Populist Spending Will Not Fix Our Education Woes: Thai Opinion

[webfact]

EDITORIAL

Populist spending will not fix our education woes

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Thai politicians still believe that throwing money at the problem will bring improvement in our schools, and help them line their own pockets

The failure of Thai educational reform does not lie in a lack of money, but in the failure to spend that money wisely to improve opportunities for our students. It is sad that we have squandered, or lost through corruption, vast sums of money earmarked for future generations.

Contrary to the government's belief that materials such as computer tablets will provide a miracle cure for the deteriorating quality of Thai education standards, prominent economist Dr Ammar Siamwalla says that the quality of teachers is the key to reform in our school system, and the failure of educational reform is not because of insufficient financial resources.

Dr Ammar makes a solid argument in a report to be presented to the Thailand Development Research Institute's seminar on education that lack of budget is not the issue. In fact, the education budget has been doubled over the past ten years. At present, it accounts for 4 per cent of GDP.

Thai decision-makers tend to blame poor education standards on a lack of financial support, and so justify their plans to seek more money to finance their new projects. But expenditure on education is at a similar level to other countries in the region, which have seen the performance of their students improve.

In addition, the average salary of teachers in public schools increased from Bt15,000 per month in 2001 to Bt24,000 in 2010, according to the National Statistical Office. Thai students also spend more hours in class than their counterparts in neighbouring countries. This is not to mention the time and money spent by Thai students and their parents in extracurricular cram schools and tutoring schools.

However, the overall performance of Thai students is still declining. The O-Net test scores of Thai students are lower when compared to students in other countries. There is also a great disparity in the quality of schooling. While the standards in most state schools have been declining, students from top private and international schools here often win international awards for their excellence in maths and science.

This shows that we have focused on the wrong issues in the attempt to reform our education system. Decision-makers tend to focus on the quantitative aspect, such as procurement of new materials, buildings, which can be translated into an amount of money. They have ignored the qualitative side, which means the quality of teachers, the curriculum, or the classroom size, all of which directly contribute to the students' learning experience. But these issues are overlooked by Thai education ministers and politicians because they do not lead to lucrative projects or vote-grabbing slogans during election campaigns.

As a result, Thai students are stuck in a bad system while politicians exploit financial resources. The government plans to distribute computer tablets to students nationwide soon, even though teachers are not sufficiently prepared to instruct and guide students to ensure that the gadgets contribute to a worthwhile learning experience. Furthermore, these cheap tablets from China are likely to end up as piles of obsolete waste in a few short months. In short, the massive amount of money due to be spent on these tablets will again not serve any valuable purpose.

Educational reform takes years to accomplish, as people who understand the issue will confirm. A good recommendation for Thai educators and politicians is to watch the movie "Waiting for Superman", to see how educator Geoffrey Canada successfully rescued failing schools in America and how Michelle Rhee, former public schools chancellor in Washington DC, brought national attention to the quality of teaching in the public school system. Americans have now woken up to realise they are falling behind in terms of education. But the sad news for Thai students is that we are nowhere near that kind of realisation in this country.

Thai decision-makers haven't addressed this issue at the root. They still view education projects as opportunities to get their hands on more and more money. Thai educators meanwhile are concerned about these sideline projects that detract from the energy and determination needed to give our students a jumpstart in life. Politicians continue to violate the basic right of our children to receive a quality education. We should be deeply ashamed of ourselves for denying our young people the opportunity to learn.

-- The Nation 2012-02-10

[kurnell]

I've just put my daughter into an international school after 3 years in a renowned Thai nursery/early years school. The difference is astounding. To be blunt she learnt nothing at the Thai school and has learnt more in 1 month at ther new school than 3 years in the Thai school. The Thai system creates lazy dummies and sadly always will.

[sparebox2]

I agree that it won't fit the problem, but it helps.

Better than sitting there doing nothing, or employ more Farang tourist to teach English at disguting compensation rate.

[sparebox2]

I've just put my daughter into an international school after 3 years in a renowned Thai nursery/early years school. The difference is astounding. To be blunt she learnt nothing at the Thai school and has learnt more in 1 month at ther new school than 3 years in the Thai school. The Thai system creates lazy dummies and sadly always will.

I totally agree with you.

But you also pay more in 1 months than 3 years in govt school (which is 100% free plus free books plus cash for uniform plus cash for equipments).

[hanuman2543]

"Politicians continue to violate the basic right of our children to receive a quality education. We should be deeply ashamed of ourselves for denying our young people the opportunity to learn."

Can not agree more. The whole purpose of the Thai Education System is to produce cheap labourers who can not think for themselves and the learning method reminds me of how to teach a parrot repeating some words.

[Reasonableman]

I've just put my daughter into an international school after 3 years in a renowned Thai nursery/early years school. The difference is astounding. To be blunt she learnt nothing at the Thai school and has learnt more in 1 month at ther new school than 3 years in the Thai school. The Thai system creates lazy dummies and sadly always will.

I totally agree with you.

But you also pay more in 1 months than 3 years in govt school (which is 100% free plus free books plus cash for uniform plus cash for equipments).

The cost of international schools is sadly far beyond the reach of many expats, too, despite their mythical prosperity compared with the average Thai worker. Throwing a few million baht at the Thai education system (the "tablet panacea") as a one-off "fix" achieves nothing long-term. Someone's enthusiasm that ran away like a freight train going nowhere useful. It is about long-term commitment, not crackdowns and quick fixes that fix nothing.

[jaltsc]

I've just put my daughter into an international school after 3 years in a renowned Thai nursery/early years school. The difference is astounding. To be blunt she learnt nothing at the Thai school and has learnt more in 1 month at ther new school than 3 years in the Thai school. The Thai system creates lazy dummies and sadly always will.

I totally agree with you.

But you also pay more in 1 months than 3 years in govt school (which is 100% free plus free books plus cash for uniform plus cash for equipments).

Yet it still appears to be a better bargain than the Thai school.

[Gillespie]

The purpose of the Thai education system is to produce people who will believe what they are told. As such, it is thoroughly successful.

[chrisinth]

I've just put my daughter into an international school after 3 years in a renowned Thai nursery/early years school. The difference is astounding. To be blunt she learnt nothing at the Thai school and has learnt more in 1 month at ther new school than 3 years in the Thai school. The Thai system creates lazy dummies and sadly always will.

I totally agree with you.

But you also pay more in 1 months than 3 years in govt school (which is 100% free plus free books plus cash for uniform plus cash for equipments).

The cost of international schools is sadly far beyond the reach of many expats, too, despite their mythical prosperity compared with the average Thai worker. Throwing a few million baht at the Thai education system (the "tablet panacea") as a one-off "fix" achieves nothing long-term. Someone's enthusiasm that ran away like a freight train going nowhere useful. It is about long-term commitment, not crackdowns and quick fixes that fix nothing.

I agree totally about long term commitment, but how complicated will this road be as it means a reorganization of the entire education system.

Interim fixes should include proper vetting for all falang teachers introduced into the system and the abolishment of the "no fail" policies that the majority of schools have adopted. To those who don't understand this, the "no pupil shall fail" policy was introduced to keep up the appearance that school education levels were good so no pupil will be allowed to fail an exam; this was brought about by the grading of schools by the education authority.

I am not a teacher, but know enough of them to understand their problems; low grades are not an option. Having two teenage children in this system is very daunting.

[Reasonableman]

I've just put my daughter into an international school after 3 years in a renowned Thai nursery/early years school. The difference is astounding. To be blunt she learnt nothing at the Thai school and has learnt more in 1 month at ther new school than 3 years in the Thai school. The Thai system creates lazy dummies and sadly always will.

I totally agree with you.

But you also pay more in 1 months than 3 years in govt school (which is 100% free plus free books plus cash for uniform plus cash for equipments).

The cost of international schools is sadly far beyond the reach of many expats, too, despite their mythical prosperity compared with the average Thai worker. Throwing a few million baht at the Thai education system (the "tablet panacea") as a one-off "fix" achieves nothing long-term. Someone's enthusiasm that ran away like a freight train going nowhere useful. It is about long-term commitment, not crackdowns and quick fixes that fix nothing.

I agree totally about long term commitment, but how complicated will this road be as it means a reorganization of the entire education system.

Interim fixes should include proper vetting for all falang teachers introduced into the system and the abolishment of the "no fail" policies that the majority of schools have adopted. To those who don't understand this, the "no pupil shall fail" policy was introduced to keep up the appearance that school education levels were good so no pupil will be allowed to fail an exam; this was brought about by the grading of schools by the education authority.

I am not a teacher, but know enough of them to understand their problems; low grades are not an option. Having two teenage children in this system is very daunting.

Agreed: the part you allude to is very challenging in itself. It's about commitment to change, and maybe some Jurassic members of the establishment need to be moved to inactive posts for it to happen. That is also highly unlikely, I'm afraid.

[xthAi76s]

While the standards in most state schools have been declining, students from top private and international schools here often win international awards for their excellence in maths and science.

I think the author meant "... (Thai-) Chinese students from top private ..."

There ain't too many real Thais winning any international awards for excellence in anything at all.

Edited February 10, 2012 by ThailandMan

[CalgaryII]

Without getting into the nitty-gritty of what this Economist says, apparently he is 'prominent" (whatever that means), there is also a non-educational theme to his opinions......... that being anti-Politician.

He lays all Thai educational travails at the feet of Politicians, when perhaps it may be better placed at the feet of Educational Professionals who ultimately advise the Politicians.

As an example, one of those professionals decreed some time ago, that students learn better when they are having fun learning. That is not a Politician decreeing, but a subject-matter expert. Having taught at a Rajabhat Uni. some time ago, I came to the conclusion it is a Uni. to babysit teenagers. Learning is a by-product. But they have fun and are not held accountable for educational performance.

Anytime I read such a drive-by smear of all Politicians, I see another agenda.

Generalizing and demonizing Politicians as a class, suggests to me that someone has limited Democratic sympathies and sees the results of electoral politics - Politicians - as an outcome of a process they would like to do away with.

Most likely because they have difficulty winning elections.

Edited February 10, 2012 by CalgaryII

[sparebox2]

While the standards in most state schools have been declining, students from top private and international schools here often win international awards for their excellence in maths and science.

I think the author meant "... (Thai-) Chinese students from top private ..."

There ain't too many real Thais winning any international awards for excellence in anything at all.

We all all Thais from various background and origins.

Farangs, please do not force your racist concept onto us Thais.

[Reasonableman]

Without getting into the nitty-gritty of what this Economist says, apparently he is 'prominent" (whatever that means), there is also a non-educational theme to his opinions......... that being anti-Politician.

He lays all Thai educational travails at the feet of Politicians, when perhaps it may be better placed at the feet of Educational Professionals who ultimately advise the Politicians.

As an example, one of those professionals decreed some time ago, that students learn better when they are having fun. learning. That is not a Politician decreeing, but a subject-matter expert. Having taught at a Rajabhat Uni. some time ago, I came to the conclusion it is a Uni. to babysit teenagers. Learning is a by-product. But they have fun and are not held accountable for educational performance.

Anytime I read such a drive-by smear of all Politicians, I see another agenda.

Generalizing and demonizing Politicians as a class, suggests to me that someone has limited Democratic sympathies and sees the results of electoral politics - Politicians - as an outcome of a process they would like to do away with.

Frankly, my dear Calgaryll, I don't give a dam_n what you think. It is of no consequence. We've heard all you have to offer, over and over again, and it's the same old re-warmed hash of narrow-minded, divisive, anti-democratic opinion, and back-slapping self-congratulation and boundless egotism, as before. Boring.... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[Jingthing]

While the standards in most state schools have been declining, students from top private and international schools here often win international awards for their excellence in maths and science.

I think the author meant "... (Thai-) Chinese students from top private ..."

There ain't too many real Thais winning any international awards for excellence in anything at all.

We all all Thais from various background and origins.

Farangs, please do not force your racist concept onto us Thais.

Thais, please do not force your racist concept onto us f-rangs.

[teko]

While the standards in most state schools have been declining, students from top private and international schools here often win international awards for their excellence in maths and science.

I think the author meant "... (Thai-) Chinese students from top private ..."

There ain't too many real Thais winning any international awards for excellence in anything at all.

We all all Thais from various background and origins.

Farangs, please do not force your racist concept onto us Thais.

And Thai aren'r racist, especially the Thai-Chinese!!!!!!!

[CalgaryII]

Frankly, my dear Calgaryll, I don't give a dam_n what you think. It is of no consequence. We've heard all you have to offer, over and over again, and it's the same old re-warmed hash of narrow-minded, divisive, anti-democratic opinion, and back-slapping self-congratulation and boundless egotism, as before. Boring....

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Just because you don't consider some views as valid, doesn't invalidate them.

At least one can take some comfort, knowing that one doesn't need to read all Posts.

For you Reasonableman, it is perfectly reasonable to skip CalgaryII Posts right on by.

Edited February 12, 2012 by metisdead
Bold font removed.

[anterian]

The aim of teaching has changed, it used to be to teach knowledge and how to use it, now it is how to source knowledge and apply it.

Let me explain. Many years ago when I sat "A" level physics I could confidently say that I knew most of all that was known about physics. This is now impossible, since then we have had vast advances in knowledge, in electronics, sub atomics, cosmology, the same applies to the life sciences and chemistry. It is impossible to fit all this information into a curriculum. Education now should concentrate on the basic tools, namely information gathering and processing, learning how to think and question.

[kurnell]

I've just put my daughter into an international school after 3 years in a renowned Thai nursery/early years school. The difference is astounding. To be blunt she learnt nothing at the Thai school and has learnt more in 1 month at ther new school than 3 years in the Thai school. The Thai system creates lazy dummies and sadly always will.

I totally agree with you.

But you also pay more in 1 months than 3 years in govt school (which is 100% free plus free books plus cash for uniform plus cash for equipments).

My daughter wasn't at a government school, she was at one of the 'better' Thai schools and the difference in cost is 6,500 baht per month

[kurnell]

I've just put my daughter into an international school after 3 years in a renowned Thai nursery/early years school. The difference is astounding. To be blunt she learnt nothing at the Thai school and has learnt more in 1 month at ther new school than 3 years in the Thai school. The Thai system creates lazy dummies and sadly always will.

I totally agree with you.

But you also pay more in 1 months than 3 years in govt school (which is 100% free plus free books plus cash for uniform plus cash for equipments).

The cost of international schools is sadly far beyond the reach of many expats, too, despite their mythical prosperity compared with the average Thai worker. Throwing a few million baht at the Thai education system (the "tablet panacea") as a one-off "fix" achieves nothing long-term. Someone's enthusiasm that ran away like a freight train going nowhere useful. It is about long-term commitment, not crackdowns and quick fixes that fix nothing.

Have you actually made an enquiry? Rates are negotiable. I am very satisfied with what I got. If you go with rates listed on their websites then of course it is too high

[xthAi76s]

While the standards in most state schools have been declining, students from top private and international schools here often win international awards for their excellence in maths and science.

I think the author meant "... (Thai-) Chinese students from top private ..."

There ain't too many real Thais winning any international awards for excellence in anything at all.

We all all Thais from various background and origins.

Farangs, please do not force your racist concept onto us Thais.

HAHA! Yes, I understand.

Read about the discriminatory Thai governments in the 1930s and onward and how Chinese suffered from Thai discrimination. Or, talk to ethnic Chinese families here who feel comfortable to be open with non-Ethnic Chinese Thais and ask them about their experiences. Surely, you don't think the Chinese have not suffered in Thailand, right?

It is a distinction I make because I think it's important for Thais to look into. None of the major problems in education, politics and other topics really affect the 'ruling', elites here who are overwhelmingly (almost entirely) ethnic Chinese (Thais). Not that I think everything about their supreme and total domination and exploitation of this country and it's resources/people is bad, but I do think it would be quite helpful (although most unlikely here) to examine this kind of topic to see if there is something else wrong, perhaps much deeper, in the 'system'.

Edited February 10, 2012 by ThailandMan

[Lifer]

The top of the food chain blaming the education problems on the teachers will not help either. The talk has been going on for years always blaming everyone else but the people making all the wrong deisions.

[nickjam]

I have worked in international schools for 4 years now. As a staff member in a newly established expanding school I am constantly getting new students from the Thai system who have no knowledge of actually how to learn. Many of them are very intelligent but it usually takes about 6 months to a year to get them thinking critically. Most are scared to voice any opinions and it takes a lot of gentle coaxing to get them to change their way of thinking.

I was helping a very intelligent young girl the other day who made the observation that she feels very different from other Thais her age. As she is going to America next year we started talking about the US constitution and how it is her right to question teachers and superiors. She stated that up until she came to our school she was scared to do this. She had been in a system where the teacher is god and every word they utter to be absolute truth. Any questioning of superiors would be met with an abrupt reprimand, often in a fairly aggressive and dismissive way.

There is no doubt that there are students with huge potential here but their talents are being wasted by an antiquated nationalistic system enforced by bullies wrapped up in their own sense of self importance.

[thequietman]

I've just put my daughter into an international school after 3 years in a renowned Thai nursery/early years school. The difference is astounding. To be blunt she learnt nothing at the Thai school and has learnt more in 1 month at ther new school than 3 years in the Thai school. The Thai system creates lazy dummies and sadly always will.

I totally agree with you.

But you also pay more in 1 months than 3 years in govt school (which is 100% free plus free books plus cash for uniform plus cash for equipments).

The cost of international schools is sadly far beyond the reach of many expats, too, despite their mythical prosperity compared with the average Thai worker. Throwing a few million baht at the Thai education system (the "tablet panacea") as a one-off "fix" achieves nothing long-term. Someone's enthusiasm that ran away like a freight train going nowhere useful. It is about long-term commitment, not crackdowns and quick fixes that fix nothing.

I agree totally about long term commitment, but how complicated will this road be as it means a reorganization of the entire education system.

Interim fixes should include proper vetting for all falang teachers introduced into the system and the abolishment of the "no fail" policies that the majority of schools have adopted. To those who don't understand this, the "no pupil shall fail" policy was introduced to keep up the appearance that school education levels were good so no pupil will be allowed to fail an exam; this was brought about by the grading of schools by the education authority.

I am not a teacher, but know enough of them to understand their problems; low grades are not an option. Having two teenage children in this system is very daunting.

so what you are saying, is the 3 or 4 native English teachers are the root causes of this ineffective system out of a pool of maybe 90 thai teachers in a large secondary school. yes you are not a teacher because if you were, you would know that any suggestion (and i mean ANY suggestion) by a foreign teacher is instantly dismissed by the thai staff. anything (and i mean anything) that could help the department function better at no extra cost to the school, is ignored.

the thai teachers are sheep, just following the same mundane repetitive teaching system since the 60's. they take more interest organising evenings out, school trips (that are just a jaunt with no benefit to the students) or their huge breakfasts,lunch and 5 times snacks than actually trying to change this broken system of education. the directors of these schools just cream funds destined for the students off the top and continue to plant their flower gardens and trees with the same bullshit signs all over the school, 'to be Number 1" and other nonsensical signs that are, 9 times out of 10 grammatically incorrect. when asked, why didn't you just ask your foreign teachers to check them first, you get the same answer, 'we don't want to lose face.'

basically, if you are white, young, handsome and a binge drinker, then you are the one for them.

the amount of fully qualified, real teachers, turned away from thai schools is huge because the thai staff know that this foreigner will want to teach. when he finds out this is just another monkey house, like the rest, he's gonna be pissed and they don't want change.

"dance for us monkey,dance. make the students laugh,turn up early,leave late and kiss our <deleted>. you will last a long time here farrang, we love you."

[Unkomoncents]

It's been well documented that Thais and people living in Thailand spend way, way more than they should in proportion to the quality of the product they receive. I believe, having taught in Thailand for years, that he problem is even deeper than this great article suggests:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/30/us-thailand-education-idUSTRE74T0NV20110530

The article talks about an outdated anti-colonial mindset, which I'll admit is part of the problem, but it doesn't seem to acknowledge or even understand that Thailand has a relatively codified class system (it pales in comparison to India, but nevertheless...). This plays heavily into the top-down mode of education Thais favor. I also believe (and this is cliche but still) that the general 'mai pen rai', 'sabai, sabai' attitude and the intense coddling of Thai children create a culture that seriously stifles quality education. As an American, I have personally experienced the deleterious educational effect of self-esteem-oriented education. Thais take this to a whole new level, which again is deeply connected to the Thai sensitivity to losing face. It's very difficult to teach people who are intent on believing in and demonstrating their 'perfection'. Contained in the very logic of education is the idea that the pupil is lacking in some area of knowledge and must be trained out of their ignorance/error (in context; I acknowledge this is a fairly mechanical way of referring to education).

[ajarnyai]

There are many things that could be done to improve the Thai education system, but two of the biggest are the "no fail" policy, and selling English and "gifted" programs. I have students that have no interest in studying English, but they are asked to do it; 5 times a week. It would be better for them to study English 1 day a week and anything else the rest of the time then have them sleep in my class. I have no idea what happens in the average Thai household, so I wonder if my student’s parents (who mostly grow rice) are spending the extra money, and not asking for results. When their kid can't speak English or doesn't score well. What would they say? Well, of course they all score well (even if I fail them) and since no one in my village speaks English, the few sentences they can patch together are enough. I think few people In Thai schools are motivated to teach the students they best they can (no results; no matter what they do), and those that are, probably can't, because of the policies that are put in place from the top down.

On the flip side, many people come to the US to educate themselves and their kids solely for the purpose of getting a high paying job. I have been told that is the reason to go to college ever since I was old enough to remember. I think this has encouraged people to ignore all the knowledge they "think" isn’t useful. Pass the test, dump the information and get the all-important degree, because degrees make money.

It seems like, all over the world education just isn't important until it can produce a whole lot of money. I think that attitude is just more noticeable here, where there are few intellectual job opportunities. When most of the jobs are labor, service fields, or low level engineering, why study geography, language or even finance, when it won't produce a better job ($$$$).

[tlansford]

Without getting into the nitty-gritty of what this Economist says, apparently he is 'prominent" (whatever that means), there is also a non-educational theme to his opinions......... that being anti-Politician.

He lays all Thai educational travails at the feet of Politicians, when perhaps it may be better placed at the feet of Educational Professionals who ultimately advise the Politicians.

As an example, one of those professionals decreed some time ago, that students learn better when they are having fun learning. That is not a Politician decreeing, but a subject-matter expert. Having taught at a Rajabhat Uni. some time ago, I came to the conclusion it is a Uni. to babysit teenagers. Learning is a by-product. But they have fun and are not held accountable for educational performance.

Anytime I read such a drive-by smear of all Politicians, I see another agenda.

Generalizing and demonizing Politicians as a class, suggests to me that someone has limited Democratic sympathies and sees the results of electoral politics - Politicians - as an outcome of a process they would like to do away with.

Most likely because they have difficulty winning elections.

He is from the TDRI, a pro-business think-tank. Well educated and qualified, certainly, but not without an agenda. In this case, it is the Nation using him as an expert to backup their attack against the current gov't using the tablet program as the hammer.

While the tablet program might be a good hammer to beat the government with, that has yet to be seen. In the meantime, The Nation's expert economist pointed out what every parent in the world understands, namely that the quality of the teacher makes all the difference in the world to the quality of the child's education.

OK, so that was helpful....

Other than that, the editorial doesn't actually make any concrete, positive proposals of its own. That is a typical pattern at The Nation - it is an attack dog within a vacuum of ideas...

Education is critical. Teachers are the key to that. Teachers need good training and development (like any other employee), they need support, and they need good tools. One of the valid (IMO) observations made by the expert is that budget is not (necessarily) the problem.

[rubl]

He is from the TDRI, a pro-business think-tank. Well educated and qualified, certainly, but not without an agenda. In this case, it is the Nation using him as an expert to backup their attack against the current gov't using the tablet program as the hammer.

While the tablet program might be a good hammer to beat the government with, that has yet to be seen. In the meantime, The Nation's expert economist pointed out what every parent in the world understands, namely that the quality of the teacher makes all the difference in the world to the quality of the child's education.

OK, so that was helpful....

Other than that, the editorial doesn't actually make any concrete, positive proposals of its own. That is a typical pattern at The Nation - it is an attack dog within a vacuum of ideas...

Education is critical. Teachers are the key to that. Teachers need good training and development (like any other employee), they need support, and they need good tools. One of the valid (IMO) observations made by the expert is that budget is not (necessarily) the problem.

The only thing missing from this post is the "we all know"..

BTW 'a vacuum of ideas'? You should consider rephrasing this.

[seaeagle]

I've just put my daughter into an international school after 3 years in a renowned Thai nursery/early years school. The difference is astounding. To be blunt she learnt nothing at the Thai school and has learnt more in 1 month at ther new school than 3 years in the Thai school. The Thai system creates lazy dummies and sadly always will.

I totally agree with you.

But you also pay more in 1 months than 3 years in govt school (which is 100% free plus free books plus cash for uniform plus cash for equipments).

The cost of international schools is sadly far beyond the reach of many expats, too, despite their mythical prosperity compared with the average Thai worker. Throwing a few million baht at the Thai education system (the "tablet panacea") as a one-off "fix" achieves nothing long-term. Someone's enthusiasm that ran away like a freight train going nowhere useful. It is about long-term commitment, not crackdowns and quick fixes that fix nothing.

If that is the case, then I'd suggest that expats return to their own country to give their children the best possible chance.

[MaiChai]

The aim of teaching has changed, it used to be to teach knowledge and how to use it, now it is how to source knowledge and apply it.

Let me explain. Many years ago when I sat "A" level physics I could confidently say that I knew most of all that was known about physics. This is now impossible, since then we have had vast advances in knowledge, in electronics, sub atomics, cosmology, the same applies to the life sciences and chemistry. It is impossible to fit all this information into a curriculum. Education now should concentrate on the basic tools, namely information gathering and processing, learning how to think and question.

I would say you are almost right. Fundermentals still need to be taught: reading, writing, basic mathermatics, problem solving, inference, budgeting and financial management, etc.

Many fundermentals i was taught at school i still use day to day. Example: mental arithmatic. However i find many Thais poor at basic maths.