Are children getting a fair deal at Schools in Thailand?

[webfact]

file photo for reference only

 

EDITORIAL | by Michael Bridge

 

With the recent announcement that 35,000 schools nationwide plan to resume onsite learning on May 17 with a plan to speed up student vaccinations, at last, the kids will be allowed back.

Deputy Public Health Minister Sathit Pitutecha has been saying that the ministry has measures in place to control Covid-19 infections when about 35,000 schools resume onsite classes at the start of the new academic year.

Parents all over the world have been thrown into the deep end during the pandemic, with home teaching.

And in many cases, they have struggled to learn how to answer many basic questions from their kids on diverse subjects such as mathematics or even Biology.

It felt for many that they were going back to school themselves!

Many families from poorer backgrounds have also lost out, as parents did not even have the funds to buy computers or even pay for an internet connection.

 

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From what I have heard from friends with school-aged kids, online teaching can be a bit of a hit or miss.

Even private schools have been struggling to find enough competent teachers to take online classes, while parents were still forking out large sums for their children’s monthly education.

 

file photo for reference only

Provincial public health officials and local health clinics will consult with schools this week, to assess school public health safety levels and decided if they meet Thai Stop Covid+ standards.

Schools across Thailand need to score more than 95% on a Covid safety level scale before they can reopen for the new term on May 17.

However, with the decline in Covid cases across the country and with borders now opening, surely now is the time to open all the school gates.

Statistics show that young children are less at risk of catching the virus.

Surely the lack of proper education will affect this generation of “pandemic year” school children who have missed nearly two years of learning.

The quicker they can get back into the classroom the better.

Apart from receiving a proper lesson, just meeting their friends will be a great boost for everyone.

 

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[Megasin1]

nope

[daveAustin]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Surely the lack of proper education will affect this generation of “pandemic year” school children who have missed nearly two years of learning.

They forgot the quotes on ‘proper’ too. ????

Generally kids here don’t get a good deal at home or school and the advent of the ‘smartphone’ has made things worse. Best part of Thai schools is that they generally don’t get to use them. 
Expect schools to ping pong open close when infection rates soar. 

[Nicholas Paul KNIGHT]

Simple answer is a resounding NO, because in many cases thai culture interferes with schooling, as Respect is demanded by tachers no matter how bad they are and QUESTIONS are almost never allowed, this has the effect of dumbing down the normal childs quest for information and we see that is the general lack of knowl;;edge in Thai children, anything outside a book is never taught. Critical thinking an important part of learning is NOT taught or even encouraged as Teachers are unable to grasp it either. 

[hotchilli]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Surely the lack of proper education will affect this generation of “pandemic year” school children who have missed nearly two years of learning.

The government will be happy with this knowledge, a generation of under-educated kids who will be subservient workers, who don't ask questions.

[Scott]

There is no doubt that many students worldwide have lost a great deal due to Covid.  Thailand is no different.  Educationally, much of it can be made up with adjustments to the curriculum to make sure they are taught what was missed.  

Much of what schools do is aimed and producing good citizens and socialization.   It does not take 12 years to teach the math, science or social studies but it does take that long to produce young people who know the rules of society, the expectations and give them enough knowledge to operate in the real world.  

 

So educationally, much of it can be made up.  The social/nationalism component we will have to wait and see if that gets accomplished.  

[ThailandRyan]

Education is a farce in this country.  I met a mother and her 8 year old son last night at Limpini Park. He and my GFs daughter are friends from school.  He is now starting what I call 2nd grade. Yet he still can not read or write Thai.....this was a sad thing to find out.  I asked my GF why his mother did not work with him to read and write and the exact words she said were "she doesn't care, obviously".

[Andycoops]

It's outrageous that schools have still been charging fees for absolutely nothing and of course the government do what they do best as well, nothing.

The kids in my village and Tambon haven't been to school for 2 years, sadly a lost generation.

Some might have had 3/4 months of in school learning if they are lucky, in the last 2 years.

When my son has done a semester of online learning from his University, they reduce the fee by a staggering 10%, that's all you get!

He's lucky I can afford it but many students have dropped out because their parents couldn't afford a laptop or the fee's because of losing their jobs.

A national disgrace.

[zzaa09]

Appears that the authorities and media brought these sorted dilemmas on themselves regarding the mish-mash manner in how they handled the COVID Era as well having little farsighted strategy regarding the education infrastructure. Even more so, they lack the recognition skills as to how to resolve such things.

 

.....and they're still asking why?

[Iamfalang]

Mirror.  Look.  
 

kids.  Look.

 

Smart kids will get smarter, and parents shouldn’t be blaming schools.    Put the time in.  Books. Check.  Time.  Check.   Motivation…..haha.     Desire…..depends.

 

I need to brush my teeth.  Can I do it by myself?   Let me find out….

[RichardColeman]

My daughter got her 2nd jab yesterday, ready for school 16th or 17th. So glad she is back at school - no schooling for 15 months is ridiculous. The home work she got sent appeared to be more colouring in than actual learning. Still she's only 5 - near 6 - and this hick up should not be too bad, though I fear Thai education is chronic for outside learning. 

[IAMHERE]

The foundation of any nation is the education of it's youth.

 

So, how educated does a  feudal nation need to be, overall, in general? This isn't the west folks, you are not, however admiral,  expressing eastern values. 

[cyril sneer]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

Schools across Thailand need to score more than 95% on a Covid safety level scale before they can reopen for the new term on May 17.

nice little earner to those carrying out the scores

 

will it be the military? 

[Tarteso]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

Surely the lack of proper education will affect this generation o

Bingo !

[Surasak]

Considering Thailand has a 'military' government, they don't appear to have any idea of organisation. They are very good at robbing the poor to pay the rich, but not much else. Everything revolves around, 'Do as I say, not as I do'.

[Caldera]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

Surely the lack of proper education will affect this generation of “pandemic year” school children who have missed nearly two years of learning.

Sadly, most children in Thailand don't get a proper education anyway, even when the schools are open for on-site learning.

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

Even private schools have been struggling to find enough competent teachers to take online classes

Hah, tell that to a certain, famous BKK private school that makes a habit of letting go half their foreign staff every term.

 

They can't all be incompetent. There must be some other motive for them to do so, I'm guessing involving insurance or taxes. It certainly isn't education, as every term they then wind up with a fresh crew, who must again learn their way around all the school's ridiculous paperwork and procedures. Not to mention being unable to form any meaningful connections with the students, as they're always being let go.

 

[RafPinto]

Good that we can afford private education.

[thailand49]

It was No Pre-covid,  No during Covid and it is No Post-covid for Government schools.  Kids in my neighborhood haven't been to school in two years many are just being offer vaccines now. 

[NativeBob]

Kaosarn backpackers, weirdos, brittish accountants, South African donkey breeders, Central Asian diplomatic offspring and anything but "teachers" - I thank you from the depth of my heart. We changed 3 kindergartens and 3 schools just to realize that you can't get any (any) valuable education until you will personally desire it.

Home schooling is the answer and I'm very proud of my kid.

So, dear teecha Andee, Steev, Maikl and the rest of your league: <deleted> you and Thank you! 

[Adumbration]

No.

[bangon04]

5 hours ago, Nicholas Paul KNIGHT said:

Simple answer is a resounding NO, because in many cases thai culture interferes with schooling, as Respect is demanded by tachers no matter how bad they are and QUESTIONS are almost never allowed, this has the effect of dumbing down the normal childs quest for information and we see that is the general lack of knowl;;edge in Thai children, anything outside a book is never taught. Critical thinking an important part of learning is NOT taught or even encouraged as Teachers are unable to grasp it either. 

and so many Sino-Thai (and other rich) families choose overseas schools for their kids, or at least one of the many International schools in Thailand to give them a chance ...

Even the current King went to a UK boarding school........

[DjSilver]

We all already know that Thai children get more stupid only to attend schools in Thailand. Both those international schools and especially Thai public schools.

[dinsdale]

11 hours ago, webfact said:

Schools across Thailand need to score more than 95% on a Covid safety level scale before they can reopen for the new term on May 17.

Once again this will involve temp checks. These morons have absolutely no idea. I have known 10 people who have had Omicron. One had a slight fever and only for one day.

[Graham n So]

I spent four years teaching in Thailand, I quickly realised that I would need to move the family to the UK so my two daughters could have the chance of a good education. Both now in a good Grammar school and doing well. It was not an easy decision for my wife and I, but having made the move we are very glad to see the real progress the girls have made. My wife surprisingly loves the climate here and is a keen gardener. I miss the warm seas and winter in Thailand, the girls enjoy their holidays in Europe and are not very keen to visit Thailand again as it's far too hot. Over lockdown they had to study at home online, this required some adjustment and it was not easy for any of us, but I can't imagine how difficult it must have been for many Thai children. So in summary, after seven and a half years in the UK we are settled and happy, I don't think any of us will ever return to Thailand other than the odd short holiday to visit family.  

[PuaSai]

I'm looking forward to my little one getting back to school especially for the social aspect of it.  She was in a great school when "the plague" hit and she was doing very well and she had made friends who she misses.

[Songlaw]

No. And they never have. <deleted>, they don’t even find it necessary to give them clean toilets in many cases. So don’t be expecting a passable science curriculum anytime soon. This is my only real peeve in Thailand. All else are lesser peeves. Unless they’re parents are well heeled, they don’t stand a chance. 

[Graham n So]

3 hours ago, RafPinto said:

Good that we can afford private education.

It's not so much about how much money you can afford to throw at private education as what you get for the money and how much the child wants to do well. From what I have seen of it in Thailand some are wasting good money and time with some of the private schools there. I myself could not see a way to educate my children in Thailand and it simply came down to a choice. Ether we stayed in Thailand or we moved to where my children could receive a good education. We chose our children's education and opportunities in later life over our short term enjoyment and are glad we did. Now we holiday visiting friends in Sweden, Spain, Florida and sometimes Thailand, so get the best of both worlds. It's not always easy to make the right choice, but you will know who took preference when you do decide.  

[Dogmatix]

I attended an expensive private boarding school in Scotland and loathed nearly every minute and eventually had to be taken away. The values of the school seemed to have been conceived around the time of the First World War with the intention of providing cannon fodder for the army or imperial administrators. It depended a lot on your house master whether academic endeavour was genuinely encouraged and my housemaster hated the academic boys who tended to answer back and favoured the rugger buggers who left school still unable to pass their elementary maths O levels.  

 

The point of raising this is that my school prioritised moulding boys to the values of the school and its warped perception of needs of society from 50 years earlier.  Decent moden private schools, including the best international schools in Thailand, prioritize the interests of the individual child above all else. Thai state schools and probably most of the Thai private schools are like my horrible old school (which successfully reformed itself and is now an enlightened modern school with girls and lots of foreign students). Thai schools prioritize making children conform to the values that Thai elite prescribe, which were conceived decades ago, in order to make them model citizens who don't ask too many questions and never challenge the status quo or the entrenched corruption that funnel the wealth of the nation into a small number of pockets and leave the majority impoverished and struggling to survive. The problem with this structure is that Thai education fails to produce citizens with sufficient knowledge and critical thinking ability for the country to be competitive and achieve its long-term sustainable growth rate.  Thus the wealth gap gets wider and wider. 

[Almer]

8 hours ago, Nicholas Paul KNIGHT said:

Simple answer is a resounding NO, because in many cases thai culture interferes with schooling, as Respect is demanded by tachers no matter how bad they are and QUESTIONS are almost never allowed, this has the effect of dumbing down the normal childs quest for information and we see that is the general lack of knowl;;edge in Thai children, anything outside a book is never taught. Critical thinking an important part of learning is NOT taught or even encouraged as Teachers are unable to grasp it either. 

Yes I agree about teachers not wanting questions from the class, thinking is not encouraged and some of the online stuff my grandchildren have asked me to explain makes no sense to this 72 year old. When there is a 3 option question and none of the options make any sense to the question what hope is there.