Thailand ushers in new education era, but will rich-poor gap close?

[webfact]

 

Thai education is about to enter a new phase as Parliament prepares to vote on the National Education Bill. Yet experts do not expect the bill and its reforms to bring big improvements for Thailand’s much-criticized education system.

 

“Once the National Education Bill becomes law, Thailand’s education sector will shift to a new era,” said Dr Sompong Jitradub, an education expert at the Equitable Education Fund (EEF).

 

The education draft law advocates decentralization and paves the way for schools to have more power over their operations, he said. The idea is to allow them to respond faster and better to the needs and concerns of students, parents and other stakeholders.

 

The bill will even allow state schools to register themselves as legal entities and operate with greater independence.

 

Full story: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/thailand-ushers-in-new-education-era-but-will-rich-poor-gap-close/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2023-01-10

 

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[Gknrd]

I have been reading this same story for the last 15 years here... 

[2baht]

The mushroom system, kept in the dark and fed BS!

[BananaStrong]

Good story for my second cup of coffee!!!!!   

 

1.  Cred.  :  5 years in the Thai education system, not now.    Note:  95% of all current English "teachers" would have no idea what "cred." means.  That's problem one.

 

I have seen COUNTLESS periods of kids sleeping, on their phone playing ROV or whatever, while a Thai OR falang teacher drones on about whatever.......................rooms usually don't have Airconditioning, 50 kids jammed in an outdated classroom, and the books are either way too easy or way to hard.   plus these teachers see their kids about 40 minutes a week.   times 20+ classes.   horrible.

 

the pay is between 900 and 1100 USD per month.   let's say $12,000 a year.   What clown would go to Thailand and do this to save money before going back to America and needing about $10,000 just to start a new life.   nobody.   I did it before I retired, and that's another group of jokers.  lol.     

 

I would guess 80% of the English teachers are non-native.  I could write books on how damaging this is, but I'll give you one story.  One lady yelled at her kids for saying "hi" instead of "hello" because "hi" was rude.    anyhow......if you looked at her Facebook page it was never in English, so there you go.   

 

turnover.   I've seen about 200 teacher quit or get fired.  enough said.   kids aren't dumb, they see this.

 

school will be closed for a week, then teachers will do review for a week and tests for a week and then there are more holidays.   do the math.

 

almost zero communication between teachers.   there is no 'team'.   so nobody has a clue what you are teaching.  

 

I've never met a real English teacher, but I've met about 50 backpackers who smile and sing songs in class and show up exhausted and miss classes and show up 10 minutes late to every single class.   Thai teachers are also really great at showing up 10 minutes late to a 40 minute class.  seen it 1000's of times.   

 

nobody fails.   so nobody cares.   When I started, no grades. Then I would give most kids like 90 percent and then my last year I failed everyone who should fail, KNOWING that the head Thai teacher would simply change my scores and nobody really cared except they wanted numbers.    any number.   lol.

 

last note:  I've seen farang and Thai teachers flirt with kids.  Yes, I know what flirting means.  Yes, I can tell.  Yes, it's disgusting.    They add them on Facebook, chat on messenger, LINE, whatever....  they cross the line in my mind.  it's so unprofessional I can't even begin......

 

and then one day they leave and a new joker arrives.

 

welcome to the Thai school system, and that's why it's very, very inexpensive. you get what you pay for.

[SuperSilverHaze]

23 minutes ago, BananaStrong said:

I've never met a real English teacher

Reading your screed  - I'm not in total disagreement but you obviously have worked, are working in some sad schools. There are better... adminstrations, facilities, students and yes, teachers.

 

Failing students is simply not possible the school can't house them not can parents afford to have children not move on with their lives as well.

 

If the teaching is poor and thereby assessment is poor, lessons poor as you rightly state why should the student be held back to endure same misery.

 

The foreign teachers are just as bad as the Thai.

 

I'm a licensed teacher with ten years experience in Thailand. I also hold a teriary license in US.

Edited January 10, 2023 by SuperSilverHaze

[phetphet]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

The idea is to allow them to respond faster and better to the needs and concerns of students, parents and other stakeholders.

Who would other stakeholders be?

[RandiRona]

Let international school and universities establish schools/colleges in country so that they can provide some useful education but that would stop indoctrination which Thai Junta can’t afford to loose so no matter what they end up doing, it’s still lipstick on a pig.

[HappyExpat57]

16 minutes ago, SuperSilverHaze said:

Reading your screed  - I'm not in total disagreement but you obviously have worked, are working in some sad schools. There are better... adminstrations, facilities, students and yes, teachers.

 

Failing students is simply not possible the school can't house them not can parents afford to have children not move on with their lives as well.

 

If the teaching is poor and thereby assessment is poor, lessons poor as you rightly state why should the student be held back to endure same misery.

 

The foreign teachers are just as bad as the Thai.

 

I'm a licensed teacher with ten years experience in Thailand. I also hold a teriary license in US.

I worked at both Regent's and St Andrew's. If you weren't an absolute top drawer, qualified teacher, you were shown the exit. Again, they pay their teachers a very good wage AND can fail students who don't perform.

[hotchilli]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Thai education is about to enter a new phase as Parliament prepares to vote on the National Education Bill. Yet experts do not expect the bill and its reforms to bring big improvements for Thailand’s much-criticized education system.

Must be around the hundredth tweak that will achieve nothing.

School children will be indoctrinated to serve the elite.

[2baht]

44 minutes ago, BananaStrong said:

welcome to the Thai school system, and that's why it's very, very inexpensive. you get what you pay for.

Yet the Ministry of Education has one of the highest budgets, speaks volumes about the system!

[MRToMRT]

In a a word "no"

[trainman34014]

Forget Education unless it suits the Fuedal Patronage System that Thailand is !!

[SuperSilverHaze]

2 hours ago, HappyExpat57 said:

I worked at both Regent's and St Andrew's. If you weren't an absolute top drawer, qualified teacher, you were shown the exit. Again, they pay their teachers a very good wage AND can fail students who don't perform.

Sure, private schools that are effectively paid to hold students back.

 

How does this remote relate to hundreds of poor public schools holding backtens of thousands of poor students that had received a poor education?

Edited January 10, 2023 by SuperSilverHaze

[Hanuman2547]

This same scenario has been going on for many decades.  Nothing will really change.  If so, that would have happened a good 30+ years ago when I first heard about the sad state of education in Thailand.  

[HappyExpat57]

1 hour ago, SuperSilverHaze said:

Sure, private schools that are effectively paid to hold students back.

 

How does this remote relate to hundreds of poor public schools holding backtens of thousands of poor students that had received a poor education?

They are effectively paid to get students educated. That's the whole point of a quality school.

[hughrection]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

The idea is to allow them to respond faster and better to the needs and concerns of students, parents and other stakeholders.

and there you have all that you need to know. ;(

[2baht]

10 minutes ago, HappyExpat57 said:

They are effectively paid to get students educated.

I think you mean indoctrinated! True education is for children of the rich!

[Phoenix Rising]

6 hours ago, Gknrd said:

I have been reading this same story for the last 15 years here... 

Then it should come as no surprise to you we heard the same stories 30 years ago as well.

[paulikens]

16 hours ago, BananaStrong said:

Good story for my second cup of coffee!!!!!   

 

1.  Cred.  :  5 years in the Thai education system, not now.    Note:  95% of all current English "teachers" would have no idea what "cred." means.  That's problem one.

 

I have seen COUNTLESS periods of kids sleeping, on their phone playing ROV or whatever, while a Thai OR falang teacher drones on about whatever.......................rooms usually don't have Airconditioning, 50 kids jammed in an outdated classroom, and the books are either way too easy or way to hard.   plus these teachers see their kids about 40 minutes a week.   times 20+ classes.   horrible.

 

the pay is between 900 and 1100 USD per month.   let's say $12,000 a year.   What clown would go to Thailand and do this to save money before going back to America and needing about $10,000 just to start a new life.   nobody.   I did it before I retired, and that's another group of jokers.  lol.     

 

I would guess 80% of the English teachers are non-native.  I could write books on how damaging this is, but I'll give you one story.  One lady yelled at her kids for saying "hi" instead of "hello" because "hi" was rude.    anyhow......if you looked at her Facebook page it was never in English, so there you go.   

 

turnover.   I've seen about 200 teacher quit or get fired.  enough said.   kids aren't dumb, they see this.

 

school will be closed for a week, then teachers will do review for a week and tests for a week and then there are more holidays.   do the math.

 

almost zero communication between teachers.   there is no 'team'.   so nobody has a clue what you are teaching.  

 

I've never met a real English teacher, but I've met about 50 backpackers who smile and sing songs in class and show up exhausted and miss classes and show up 10 minutes late to every single class.   Thai teachers are also really great at showing up 10 minutes late to a 40 minute class.  seen it 1000's of times.   

 

nobody fails.   so nobody cares.   When I started, no grades. Then I would give most kids like 90 percent and then my last year I failed everyone who should fail, KNOWING that the head Thai teacher would simply change my scores and nobody really cared except they wanted numbers.    any number.   lol.

 

last note:  I've seen farang and Thai teachers flirt with kids.  Yes, I know what flirting means.  Yes, I can tell.  Yes, it's disgusting.    They add them on Facebook, chat on messenger, LINE, whatever....  they cross the line in my mind.  it's so unprofessional I can't even begin......

 

and then one day they leave and a new joker arrives.

 

welcome to the Thai school system, and that's why it's very, very inexpensive. you get what you pay for.

Although I agree with a lot of what you say, what's the solution?   Also you say the pay is terrible and then say the teachers turn up late, etc, etc.  well no wonder if the pay is bad.   

[BananaStrong]

13 minutes ago, paulikens said:

Although I agree with a lot of what you say, what's the solution?   Also you say the pay is terrible and then say the teachers turn up late, etc, etc.  well no wonder if the pay is bad.   

I have to imagine the solution is 1.  Hire real teachers who are native English speakers.   If you are going to do #1, then you will have to pay around 70,000 and hire to attract some talent.  In China, it's about 3x higher I think, Vietnam over 2x higher wages, etc.......

 

It's also sad, but helped me a ton, was that good looks is 100x better than anything else!!!!!!!!!  I'm 100% serious, and other teachers will back me up.   Oh, you take a good picture for the parents?  great.

 

Parents would complain about Thai English teachers because they wanted to pay for someone who looked like a real teacher.  LOL.   Absolute joke when the "white face" does nothing and then all the Thai teachers get jealous and upset.  vicious cycle.

 

Another solution:   Every school should pay 12 months.   Most schools pay 10-11 months a year (another big problem) and it really tells a teacher to jump around if they want because they give you a year contract but don't pay you for it and, trust me, the Labor department usually doesn't care at all.   

 

Air Con every room, 30 kids a room max, 1 falang and one thai teacher mandatory, better pay, less teaching hours, be a real teacher, must be native...

 

I have NEVER met a Thai English teacher who was fluent, and I promise you I've met well over 200.  maybe more.  Yes, fire all of them or have them teach something in Thai.  That's impossible.   

 

Now, do you want me to talk about corruption????? lol.   

[BananaStrong]

10 hours ago, HappyExpat57 said:

I worked at both Regent's and St Andrew's. If you weren't an absolute top drawer, qualified teacher, you were shown the exit. Again, they pay their teachers a very good wage AND can fail students who don't perform.

I'm sure they are both excellent schools.   I'm happy there are a few thousand students and teachers enjoying a proper education and environment.   All I'm saying is there are about 89798234732 million kids tossed into the dung heap of ABC Where you from?  Where you go?  You!! Again please? R's sounding like L's and "friends" said as "friend." 

 

The one great thing about teaching is the kids.  Really.  The kids are amazing.  Kind, nice, willing, and respectful.  I've been around probably 10,000 students and I only purposefully avoided two.  One threw scissors at a teacher, so that's a little scary.   The other was a massive gambler and he didn't like it when I told him not to gamble at school.  100 other teachers would simply just walk by as if nothing was going on, but I felt I had an obligation.  He stopped, and luckily I left at the end of the term.  M6, probably 18 years old.  Anyhow, that was years ago and nothing happened.    On the flip side, I have thousands of nice memories of kids apparently happy to see me all the time.  I have no idea why they all liked me so much, but that's why every school begged me to stay.   

[NativeBob]

10 hours ago, HappyExpat57 said:

I worked at both Regent's and St Andrew's. If you weren't an absolute top drawer, qualified teacher, you were shown the exit. Again, they pay their teachers a very good wage AND can fail students who don't perform.

Is that Regent's at Pracha Udit area? Near sauna and italian restaurant, also near are BBS and KISchool? Friend's son went there.

[NativeBob]

@BananaStrong, there are endless stories about not-so-teachers in Thai schools. One highly decorated school at Lard Prao had young men from Uzbekistan and Ukraine as native speakers. Nice guy, btw.

IMHO the ED system rotten to the core and unfixable.

 

Example: years ago our house got termites infestation. Some smart farang told me the best way to fight them is to contact Kasetsat University's lab as (obviously) they out to be on the edge of this problem - termites destroy mango forrests en masse. Makes sense, right?

....

I haven't seen such poverty! year 20XX yet 15" CRT monitor, all "glassware" seems left from Vietnam war. Professor spoke great English, was very kind and helpful, but please: who on Earth would study or invent anything? 

Returning to my point: Thailand is (in case you didn't notice) an agricultural country, Kasertsat Uni. funded by Ministry of (guess) Agriculture and Royal family, yet labs, classes and equipment says complete opposite and they got their stuff from donations and scrap markets.

It was very sad trip.

[metisdead]

A meme post and the replies have been removed.

 

A post with an unattributed chart has been removed. 

[mrwebb8825]

12 hours ago, SuperSilverHaze said:

teriary license

Really?

Search results for "Teriary" in Sentences

0 results. There are no articles for this word yet.

????

[marcusb]

17 hours ago, webfact said:

The bill will even allow state schools to register themselves as legal entities and operate with greater independence.

I find this quite concerning.  Greater independence.  That will mean cutting corners wherever possible for more profit.  Without having to follow guidelines.

 

 

[HappyExpat57]

11 hours ago, NativeBob said:

Is that Regent's at Pracha Udit area? Near sauna and italian restaurant, also near are BBS and KISchool? Friend's son went there.

Regent's in Pattaya. A very fine school.

[ikke1959]

Just as happened with a daughter of our friend... She scored 47 out 50 points, but was hit by the teacher because she did not score 50 points... That is a educationsystem the surely will stimulate kids to study. No wonder with the no fail policy kidsdon't do anything as they always pass.. Why study if you can't satisfy the teacher with good tests. 

 

[BananaStrong]

6 minutes ago, ikke1959 said:

but was hit by the teacher

I've seen a Thai teacher take kids in Pratom 1 away from the cameras and hit them with rulers.  HARD.  They cried.  Yes, they, kids, many at once......saw it happen for about a year.  I'm a Type A personality (go figure) and I had a friend who was a policeman (most of us do) that I met while exercising.  I told him, and he visited the school on official business.  The school said they don't have any recordings, so he left.   LOL.   Note:  Yes, I did wait until my contract was finished because I'm not totally like Rambo.  Now I wouldn't care if I still worked there, but before I didn't really understand Thailand as well and was a little worried I'd be found out and immediately deported or something strange.  I have learned you can complain about schools,  but you won't be complaining about the police.  

 

Luckily for the kids, this kind of behavior really became news and it did go away immediately according to my three teacher friends at three different schools.   

 

I'd definitely have a meeting with the school about hitting this girl, and take it from there.  If a parent thinks they can sue the school and get money, they will likely do it.   

 

another NOTE:  Don't HI-FIVE kids!!!!!!!    Why?  When you raise your hand, they think you are going to hit them.  This happened to me twice, my heart broke, and I didn't do it again.   Yea, I'm not the smartest knife.  Fist pump, they like that.  with the explosion at the end...lol

[ikke1959]

24 minutes ago, BananaStrong said:

I've seen a Thai teacher take kids in Pratom 1 away from the cameras and hit them with rulers.  HARD.  They cried.  Yes, they, kids, many at once......saw it happen for about a year.  I'm a Type A personality (go figure) and I had a friend who was a policeman (most of us do) that I met while exercising.  I told him, and he visited the school on official business.  The school said they don't have any recordings, so he left.   LOL.   Note:  Yes, I did wait until my contract was finished because I'm not totally like Rambo.  Now I wouldn't care if I still worked there, but before I didn't really understand Thailand as well and was a little worried I'd be found out and immediately deported or something strange.  I have learned you can complain about schools,  but you won't be complaining about the police.  

 

Luckily for the kids, this kind of behavior really became news and it did go away immediately according to my three teacher friends at three different schools.   

 

I'd definitely have a meeting with the school about hitting this girl, and take it from there.  If a parent thinks they can sue the school and get money, they will likely do it.   

 

another NOTE:  Don't HI-FIVE kids!!!!!!!    Why?  When you raise your hand, they think you are going to hit them.  This happened to me twice, my heart broke, and I didn't do it again.   Yea, I'm not the smartest knife.  Fist pump, they like that.  with the explosion at the end...lol

I know I have been a teacher too and the sick rules and also the slamming of students... just for nothing .. Even Thai English teachers when checking the notebooks are angry at the kids of Prathom 1 and 2 because they did not have a nice handwriting, and disapproved what they wrote, although it was totally correct. but they used capitals and lower case through eachother. I told the teacher that  everything was correct and the kids are learning, but no that felt like loosing face for the teacher. Kids are totally  stressed as they don't know what is good and not good, for nothing, slammed for minor  mistakes... It is very sad that kids are very insecure, but all I think just to control them and brainwash them.....I stopped teaching, cause I could not handle it anymore