Teachers TV: Making It Work For Thailand

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Teachers TV: making it work for Thailand

By Wannapa Khaopa

The Nation

Although the Thai Teachers TV project is unable to clearly show that it directly improves pupils' academic performance, many teachers are satisfied it has given them good, new ideas for teaching and preparing fun activities that also encourage students' learning.

Based on an external assessment by Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Education, the quality of teaching methods shown in the project's video clips was good and suitable. But faculty dean Sirichai Kanjanawasee said they would have to assess whether the project had a good impact on students after teachers adjust their methods to incorporate ideas inspired by the teaching clips.

"This year we will assess the impact on students after the teachers have used Teachers TV to adjust their teaching," he said.

Sirichai has a network of 25 universities and 225 educational service area offices that have conducted surveys on around 8,000 people at more than 1,000 schools across the country.

The dean said most of the programme's viewers were school directors and teachers. He had proposed the project to encourage more university students and lecturers in education faculties to view and make use of it.

He also urged it to increase number of the video clips recorded in Thai classrooms because with similar contexts the viewers would be able to apply what they had seen in the clips with their students more easily.

Meanwhile, many teachers agreed that watching what happens during teaching in real classrooms could be a good shortcut for them, newly appointed ones in particular, to get new ideas for designing their own teaching methods and prepare better educational activities for their pupils.

The project has broadcast how proficient teachers teach their students in class. It was adopted from an initiative in the United Kingdom - and has been shown to Thai teachers for a year.

Salma Semae, a maths teacher at Chongraksatvittaya School in Pattani, who has taught Prathom 3 (Grade 3) students who have trouble concentrating on academic contents for a long time, said she had learned from examples of how experienced teachers use diverse games and activities to teach their students in the Teachers TV's videos. So, she had changed her way of teaching - her students learned while they were playing.

"They have fun as they solve maths problems in circumstances that satisfy them when I conduct a maths class at the school playground. They feel like they're playing. So, they look more enthusiastic and enjoy it when solving the problems," Salma said.

She had also learnt how to question students in the way that gets them to think.

"To me, Teachers TV is like a knowledge centre, which is available for me anytime I want. It really helps reduce time in terms of teaching preparation. I've seen examples of what teachers teach, instructional media and activities they use and pupil's reactions in real classrooms, and I can adapt and apply them with my pupils.

"I don't waste time finding out if I'm doing it properly by myself," she said. "I'm happy my students, especially ones with poor academic performance, are finding mathematics more enjoyable."

Also, Ladda Kammayee, director of Ban Seelong School in Chachoengsao, has adopted different techniques being used in a project at Srinakarinwirot University Prasarnmit Demonstration School that seniors teach junior students and applied them to a similar project her school has had for years to improve junior students' literacy skills.

Meanwhile, a network of 26 school directors in Ubon Ratchathani has agreed to encourage their teachers to watch and make use of what they've seen in Teachers TV's clips, Kowit Boonchaliow, director of Bankumuang School, a cofounder of the network, said.

They told the teachers to watch and note down what they think would be useful for their teaching and adjust their methods. After trying new techniques, the teachers have a weekly meeting to analyse, discuss and give advice to each other.

The network has been expanded from 26 to 148 schools in the province.

Kowit said 2030 per cent of all the teachers at those schools usually used Teachers TV.

Kasem Suriyakant, dean of Education at Thaksin University, has included Teachers TV in five subjects as a tool to help students create their own teaching plans before they do an internship at schools.

"The students told me it helped them finish their plans more easily and faster. They also have more creative teaching techniques," he said.

Teachers TV turned one year old this month. More than 1,700 clips have been produced, 65 per cent of those are bought from the UK and 35 per cent have been produced in Thailand. Bt11 billion in funding has been provided for the threeyear project.

Assoc Prof Montree Yamkasikorn, dean of Education at Burapha University and a director of Thai Teachers TV, said apart from the production, the project had tried to do selfassessment or internal qualityassurance.

Some 18 assessment teams had reviewed nine parts of the country - two teams in charge of each part, in which they assess quantitatively and qualitatively.

The National Research Council of Thailand will this year fund Bt20 million to get teachers teaching each subject to do research to review the effectiveness of implementing techniques obtained from Teachers TV and work out ways on how to use the videos more effectively.

Montree said a goal of the second year of Teachers TV was to boost the proportion of Thai clips to 50 per cent. They also want to triple the number of Teachers TV members from 100,000 to 300,000, so they reach more teachers and teacherstobe, especially in remote areas, and ensure that teachers recognise the benefits and apply them with their own classes.

He also wants to do international collaboration with Finland and France, to exchange best practices of teaching with their top education officials.

-- The Nation 2011-09-26