Highhopes To Be Asia's International Education Hub

[Publicus]

Discussion of the huge majority of schools and universities at the lower end of the greatly skewed Thai education spectrum is, I should think, a valid approach to this topic as is the general state of English language education and the use of English in LOS.

It's been reaffirmed here that Thailand cannot seek or claim to be an education hub of Asia in any respect due to the decrepit education system Thais must pass thru starting from Grade 1. To think otherwise would be fantasy bordering on the dellusional, if not outright madness. The Thai educative system cannot produce regional or continental leaders in education any more than it has or could produce transformational leaders in government who can viably reinvent Thai sociopolitics so the country can move into a future that is stable and prosperous. (Intentionally or not, one can confirm this at any spirit house.)

My experience in English, however, is that Thais are well positioned to build on their existing knowledge and facility in the English language. In contrast to other countries where I've taught English - Korea and PRChina - more Thais know more English than the general population of either.

From my arrival in Thailand in 1998 I noticed the sharp contrast between the other two, and I've noticed the fact in my travels (Hong Kong and a few other places of course excepted). Unlike in Korea or the PRC I often can find English in taxis, many shops or markets, in hospitals and storefront clinics, malls etc. Unlike other countries, one can find English on menus in Thailand and a Western food culture that clearly indicates a respectable knowledge of English whether the English is native or the ESL of continental Europeans.

The driving factor, or so a good number of us can agree, is that Thais have learned they can make a buck in the relatively important tourism industry. So because of tourism and other factors English has permeated Thailand from Chaing Mai to Bangkok to Samui and Phuket. For better and for worse Thailand hasn't the experience of Hong Kong or the Philippines so while Thai English (Thailish) lags in comparason to the English of those places, there certainly is more English in Thailand than in, say, Indonesia or Vietnam.

(Aussies regularly hit certain tourist spots in Indonesia, such as Bali, but Indonesia itself with its 1,000 islands is not a center of English language proficiency or at the least knowledge)

Edited October 18, 2009 by Publicus

[Dakhar]

Discussion of the huge majority of schools and universities at the lower end of the greatly skewed Thai education spectrum is, I should think, a valid approach to this topic as is the general state of English language education and the use of English in LOS.

It's been reaffirmed here that Thailand cannot seek or claim to be an education hub of Asia in any respect due to the decrepit education system Thais must pass thru starting from Grade 1. To think otherwise would be fantasy bordering on the dellusional, if not outright madness. The Thai educative system cannot produce regional or continental leaders in education any more than it has or could produce transformational leaders in government who can viably reinvent Thai sociopolitics so the country can move into a future that is stable and prosperous. (Intentionally or not, one can confirm this at any spirit house.)

My experience in English, however, is that Thais are well positioned to build on their existing knowledge and facility in the English language. In contrast to other countries where I've taught English - Korea and PRChina - more Thais know more English than the general population of either.

From my arrival in Thailand in 1998 I noticed the sharp contrast between the other two, and I've noticed the fact in my travels (Hong Kong and a few other places of course excepted). Unlike in Korea or the PRC I often can find English in taxis, many shops or markets, in hospitals and storefront clinics, malls etc. Unlike other countries, one can find English on menus in Thailand and a Western food culture that clearly indicates a respectable knowledge of English whether the English is native or the ESL of continental Europeans.

The driving factor, or so a good number of us can agree, is that Thais have learned they can make a buck in the relatively important tourism industry. So because of tourism and other factors English has permeated Thailand from Chaing Mai to Bangkok to Samui and Phuket. For better and for worse Thailand hasn't the experience of Hong Kong or the Philippines so while Thai English (Thailish) lags in comparason to the English of those places, there certainly is more English in Thailand than in, say, Indonesia or Vietnam.

(Aussies regularly hit certain tourist spots in Indonesia, such as Bali, but Indonesia itself with its 1,000 islands is not a center of English language proficiency or at the least knowledge)

I challenge you to spend 15 minutes on Alibaba.com and see which countries have Employees waiting to "chat" in order to help initiate a business transaction. Thai companies, essentially have ZERO sales employees waiting to assist. Now compared to the Chinese companies on Alibaba.... there is a huge percentage of sales reps ready and waiting to chat "in English" to assist in the sales of materials/goods etc.

Hit the streets of Shanghai, and you will hear people speaking in English all over the place.

Thailand.... the bastion of English if only!

[eggomaniac]

Discussion of the huge majority of schools and universities at the lower end of the greatly skewed Thai education spectrum is, I should think, a valid approach to this topic

I think it has nothing to do with the topic at all and is extremely boring.

"Think too much", btw, usually means that you think too much for your level. It means that some smart people have thought about it before and your hare brained attempts at re-inventing the bicycle are ridiculous. I sincerely hope you don't get to hear it too often.

He IS on Topic, not boring and NOT hair brained. The gist of the OP was that Thailand is surging to the front of the pack in educational rankings in Asia and matching the Western standards. [a Troll like OP]

Any discussions of facts on how it just ain't so and the measures needed to move to the lofty heights are germane to the Original Topic. [Think about it!]

We WANT Thailand to improve. Some posters, ?somehow?, think they already made the grade.

If democracy has anything to with it, 90% of responses found the OP's claim to be ridiculous, which they ARE.

[2 institutions in the top 500 is NOT bragging rights!]

It's 'what are we doing wrong' stuff?

[Publicus]

Discussion of the huge majority of schools and universities at the lower end of the greatly skewed Thai education spectrum is, I should think, a valid approach to this topic as is the general state of English language education and the use of English in LOS.

It's been reaffirmed here that Thailand cannot seek or claim to be an education hub of Asia in any respect due to the decrepit education system Thais must pass thru starting from Grade 1. To think otherwise would be fantasy bordering on the dellusional, if not outright madness. The Thai educative system cannot produce regional or continental leaders in education any more than it has or could produce transformational leaders in government who can viably reinvent Thai sociopolitics so the country can move into a future that is stable and prosperous. (Intentionally or not, one can confirm this at any spirit house.)

My experience in English, however, is that Thais are well positioned to build on their existing knowledge and facility in the English language. In contrast to other countries where I've taught English - Korea and PRChina - more Thais know more English than the general population of either.

From my arrival in Thailand in 1998 I noticed the sharp contrast between the other two, and I've noticed the fact in my travels (Hong Kong and a few other places of course excepted). Unlike in Korea or the PRC I often can find English in taxis, many shops or markets, in hospitals and storefront clinics, malls etc. Unlike other countries, one can find English on menus in Thailand and a Western food culture that clearly indicates a respectable knowledge of English whether the English is native or the ESL of continental Europeans.

The driving factor, or so a good number of us can agree, is that Thais have learned they can make a buck in the relatively important tourism industry. So because of tourism and other factors English has permeated Thailand from Chaing Mai to Bangkok to Samui and Phuket. For better and for worse Thailand hasn't the experience of Hong Kong or the Philippines so while Thai English (Thailish) lags in comparason to the English of those places, there certainly is more English in Thailand than in, say, Indonesia or Vietnam.

(Aussies regularly hit certain tourist spots in Indonesia, such as Bali, but Indonesia itself with its 1,000 islands is not a center of English language proficiency or at the least knowledge)

I challenge you to spend 15 minutes on Alibaba.com and see which countries have Employees waiting to "chat" in order to help initiate a business transaction. Thai companies, essentially have ZERO sales employees waiting to assist. Now compared to the Chinese companies on Alibaba.... there is a huge percentage of sales reps ready and waiting to chat "in English" to assist in the sales of materials/goods etc.

Hit the streets of Shanghai, and you will hear people speaking in English all over the place.

Thailand.... the bastion of English if only!

The point is that "more Thais know more English than the general population of either" the PRC or Korea where I've also taught English with colleagues who have made the same finding.

After two years in the PRC I've found one taxi driver who reasonably can communicate in English, the experience of my colleagues being the same and the same is true in developed Korea (and I'm advised, Japan). In Thailand many taxi drivers can communicate in English, some can gab your ear off. Sales personnel in Thailand know at least some English but in China and Korea they are mute of English. Physicians in Thailand and Korea communicate well in English but in the PRC they can write only the name of the foreign 'devil' patient who could die on the spot for lack of verbal communication. The list of such specifics could fill this page.

Chinese and Korean intellectuals and professionals are fluent in English - after that however, basically forget it. Corporate entrepreneurs in either country need interpreters, as do government officials. The present generation of PRC leaders of government and business missed their education because of Mao's cultural revolution so are English illiterate as are the generation next in line. Even tho Thaksin struggled to lie that Thailand didn't have "Bifu" the guy nonetheless is English literate (Bird Flu of course).

The PRC is all porcelen bowl and no rice concerning English. I do English Corner at my university each Thursday evening and of 10,000 students I get maybe 20 (who wants 10,000 anyway!). We used to send two foreign teachers to English Corner but now I'm it. The Chinese put English student debates on national TV but no one understands English so no one except uncomprehending parents and friends watch. Chinese English teachers/professors bore their students to death due to their intermnable lectures and massive disinterest.

Anyone who's spent time in the PRC knows China has so many regional dialects that the Chinese can't and don't understand another Chinese from 100km distant from home, that the government is feverishly promoting Mandarin as the national language so the Chinese can understand each other. The general population is still learning Mandarin (Putonghua), continuing to struggle to communicate at even basic levels with any other Chinese who live even two hills over the horizon. Because it is vital that the Chinese have a common language, considerations of learning English have been and remain distant. Only some elites of the PRC can communicate in English (but their English pronunciation is anyway too often incomprehensible to be useful to anyone).

At least at this point Thailand has a good basic English foundation to build on.

Edited October 18, 2009 by Publicus