+E equal?

(a) 2B

© CD

© 4B-2C

Not sure of your point.

[wintermute]

And FYI, there's no farang teachers at schools like Triam Udom Suksa. And the kids there seem to manage to have the highest scores every year in university entrance exams. I wonder if there's any correlation.

Correlation or causal factor? ;-)

Which university exams though - Thai or foreign?

Thai. Not sure about foreign. But every year there's a number of graduates from Triam Udom Suksa who go on to study at schools like MIT, Harvard, Stanford, all the Ivy League schools, U of Chicago and Northwestern. ;-)

I once read a book called 'Thai Reflections' about the Thai education system. Now it comes as no surprise to me that there are an elite in Thailand who are educated at the best institutions (outside Thailand). In order to run a system which is both an oligarchy and a feudal society it is not desirable to have an inquisitive or well educated populace. My wife who is Thai and of Chinese origin was given encouragement and access to education by her parents, who though poor saved their money for this purpose, hence she has a profession and is well paid and successful, she is however an exception not the rule. In order to improve IQ the human aptitude for deductive reasoning and critical thinking needs to be developed from the ground up - this is down to parents as well as schools and is a truly massive undertaking.

The problem with a good education in Thailand is that only the elite level of the society has access. There are token scholarships out there but there are very few and the process is often so corrupted that middle/hi-so kids end up getting the money before some politician pockets the rest. Except for a few top tier unis the rest are designed to rubber stamp diplomas.

[wintermute]

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/05/23...es_30034940.php

Thai science whizzes now truly among the stars

Three Thai students will have minor planets named after them, the Washington DC-based non-profit organisation Science Service said

Natnaree Siriwon, 17, Korawich Niyomsatian, 18, and Nathaporn Supokaivanich, 18, won the honour for securing the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) awards.

The trio are students at the prestigious Triam Udom Suksa School.

Intel ISEF is the world's largest pre-college celebration of science. Held annually in May, Intel ISEF brings together nearly 1,500 students from more than 40 nations to compete for scholarships, tuition grants, internships, science field trips and a grand prize.

Having one's name on a planet is part of the prize for taking home a top Intel ISEF award. Prizes include US$3,000 (BtBt103,000) in cash and an all-expenses paid trip to attend the European Union Contest for Young Scientists in Valencia, Spain, in September.

The three-member team from Thailand has been recognised for their "Secret in Mimosa's Leaf Folding Pattern" project, which can detect earthquakes by examining the plant's leaf-folding pattern.

...............................

Since I love Thailand and care about the future of Thailand so much I doubt that this story is accurate as well. It must be something that Thailand's education ministry has made up. Thai students and Thais can't be this smart. There must be something wrong in this story. Either this story is entirely inaccurate or these three Thai students must have cheated. I know this because I have taught a few Thai students. And I know everyone of them is not bright so every Thai must be dumb as well. This is why Thailand will always be a thrid world country and I love it to death. And I'm very very smart myself like everyone from my country and my race. Every person who works at a fast food joint or a retail store in my country never uses the cash register to calculate the simple math for the change as well. I love Thailand and Thai people.

The exception is not the rule. These 3 kids are probably from hi-so backgrounds where the parents spent a year's worth of your average Thai's salary on one semester of their high school education. A more honest appraisal of Thailand's educational level are the number of noteworthy scientists, engineers, mathematicians, and internationally published authors the country produces. If Thailand had something like NASA or a successful domestic tech company like Intel i'd say that things were turning a corner. As it stands the vast majority of the technology and scientific progress in Thailand is directly copied or stolen from other countries.

This is directly in comparison with the other nations in Asia. If you look at Taiwan they have Asus, Acer, Benq, etc.. Korea has LG, Samsung, etc.. Japan has Sony and several highly successful car companies. Singapore is known for its reknown financial consultation agencies and business acumen.

Thailand has..rice.

[ThaiGoon]

Sometimes, ignorant manure I read on here does make me laugh.

And by the way, Triam Udom Suksa (the school the three kids attend) is a public school, ie the tuition fee is zero. "These 3 kids are probably from hi-so backgrounds where the parents spent a year's worth of your average Thai's salary on one semester of their high school education."

Edited May 24, 2007 by ThaiGoon

[meadish_sweetball]

Maybe it's worth mentioning here that IQ has little to do with education or ability to study and get good grades. That's why countries with artificial access to higher education (e.g. class system, private schools, where only rich get to attend then are siphoned off to the best unis because they went to elite private schools) rank poorly per capita - even Western countries like the UK where this artificial system is still in place.

The more egalitarian countries where private education is either very rare or doesn't exist rank higher per capita in terms of academia...

But in any event, you can't 'learn' to get a higher IQ. We are born with varying levels of intelligence. Some call it the great equalizer (but it isn't as outline above because those who are super intelligent still won't access higher elite unis unless they fall within the 'rich' zone.

However, one can only wonder that if a Thai kid was taught to 'think' instead of just 'monkey-see-monkey-do', then the country's IQ rankings might improve...just by learning HOW to think.

The only definition of IQ that makes sense is 'The abilities that are measured on an IQ test'.

I would be willing to bet a lot of money that one could improve one's IQ by solving an IQ test per day for a year.

This is not to say it would make one any more intelligent.

[meadish_sweetball]

And by the way, Triam Udom Suksa (the school the three kids attend) is a public school, ie the tuition fee is zero.

Do you think there is any truth to the assessment that Thailand's schooling system and lack of funding to public schools bars a significant part of the population from achieving as well as they could if they had the economic means?

[ThaiGoon]

And by the way, Triam Udom Suksa (the school the three kids attend) is a public school, ie the tuition fee is zero.

Do you think there is any truth to the assessment that Thailand's schooling system and lack of funding to public schools bars a significant part of the population from achieving as well as they could if they had the economic means?

I agree that the education system needs a revamp and more funding.

[DirkGently]

It reminds me of something called The Bell Curve, which shows that IQ does have a relation to race. For example native Australians and sub-saharan Africans tend towards an IQ score a fraction above what would be considered retarded in a European. It also suggests that Chinese are among the top scores.

I can't say I am an expert in such fields, but one only has to look at the acheivments of these races and it seems to hold water.

As for Thais I think the culture of not asking questions and many people viewing an education as not all that important are part of the problem. I wonder if is possible to post an IQ test on this forum and have the posters post their scores!

[ThaiGoon]

It reminds me of something called The Bell Curve, which shows that IQ does have a relation to race. For example native Australians and sub-saharan Africans tend towards an IQ score a fraction above what would be considered retarded in a European. It also suggests that Chinese are among the top scores.

I can't say I am an expert in such fields, but one only has to look at the acheivments of these races and it seems to hold water.

As for Thais I think the culture of not asking questions and many people viewing an education as not all that important are part of the problem. I wonder if is possible to post an IQ test on this forum and have the posters post their scores!

Evidently, even in the races that perceived to be superior to others, there are still plenty of bigoted ignorant retards. And there's no need for an IQ test to see that either.

Edited May 24, 2007 by ThaiGoon

[Steely Dan]

It reminds me of something called The Bell Curve, which shows that IQ does have a relation to race. For example native Australians and sub-saharan Africans tend towards an IQ score a fraction above what would be considered retarded in a European. It also suggests that Chinese are among the top scores.

I can't say I am an expert in such fields, but one only has to look at the acheivments of these races and it seems to hold water.

As for Thais I think the culture of not asking questions and many people viewing an education as not all that important are part of the problem. I wonder if is possible to post an IQ test on this forum and have the posters post their scores!

Evidently, even in the races that perceived to be superior to others, there are still plenty of bigoted ignorant retards. And there's no need for an IQ test to see that either.

It's amazing how it's acceptable to point out that the average Zulu is taller than the average Pygmy, but when you touch upon something such as intelligence (Which like height does have a genetic component) then liberals start stamping their feet and accusations of racism quickly follow. We know that IQ tests are culturally specific and prone to inaccuracy but to deny that there are differences between groups is somewhat obtuse. P.S I believe in deference to any liberals who might take offence the word retard could be replaced with intelectually chalenged.

[highdiver]

It reminds me of something called The Bell Curve, which shows that IQ does have a relation to race. For example native Australians and sub-saharan Africans tend towards an IQ score a fraction above what would be considered retarded in a European. It also suggests that Chinese are among the top scores.

I can't say I am an expert in such fields, but one only has to look at the acheivments of these races and it seems to hold water.

As for Thais I think the culture of not asking questions and many people viewing an education as not all that important are part of the problem. I wonder if is possible to post an IQ test on this forum and have the posters post their scores!

Evidently, even in the races that perceived to be superior to others, there are still plenty of bigoted ignorant retards. And there's no need for an IQ test to see that either.

[Plus]

Tuition fees at Triam Udom might be low but getting accepted there is not easy.

A friend of ours paid 150k to get his daughter into one of the Demonstration schools, Grade 1.

I guess High Schools are not any cheaper.