No Deal On Computer Tablets, Thai Education Ministry Prepares Textbooks

[anterian]

I think too much fuss is made about broken promises, I know of no government anywhere which does not regularly break promises. Many ideas seem good until you get down to the nuts and bolts of things, and most Ministers are only as good as their technical advisers, and when you get technical advisers claiming that dowsing rods are effective bomb detectors then what level of competence would you expect in IT areas, they can't even keep porn off their monitors in parliament.

This current hiatus gives everyone a chance to examine the situation, it is not just a supply problem, it's an implementation problem. Many posters have commented on the lack of trained teaching staff, I remember when I was tasked with introducing computers into the classroom in Surrey (UK), I had a team of pupils assisting me in teaching the teachers. In Thailand the culture mitigates against this, a teacher would lose face to be instructed by a pupil, so one needs a team of dedicated adult instructors, perhaps they need to look to industry for help, or canvass the staff of internet cafes. They could even bend the rules and ask some of us for help.

The bottom line is it is a good idea if it can be made to work, and where education is concerned I think political infighting does a lot of damage. In England under successive Labour and Conservative governments I saw education being used as a political tool, it has done enormous damage to the system. Education should be like the Monarchy, above politics, mess with education and you mess with the nation's future. If PT and the Dems really cared about the future, they would work together to make this work, not play political games.

[bigbamboo]

Whether the one tablet per child election promise was a deliberate scam or has become an issue of incompetence on the part of PTP is moot but whichever case it's a dangerous game for political parties to be playing.

The next thing you know you'll be losing popularity, then losing by elections etc., etc.....

[rubl]

I think too much fuss is made about broken promises, I know of no government anywhere which does not regularly break promises. Many ideas seem good until you get down to the nuts and bolts of things, and most Ministers are only as good as their technical advisers, and when you get technical advisers claiming that dowsing rods are effective bomb detectors then what level of competence would you expect in IT areas, they can't even keep porn off their monitors in parliament.

This current hiatus gives everyone a chance to examine the situation, it is not just a supply problem, it's an implementation problem. Many posters have commented on the lack of trained teaching staff, I remember when I was tasked with introducing computers into the classroom in Surrey (UK), I had a team of pupils assisting me in teaching the teachers. In Thailand the culture mitigates against this, a teacher would lose face to be instructed by a pupil, so one needs a team of dedicated adult instructors, perhaps they need to look to industry for help, or canvass the staff of internet cafes. They could even bend the rules and ask some of us for help.

The bottom line is it is a good idea if it can be made to work, and where education is concerned I think political infighting does a lot of damage. In England under successive Labour and Conservative governments I saw education being used as a political tool, it has done enormous damage to the system. Education should be like the Monarchy, above politics, mess with education and you mess with the nation's future. If PT and the Dems really cared about the future, they would work together to make this work, not play political games.

- too much fuss on 'election promisses only'

- IT implementation problem

- if PT and Dems really cared, they'd work together

only part missing is 'ergo, it's the Dem's fault'. In the mean time parents see the subsidy dropped and having to pay for books and school uniforms. Thank you, oh 'Thaksin thinks, Pheu Thai acts'

[longway]

^ I noticed that sneaky try to drag the dems into this fiasco.

[anterian]

I think too much fuss is made about broken promises, I know of no government anywhere which does not regularly break promises. Many ideas seem good until you get down to the nuts and bolts of things, and most Ministers are only as good as their technical advisers, and when you get technical advisers claiming that dowsing rods are effective bomb detectors then what level of competence would you expect in IT areas, they can't even keep porn off their monitors in parliament.

This current hiatus gives everyone a chance to examine the situation, it is not just a supply problem, it's an implementation problem. Many posters have commented on the lack of trained teaching staff, I remember when I was tasked with introducing computers into the classroom in Surrey (UK), I had a team of pupils assisting me in teaching the teachers. In Thailand the culture mitigates against this, a teacher would lose face to be instructed by a pupil, so one needs a team of dedicated adult instructors, perhaps they need to look to industry for help, or canvass the staff of internet cafes. They could even bend the rules and ask some of us for help.

The bottom line is it is a good idea if it can be made to work, and where education is concerned I think political infighting does a lot of damage. In England under successive Labour and Conservative governments I saw education being used as a political tool, it has done enormous damage to the system. Education should be like the Monarchy, above politics, mess with education and you mess with the nation's future. If PT and the Dems really cared about the future, they would work together to make this work, not play political games.

- too much fuss on 'election promisses only'

- IT implementation problem

- if PT and Dems really cared, they'd work together

only part missing is 'ergo, it's the Dem's fault'. In the mean time parents see the subsidy dropped and having to pay for books and school uniforms. Thank you, oh 'Thaksin thinks, Pheu Thai acts'

" it's the Dem's fault'" if that is the cynical spin you wish to put to my comment then so be it. Can you ever comment without using Thaksin's name, tediously pathetic.

[Thaddeus]

Can you ever comment without using Thaksin's name, tediously pathetic.

If Khun T could make the supreme effort of not trying to get his name in the news every day it would be much easier not to mention him.

[Thaddeus]

Can you ever comment without using Thaksin's name, tediously pathetic.

If Khun T could make the supreme effort of not trying to get his name in the news every day it would be much easier not to mention him.

Sorry, forgot to add, it's also more pathetic when it comes to self adoration.

//edit/less is more

Edited April 25, 2012 by Thaddeus

[rubl]

- too much fuss on 'election promisses only'

- IT implementation problem

- if PT and Dems really cared, they'd work together

only part missing is 'ergo, it's the Dem's fault'. In the mean time parents see the subsidy dropped and having to pay for books and school uniforms. Thank you, oh 'Thaksin thinks, Pheu Thai acts'

" it's the Dem's fault'" if that is the cynical spin you wish to put to my comment then so be it. Can you ever comment without using Thaksin's name, tediously pathetic.

Even if the Dem's had done their utmost on working together with this Pheu Thai 'election promisses only' item, it would still have been a real miracle to have seen it properly implemented in time for the 2012 - 2013 schoolyear starting later in May.

So be it, even without mentioning a certain 'semi-retired gentleman who likes to play golf and relax', it's still a Pheu Thai only 'screw up'. Pardon the French, that is

edit: add:

Edited April 25, 2012 by rubl

[tlansford]

- deleted due to quote limitations -

"its either one or the other"

or neither...

Only if you live in cloud cuckoo land with your head up your ass wearing rose tinted sunglasses and nose plugs.

They choose a supplier that can only produce 1000 units a day to supply a million units within 2 months. How could they not know? They are idiots or liars.

Please feel free to justify any of what you just said.

For the first part, people just need to look at your posts in this thread.

For the second, its been widely reported in all the major media sources, with no denial from the government.

for the last - its an conclusion that any rational and objective person would come to.

For the first part, go back and review the forum rules,

For the second part, while I believe you that the 1000 has been reported, it is not in this thread, and posting a link would be a common courtesy.

As for the third, there are many conclusions that normal people could come to, including the one that just says, "the chinese supplier lied about their capacity, and have been caught". And in any case, there are more than the 2 possible conclusions you proposed.

[whybother]

If the Chinese company lied and got caught, why are the PTP still even talking to them?

Posted with Thaivisa App http://apps.thaivisa.com

[Buchholz]

I know that the PTP made May 2012 the goal once they took office. But I did not see where May 2012 was the explicit campaign promise. It might have been implied, but did you ever see that date before the election?

http://www.thaivisa....r-tablets-plan/ (Posted 2011-07-11)

But Pavich Thongroj, an educational adviser for the Pheu Thai Party, insisted the party would go ahead with the handout of tablets, with netbooks or notebooks for older students.

He expected the Pheu Thai-led government to begin implementing the policy by giving the tablets to 800,000 Prathom-1 students in the 2012 fiscal year.

With "educational advisers" like Pavich Thongroj advising them, it's no wonder the Pheu Thai-led scam has failed thus far.

"The central university entrance exams are unnecessarily difficult."

- Pavich Thongroj

Edited April 25, 2012 by Buchholz

[metisdead]

Profanity posts and a number of replies have been removed. I would have thought we were mature enough to discuss matters without the use of profanities and expletives. Try again.

[David006]

We all knew this would happen. Really what else can we say. Until they are TAUGHT to ask questions as children, they will never stop thinking as children when they reached adulthood. THIS IS NOT BASHING

Posted with Thaivisa App http://apps.thaivisa.com

+1....definitely the case...seems a lot of what comes out of the mouth of officialdom is akin to a 7 year old's thought processes and adult lip service directed at similar mindsets that lap it up....

[ozyjon]

i guess they couldn't agree on the size of the kick backs.

as the co-owner of an M1 kid, i'm glad they didn't give them out. they would only be used for games and facebook anyhow

my teacher friend of mine told me they would not leave the classroom, (the tablets) and would be used for games, facebook and dating sites, wow their english would really improve from "i have no money" send me more money, to how much do you have in the bank and how can i get some of it,,, what gullible people and what a disaster it is spelling out, i hope they don't get any tablets ever.

[otherstuff1957]

I seen the 'not leave the classroom' mentioned several times and can easily see that being implemented as I am sure that a lost or broken tablet would be a paperwork nightmare for the teacher!

However, one of the main advantages of a tablet is the ability to store many e-textbooks and the ability to do self-guided exercises, both of which could be read or done as homework. As an example take a look at this site:

http://www.lead.com.sg/LEAD/LEADUI/courseware/PriScience/PSC_0127_0_T/index.htm

This exercise is probably aimed at grade 2 or 3 rather than grade 1, but you can see how it would work. This kind of exercise would be a perfect homework assignment, but if the tablets can't leave the school it could only be done in class. In fact, the teachers will have to produce worksheets or supplementary books for all homework assignments. Also, without access to their textbooks at home, they won't really be able to study on their own at all.

[longway]

- deleted due to quote limitations -

Only if you live in cloud cuckoo land with your head up your ass wearing rose tinted sunglasses and nose plugs.

They choose a supplier that can only produce 1000 units a day to supply a million units within 2 months. How could they not know? They are idiots or liars.

Please feel free to justify any of what you just said.

For the first part, people just need to look at your posts in this thread.

For the second, its been widely reported in all the major media sources, with no denial from the government.

for the last - its an conclusion that any rational and objective person would come to.

For the first part, go back and review the forum rules,

For the second part, while I believe you that the 1000 has been reported, it is not in this thread, and posting a link would be a common courtesy.

As for the third, there are many conclusions that normal people could come to, including the one that just says, "the chinese supplier lied about their capacity, and have been caught". And in any case, there are more than the 2 possible conclusions you proposed.

No, it means that your speculations of the cause of this fiasco is incompetence. The problem reported by the government, was amazingly, not these guys are 5% of the size we thought they were, but some warranty issues.

In fact the 3rd option, and perhaps the most likely, is that they are incompetent and liars, as they chose the supplier on something other than an informed and objective evaluation of the supplier and the product.

The government officials were sent to China with 2 billion baht to spend, its a fiasco and they seem to have been lucky not to have blown the lot on a very dodgy deal.

[Markaew]

My question to you is how do you leap from politicians aren't trustworthy (that's a given!) to people in Thailand aren't trustworthy?! There's plenty of trustworthy people here, just not where the majority of expats choose to spend their time... perhaps venture out of Nana plaza once in a while?!

It's not a leap from politicians to average people. Politicians just have more opportunities and money to demonstrate their worth. Average people are no different here. The problem here is you don't get out enough among average Thais and your eyes are glazed over with denial. They are quick to scam and leach money/beer/possessions/food at every opportunity. By the way, I don't live in Bangkok and I live among the Thais. - Markaew

I would suggest that it's better to teach that trust should be earned rather than instilling a complete lack of trust of everyone in our children.

I agree. - Markaew

As to your 2nd question it's clearly just a bait; the point isn't that the poster "is so worried" that his child needs a tablet, the point is having been told he's to receive one now he'll be disappointed. If you are so concerned about his plight, you could always offer him one yourself?

I am not foolish enough as you to buy a tablet for a 4 1/2 year old. You apparently have more money than sense. As demonstrated by the huge majority here in this thread, it is foolish to buy even a 6 year old a tablet. - Markaew

The only thing demonstrated by the "huge majority" on here, is that education in the west clearly isn't up to scratch, or wasn't 50 or so years ago when the average TV poster was in school... basic spelling & grammar is appalling and the naivety displayed by taking a majority opinion on TV as proof of anything shows a gaping void where your common sense should be.

I truly pity you if you really live surrounded by people you feel you can't trust. Perhaps you should move somewhere else or perhaps you should look closely at yourself and why you seem to attract people that try to "scam and leach money/beer/possessions/food" from you "at every opportunity".

If that's a situation that you are content with, you are clearly short of a marble or two... personally if I was in a similar position I would do something about it and I don't mean whining on TV!

You are in denial if you believe that is a healthy situation to raise children in, although somehow I doubt anyone would be foolish enough to bear your children and your comments on parenting are about as relevant as a condom is to a pair of lesbians.

"I am not foolish enough as you to buy a tablet for a 4 1/2 year old"

Perhaps not but then again if your parents had invested a bit more into your education then you might be able to construct a sentence properly... there's a few handy apps that could have helped you on this http://itunes.apple....d377188655?mt=8

If you can protect your funds long enough from those "average Thais" that try to "scam and leach money/beer/possessions/food" from you "at every opportunity", I suggest you try it out... you might actually learn something and catch up with my 4 1/2 year old!

Interesting how people react when they have a weak argument and fall back on the "your English sucks" routine.

[swillowbee]

My question to you is how do you leap from politicians aren't trustworthy (that's a given!) to people in Thailand aren't trustworthy?! There's plenty of trustworthy people here, just not where the majority of expats choose to spend their time... perhaps venture out of Nana plaza once in a while?!

It's not a leap from politicians to average people. Politicians just have more opportunities and money to demonstrate their worth. Average people are no different here. The problem here is you don't get out enough among average Thais and your eyes are glazed over with denial. They are quick to scam and leach money/beer/possessions/food at every opportunity. By the way, I don't live in Bangkok and I live among the Thais. - Markaew

I would suggest that it's better to teach that trust should be earned rather than instilling a complete lack of trust of everyone in our children.

I agree. - Markaew

As to your 2nd question it's clearly just a bait; the point isn't that the poster "is so worried" that his child needs a tablet, the point is having been told he's to receive one now he'll be disappointed. If you are so concerned about his plight, you could always offer him one yourself?

I am not foolish enough as you to buy a tablet for a 4 1/2 year old. You apparently have more money than sense. As demonstrated by the huge majority here in this thread, it is foolish to buy even a 6 year old a tablet. - Markaew

The only thing demonstrated by the "huge majority" on here, is that education in the west clearly isn't up to scratch, or wasn't 50 or so years ago when the average TV poster was in school... basic spelling & grammar is appalling and the naivety displayed by taking a majority opinion on TV as proof of anything shows a gaping void where your common sense should be.

I truly pity you if you really live surrounded by people you feel you can't trust. Perhaps you should move somewhere else or perhaps you should look closely at yourself and why you seem to attract people that try to "scam and leach money/beer/possessions/food" from you "at every opportunity".

If that's a situation that you are content with, you are clearly short of a marble or two... personally if I was in a similar position I would do something about it and I don't mean whining on TV!

You are in denial if you believe that is a healthy situation to raise children in, although somehow I doubt anyone would be foolish enough to bear your children and your comments on parenting are about as relevant as a condom is to a pair of lesbians.

"I am not foolish enough as you to buy a tablet for a 4 1/2 year old"

Perhaps not but then again if your parents had invested a bit more into your education then you might be able to construct a sentence properly... there's a few handy apps that could have helped you on this http://itunes.apple....d377188655?mt=8

If you can protect your funds long enough from those "average Thais" that try to "scam and leach money/beer/possessions/food" from you "at every opportunity", I suggest you try it out... you might actually learn something and catch up with my 4 1/2 year old!

Interesting how people react when they have a weak argument and fall back on the "your English sucks" routine.

.

... in defence of Markaew, representative democracy does work ... really ... elected representatives do generally reflect he values of the majority of the constituency that selects them.

... you have to exclude examples as slime ball Americans President Richard Nixon, or Senator John Edwards, since they deceived their constituency to win their votes ... but, Thai politicians? ... c'mon ... jeez, there is hardly any question as to their deep corruptness ... Thai voters know that ... they accept it (in overwhelming numbers [70%+/-], as documented by ABAC polls year after year) ... they elect them anyway.

... what is an observer of human nature to conclude about the average Thai of voting age? ... representative democracy works ... it really does ... while there are certainly exceptional individuals amongst the average, generally painting the majority of a constituency with the same color as the representative they elect is quite reasonable.

... incidentally, as Markeaw, I do not live here insulated in the glorious oblivity of a farang cocoon ... I get Thai cultural values very up-close and personal (and I go nowhere near the thousands of brothels that infect this deeply troubled nation) ... emersed in Thais ... for 12+ years now ... that is the only way a farang might 'get it', and then only after several years ... so, take your best shot Ferangled, or move along.

Edited April 26, 2012 by swillowbee

[slapout]

Most reptuable projects, either government or private, that I have been involved in, seemed to take a couple of years from the proposal to intial delivery. Granted emergency orders/solutions can be fast tracked, but normally only with past suppliers (as well as those involved in placing the order) whose creditablity is established.

The present government, since taking office, has exhibited little restrant nor patience on any of the populist projects and in most cases, any thing they have started, with the exception of favortism to certain individuals, and throwing vast sums of money to favored Ministries for them to use as they deem fit. They are proving to be imature in action as well as political thinking, but are most likely building up their personal holdings quite nicely, while asking for trust, patience, and understanding from those paying the bills.

When individuals are deemed incompatant it comes from those who are compatant as well as responsible. These leaders are tasked with getting rid of the drawbacks and finding good players. In this case, I see no one who fills or can fit the bill as leader

[hyperdimension]

it is not just a supply problem, it's an implementation problem.

It's also a management problem.

[Ferangled]

"... in defence of Markaew, representative democracy does work ... really ... elected representatives do generally reflect he values of the majority of the constituency that selects them.

... you have to exclude examples as slime ball Americans President Richard Nixon, or Senator John Edwards, since they deceived their constituency to win their votes ... but, Thai politicians? ... c'mon ... jeez, there is hardly any question as to their deep corruptness ... Thai voters know that ... they accept it (in overwhelming numbers [70%+/-], as documented by ABAC polls year after year) ... they elect them anyway.

... what is an observer of human nature to conclude about the average Thai of voting age? ... representative democracy works ... it really does ... while there are certainly exceptional individuals amongst the average, generally painting the majority of a constituency with the same color as the representative they elect is quite reasonable.

... incidentally, as Markeaw, I do not live here insulated in the glorious oblivity of a farang cocoon ... I get Thai cultural values very up-close and personal (and I go nowhere near the thousands of brothels that infect this deeply troubled nation) ... emersed in Thais ... for 12+ years now ... that is the only way a farang might 'get it', and then only after several years ... so, take your best shot Ferangled, or move along."

Yet again you have failed to actually pick up on the content of any of my posts, failed to actually reply to anything I've written... and just launched on a rant about representative democracy... take my best shot?! At what?! What are you blithering on about?! Did you even read my post? I was directly replying to this:

"The problem here is you don't get out enough among average Thais and your eyes are glazed over with denial. They are quick to scam and leach money/beer/possessions/food at every opportunity. By the way, I don't live in Bangkok and I live among the Thais."

I disagree with the sentiment expressed by Markaew that your average Thai is purely out to scam and leach money, beer, possessions and food at every opportunity. You it would appear support this grossly distorted generalization...

This is certainly not representative of the average Thai in my experience... your experience is clearly different, again I'd suggest that you question why it is that you promote this response from people, when clearly many others don't. Please support your statement rather than changing the topic entirely and making assumptions about my lifestyle.

It would appear to me that you have had some bad experiences and are making vast generalizations as a result. These views show more of your critically dysfunctional outlook on life and inability to connect with your Thai counterparts than they reflect on the outlook of your "average Thai"...

If you are indeed a parent that nurtures such a depressing view of the population of the country you reside in, I'd suggest you think long and hard about what's best for your children and not comment on what's best for others when you know nothing of their situation. To attempt to raise children in what you perceive as such a dangerous and flawed environment is sheer lunacy.

Please try to defend your views without making wild assumptions about others. As for picking up on your basic grammatical mistakes Markaew, seems pretty relevant to me given this is a thread about education and you are putting yourself forward as an authority on this and parenting. Perhaps you should return to school and learn basic spelling and grammar before expecting people to take your views on education seriously....

Why am I not surprised that you chose only to comment on that small part of my response, and, yet again, failed to answer any of the actual content? I guess it was such a "weak argument" that you struggled to compose a literate response...

Edited April 26, 2012 by Ferangled

[OzMick]

For the first part, go back and review the forum rules,

For the second part, while I believe you that the 1000 has been reported, it is not in this thread, and posting a link would be a common courtesy.

As for the third, there are many conclusions that normal people could come to, including the one that just says, "the chinese supplier lied about their capacity, and have been caught". And in any case, there are more than the 2 possible conclusions you proposed.

Google "Shenzen Scope" and first off the rank is their web site which states 1500 employees (60 in R&D), 56 product lines "main produce TV & AD Player. and another factory main produce Tablet PC, Mobile Phone & GPS" and "annual production capacity is more than 5 million units".

After such rudimentary research I would be highly sceptical that they could produce 1 million tablets in the time frame stipulated. Then again I am not experienced in international purchasing agreements, tablet computers or corruption. It seems the govt team also share this problem on at least 2 out of 3 counts.

[Ferangled]

For the first part, go back and review the forum rules,

For the second part, while I believe you that the 1000 has been reported, it is not in this thread, and posting a link would be a common courtesy.

As for the third, there are many conclusions that normal people could come to, including the one that just says, "the chinese supplier lied about their capacity, and have been caught". And in any case, there are more than the 2 possible conclusions you proposed.

Google "Shenzen Scope" and first off the rank is their web site which states 1500 employees (60 in R&D), 56 product lines "main produce TV & AD Player. and another factory main produce Tablet PC, Mobile Phone & GPS" and "annual production capacity is more than 5 million units".

After such rudimentary research I would be highly sceptical that they could produce 1 million tablets in the time frame stipulated. Then again I am not experienced in international purchasing agreements, tablet computers or corruption. It seems the govt team also share this problem on at least 2 out of 3 counts.

If they are advertising on their website that they have a production capacity of over 5 million units annually, as you say, then they have clearly misled their customers. We are now being told that actually they are only capable of producing 1000 units a day, equivalent to 365,000 units annually; considerably less than the 5 million+ they have claimed.

If they could actually produce 5 million annually, it would have taken c. 2 1/2 months to complete the order... in line with the proposed scheme.

[OzMick]

For the first part, go back and review the forum rules,

For the second part, while I believe you that the 1000 has been reported, it is not in this thread, and posting a link would be a common courtesy.

As for the third, there are many conclusions that normal people could come to, including the one that just says, "the chinese supplier lied about their capacity, and have been caught". And in any case, there are more than the 2 possible conclusions you proposed.

Google "Shenzen Scope" and first off the rank is their web site which states 1500 employees (60 in R&D), 56 product lines "main produce TV & AD Player. and another factory main produce Tablet PC, Mobile Phone & GPS" and "annual production capacity is more than 5 million units".

After such rudimentary research I would be highly sceptical that they could produce 1 million tablets in the time frame stipulated. Then again I am not experienced in international purchasing agreements, tablet computers or corruption. It seems the govt team also share this problem on at least 2 out of 3 counts.

If they are advertising on their website that they have a production capacity of over 5 million units annually, as you say, then they have clearly misled their customers. We are now being told that actually they are only capable of producing 1000 units a day, equivalent to 365,000 units annually; considerably less than the 5 million+ they have claimed.

If they could actually produce 5 million annually, it would have taken c. 2 1/2 months to complete the order... in line with the proposed scheme.

Ummm..............No. " "annual production capacity is more than 5 million units" consisting of 56 product lines, not 5 million tablets. If each product line was equally produced, that would give you 90,000 of each.

[Ferangled]

For the first part, go back and review the forum rules,

For the second part, while I believe you that the 1000 has been reported, it is not in this thread, and posting a link would be a common courtesy.

As for the third, there are many conclusions that normal people could come to, including the one that just says, "the chinese supplier lied about their capacity, and have been caught". And in any case, there are more than the 2 possible conclusions you proposed.

Google "Shenzen Scope" and first off the rank is their web site which states 1500 employees (60 in R&D), 56 product lines "main produce TV & AD Player. and another factory main produce Tablet PC, Mobile Phone & GPS" and "annual production capacity is more than 5 million units".

After such rudimentary research I would be highly sceptical that they could produce 1 million tablets in the time frame stipulated. Then again I am not experienced in international purchasing agreements, tablet computers or corruption. It seems the govt team also share this problem on at least 2 out of 3 counts.

If they are advertising on their website that they have a production capacity of over 5 million units annually, as you say, then they have clearly misled their customers. We are now being told that actually they are only capable of producing 1000 units a day, equivalent to 365,000 units annually; considerably less than the 5 million+ they have claimed.

If they could actually produce 5 million annually, it would have taken c. 2 1/2 months to complete the order... in line with the proposed scheme.

Ummm..............No. " "annual production capacity is more than 5 million units" consisting of 56 product lines, not 5 million tablets. If each product line was equally produced, that would give you 90,000 of each.

Sorry, that wasn't clear in your statement; had you said total production capacity is 5 million units for all 56 product lines it would have been.

You actually said "another factory main produce Tablet PC, Mobile Phone & GPS and annual production capacity is more than 5 million units".

Now you are saying that's not the case... Again I feel we are getting back to a lack of basic sentence composition in conveying a point. Quite ironic given that this is a thread about an educational scheme...

[ginjag]

Pity then good homework wasn't done in the first place and there was no time for guarantees to be met on a pre election promise that helped them to get elected. Even if the Chinese said they could complete the order---were any compensation paid for not meeting it ??? was the contract sound ??? surely monies of this magnitude have to be backed up with clauses, ie, first shipment delivery so much and so on till order completed, if default, contract void, and monies returned.

My reading of posters comments are interesting but the initial quick idea for the kids was a childish stupid no no from day 1

[longway]

For the first part, go back and review the forum rules,

For the second part, while I believe you that the 1000 has been reported, it is not in this thread, and posting a link would be a common courtesy.

As for the third, there are many conclusions that normal people could come to, including the one that just says, "the chinese supplier lied about their capacity, and have been caught". And in any case, there are more than the 2 possible conclusions you proposed.

Google "Shenzen Scope" and first off the rank is their web site which states 1500 employees (60 in R&D), 56 product lines "main produce TV & AD Player. and another factory main produce Tablet PC, Mobile Phone & GPS" and "annual production capacity is more than 5 million units".

After such rudimentary research I would be highly sceptical that they could produce 1 million tablets in the time frame stipulated. Then again I am not experienced in international purchasing agreements, tablet computers or corruption. It seems the govt team also share this problem on at least 2 out of 3 counts.

If they are advertising on their website that they have a production capacity of over 5 million units annually, as you say, then they have clearly misled their customers. We are now being told that actually they are only capable of producing 1000 units a day, equivalent to 365,000 units annually; considerably less than the 5 million+ they have claimed.

If they could actually produce 5 million annually, it would have taken c. 2 1/2 months to complete the order... in line with the proposed scheme.

Ummm..............No. " "annual production capacity is more than 5 million units" consisting of 56 product lines, not 5 million tablets. If each product line was equally produced, that would give you 90,000 of each.

The stupidity displayed in this scheme spending $80 million is so breath-taking it highly suspect, how is it possible to go this far into the selection process and subsequently find out the supplier is incapable of supplying the units required, whether they lied or not is a moot point, they should have been weeded out long before this point.

[Ferangled]

"another factory main produce Tablet PC, Mobile Phone & GPS and annual production capacity is more than 5 million units".

Yes my mistake, should have read that to mean 90,000 units... clear as mud!

[OzMick]

"another factory main produce Tablet PC, Mobile Phone & GPS and annual production capacity is more than 5 million units".

Yes my mistake, should have read that to mean 90,000 units... clear as mud!

you have misquoted what I wrote, which was

56 product lines "main produce TV & AD Player. and another factory main produce Tablet PC, Mobile Phone & GPS" and "annual production capacity is more than 5 million units".

You will notice that I clearly mentioned 56 products, and that the quote describing the main lines and that giving capacity were separated. I have no idea what their actual capacity to produce tablets is - the 90,000 figure was prefaced by an "if" and depended on a highly unrealistic surmise.

[ginjag]

All posters are getting too wrapped up in a crappy pre election decision, not thought out, doomed from the start, deadlines that were impossible to reach. horrendous disappointment for children, who's feelings the government never gave two hoots about. POWER was the aim-we all know that, in the meantime we and Thais have to put up with the shizen until Thais do something for themselves to change it