ICT Firms Back Pilot Tablet Project For Secondary Students: Thailand

[webfact]

ICT firms back pilot tablet project for secondary students

Wannapa Khaopa

The Nation

The private sector has stepped in to help state secondary schools use tablet computers provided by the government more effectively.

BANGKOK: -- Several firms recently met with officials and teachers from more than 50 secondary schools in Bangkok to introduce software that can be used as teaching equipment and classmanagement tools.

The meeting kicked off a pilot project for distributing tablets among Mathayom 1 (Grade 7) students, and schools were given instruction on the technology offered by such companies as Intel, Google, Apple, HewlettPackard and Huawei.

They also met with representatives from companies creating content for tablets such as Aksorn Charoen Tat ACT, with the aim of helping schools choose technology that is suitable for their needs.

About 20 schools in every region are eligible to join the pilot project, said Olarn Chaipravat, adviser to Education Minister Suchart Tadathamrongvej and also chairman of the One Tablet Per Child policy committee.

However, a source engaged in the project said 10 eligible schools in Bangkok and neighbouring provinces would join the project, since their infrastructure is adequate, especially Internet access, while the Web connections at schools in other provinces might be too slow.

Each school will mainly work with one company that provides hardware, software or content for tablets. So there will be different models of tablet use.

Students will be given the devices in July. Assessments will be conducted in October and December. Assessment panels will look at conditions that lead to success at different schools, the source said.

Olarn said: "Reports on tablet use at the pilot schools and assessments will be presented to the government and the prime minister before they make a decision on fullscale distribution for Mathayom 1. If assessment results show positive impacts and the companies are ready, the government will start the fullscale project.

"The delivery of tablets to Prathom 1 [Grade 1] just marks a beginning. The government is trying to expand tablet distribution to students at other levels of primary and secondary education. The expansion depends on readiness or preparedness of schools, teachers and parents."

The source said the government wanted to hand out tablets to Mathayom 1 students in the next academic year if possible.

Olarn said the specifications of tablets for Mathayom 1 students would be better than those for Prathom 1. For instance, they would have larger screens. Each Mathayom 1 tablet would cost about Bt3,000, while each Prathom 1 device costs about Bt2,400.

"Private companies will be allowed to bid for sale of the tablets," he added.

"As secondaryeducation students need more difficult and complicated content than pupils in primary education, the Information and Communications Technology Ministry is providing infrastructure like WiFi so students at every school can access the Internet," he said.

The Innovation for Education Foundation is supporting the committee in running the pilot project. It is acting as the coordinator between the schools and the companies. It will also help train teachers on techniques of tablet use in class. Any schools need training can call the foundation at 02 440 0330.

Olarn said the government had set up a centre that provides different educational applications created by private companies and teachers for download, and it will subsidise some download fees so teachers and students upcountry can also afford good applications.

Tawan DhevaAksorn, president of Aksorn Charoen Tat ACT, said it had created more than 30,000 learning objects for tablets that cover content from kindergarten to secondary education. More than 100 schools showed interest in pioneering tablet use after it introduced the learning objects to them.

-- The Nation 2012-06-30

[thrawn60]

So that means.... that all those millions of THB that was spend in sourcing a manufacture from China, signing a deal with then, and the use of all the government funds to create software for the tablets and the teachers, are now wasted? Private companies can offer their version of software, hardware and so forth?

Sounds like they are looking to get more money for the funding besides the billion+ that they already got approved? (can't remember the exact number)

[Buchholz]

So that means.... that all those millions of THB that was spend in sourcing a manufacture from China, signing a deal with then, and the use of all the government funds to create software for the tablets and the teachers, are now wasted? Private companies can offer their version of software, hardware and so forth?

Sounds like they are looking to get more money for the funding besides the billion+ that they already got approved? (can't remember the exact number)

Additionally,

"Private companies will be allowed to bid for sale of the tablets," he added.

the government already awarded the contract for the tablet sales to ShenZhen Scope... now they speak of opening a yet another new round of bidding?

Could this whole tablet scam scheme get any more convoluted?

.

.

Edited June 30, 2012 by Buchholz

[kanderson]

Tablets / introduction to computers and online learning seems like a good idea to me. Why be so negative ?

[whybother]

They want everyone in grade 7 to get tablets when they can't even get tablets to everyone in grade 1.

[bobl]

So that means.... that all those millions of THB that was spend in sourcing a manufacture from China, signing a deal with then, and the use of all the government funds to create software for the tablets and the teachers, are now wasted? Private companies can offer their version of software, hardware and so forth?

Sounds like they are looking to get more money for the funding besides the billion+ that they already got approved? (can't remember the exact number)

Additionally,

"Private companies will be allowed to bid for sale of the tablets," he added.

the government already awarded the contract for the tablet sales to ShenZhen Scope... now they speak of opening a yet another new round of bidding?

Could this whole tablet scam scheme get any more convoluted?

.

.

Not convoluted at all. The government deal was for junior school.

This is a separate set of negotiations for upper schools.

Or have I got it wrong?

[ballpoint]

What a good idea, after all, the original tablet scheme has been a huge success. As promised almost a year ago, every child is in possession of a shiny new high end tablet. Already I see the children in our village are much smarter, knowing far more about the world than they did previously. They positively line up to get into the class rooms every morning so they can unplug their tablets from where they were simultaneously charging and downloading the day's activities overnight, power them up, connect to the ultra fast wifi and start learning. Some even go in on the weekends for a bit of extra knowledge. And the whole deal was conducted in such a trouble free, transparent manner too. The sooner the secondary schools start this scheme the better.

[otherstuff1957]

Tablets / introduction to computers and online learning seems like a good idea to me. Why be so negative ?

Why the negativity? Because hundreds of millions of baht are being spend in fairly a non-productive manner. That money could be better spent equipping all Thai schools with functional Wifi, functional computer labs, projectors and computers in every classroom and hiring and training a new generation of teachers, as the average age of Government School teachers is about 50 and teachers are retiring at a higher rate than they are being replaced.

Despite contrary propaganda, the Democrats educational policies were far more likely to actually improve schools. Unfortunately, they were long-term solutions that involved hard work and were not glamorous or exciting, like giving the kids electronic toys.

My students recently asked me why I used a laptop rather than a tablet. I responded that I needed to work, not play games, and so the laptop was more useful to me. I use my Android smartphone for reading ebooks and playing games, as it is almost impossible to edit powerpoints or documents on it.

[Pseudolus]

They should run an armistice exchange system for the kids. Hand over your gun, then you get a tablet.

[DavidHouston]

I like the Thai government's approach to the tablet's for several reasons: First, by opening the development of software up to the open market, a number of experimental approaches will be open and the best alternatives will emerge. I would rather let the leading-edge developers compete for ascendancy rather than entrust software development to the Ministry of Education and its less-than-forward thinkers. Second, the tablets with their touch screens are much more suitable to teaching Thai students Chinese characters than is a keyboard-based system. Since Thai schools will be moving more toward teaching of the Chinese language, this is an important feature.

Edited June 30, 2012 by DavidHouston

[whybother]

I like the Thai government's approach to the tablet's for several reasons: First, by opening the development of software up to the open market, a number of experimental approaches will be open and the best alternatives will emerge. I would rather let the leading-edge developers compete for ascendancy rather than entrust software development to the Ministry of Education and its less-than-forward thinkers. <snip>

I agree this would be good, but TIT. Software development will go to the ones that pay the most under the table.

[Buchholz]

So that means.... that all those millions of THB that was spend in sourcing a manufacture from China, signing a deal with then, and the use of all the government funds to create software for the tablets and the teachers, are now wasted? Private companies can offer their version of software, hardware and so forth?

Sounds like they are looking to get more money for the funding besides the billion+ that they already got approved? (can't remember the exact number)

Additionally,

"Private companies will be allowed to bid for sale of the tablets," he added.

the government already awarded the contract for the tablet sales to ShenZhen Scope... now they speak of opening a yet another new round of bidding?

Could this whole tablet scam scheme get any more convoluted?

.

.

Not convoluted at all. The government deal was for junior school.

This is a separate set of negotiations for upper schools.

Or have I got it wrong?

Both deals are for providing 7th graders with tablet computers, for which the government has already supposedly signed a deal with ShenZhen Scope.

But then again, with this whole scam scheme, things tend to change on an every other day basis and has been shrouded in conflicting statements, backtracking, misinterpretations, incomplete press announcements, infighting between the ICT and Education Ministries, false assessments, denials, supposition, and implied acts that never transpired..... so anything is possible.

Don't feel the least bit down about understanding some aspect of it as wrong. The overwhelming public doesn't understand the ever-changing goal posts either and the government seemingly wants it that way.... ever since first promising ALL students in elementary, secondary, and vocational schools involving some 11 million students with tablets.

.

Edited June 30, 2012 by Buchholz

[MEL1]

That's not right Bucholz!

The original proposal, and now catastrophe, was to supply all first graders of Prathom 1 (No mention of Matthayom), those being elementary or junior/primary school level students, with a tablet, aged 7 or 8 in their year. The government failed miserably on that one!

To now propose a second bent idea of supplying grade 7 (Matthayom 1, aged 12 or 13 in their year) with tablets is a completely new proposal, and not related to the first &lt;deleted&gt; up.

It's all a tea-money bent fructed up venture, that won't happen.

Note the quote, ""The delivery of tablets to Prathom 1 [Grade 1] just marks a beginning. The government is trying to expand tablet distribution to students at other levels of primary and secondary education."

Marks what? The delivery hasn't happened, and all the money in the kitty is gone!

So what is the government trying to expand upon? Something that hasn't happened? Ruddy paradoxical to me, that one!

And then the other quote, "However, a source engaged in the project said 10 eligible schools in Bangkok and neighbouring provinces would join the project, since their infrastructure is adequate, especially Internet access, while the Web connections at schools in other provinces might be too slow."

10 eligible schools? What about the Esan schools, and the rest, for the students of parents who voted in this smoke-screen of taking money from the government?

Wow! Mr T sure taught his objectives very well.

-mel.

Edited June 30, 2012 by MEL1

[Buchholz]

That's not right Bucholz!

The original proposal, and now catastrophe, was to supply all first graders of Prathom 1 (No mention of Matthayom),

The original, original proposal was to supply children in all grades with computers as the inaccurate One Tablet Per Child scheme's title deceptively implies.

To now propose a second bent idea of supplying grade 7 (Matthayom 1, aged 12 or 13 in their year) with tablets is a completely new proposal, and not related to the first &lt;deleted&gt; up.

In the convoluted mishmash of this scam, it's been mentioned for months...

BANGKOK, 27 March 2012 (NNT) - Minister of Education Suchart Tadathamrongvech has unveiled the government’s plan to buy tablet computers for Mathayom 1 students in the second semester of 2012 academic year.

According to Mr Suchart, around 600,000-700,000 more tablets will be procured for distribution to Mathayom 1 students during the second term of the upcoming school year and the budget for the purchase will be allocated as part of the 2013 fiscal budget.

It's all a tea-money bent fructed up venture, that won't happen.

Agreed, and even if it does happen in some misshaped form, it will absolutely be fructed up.

.

Edited June 30, 2012 by Buchholz

[Rancid]

The tablets have been an important step forward in Ministry allocation as they have put education back in the game as being lucrative again. Presumably the kickbacks from the chinese company supplying, usually a standard 30%, must be so enriching education that the minister wants to get as many tablets out there as possible to cash in while he can. With the massive generation enriching infrastructure spending coming up that will suck the well of plenty quite dry, education needs to move fast to assure its fair share.

[Rob8891]

What a good idea, after all, the original tablet scheme has been a huge success. As promised almost a year ago, every child is in possession of a shiny new high end tablet. Already I see the children in our village are much smarter, knowing far more about the world than they did previously. They positively line up to get into the class rooms every morning so they can unplug their tablets from where they were simultaneously charging and downloading the day's activities overnight, power them up, connect to the ultra fast wifi and start learning. Some even go in on the weekends for a bit of extra knowledge. And the whole deal was conducted in such a trouble free, transparent manner too. The sooner the secondary schools start this scheme the better.

Yes,is the system awash with tea-money, but at least we know that is is the norm...... TiT. All of the detractors of this attempt to improve the lot of Thai pupils should stop and take a look at the mammoth lash-ups that have taken place in so-called developed countries. I have taught in the UK for almost 40 years and the standard of ICT provision in many (most?) schools is pathetic. Furthermore in some educational authorities, the sole contract for supply and maintenance of evry bit of IT equipment has been awarded to ONE company..... I would not dare to identify that company, save to say that it is one that regularlymakes a complete and total F*****U(p) of everything it touches. Despite it's track record, that company has been awarded new and / or extended contracts to supply and (allegedly) maintain equipment. Yet there is no mention of tea money.... just puzzled looks as to how this ineffectual company can come back with re-branded incompetence year after year......Mai pen rai.... let's have another cup of tea while we think about this......

If the "developed" countries like UK cannot get things right, is it really right to continue to take cheap shots at struggling countries like Thailand? The West does not have the moral high ground that is sometimes implied. I recently spoke to groups of grade 10 pupils in the UK who had no idea how to use a spreadsheet for simple calculations. .....but to give them their dues, they are s**t hot on Facebook, MSN and texting on a smartphone. Do our kids 'positively line up to get into the class rooms every morning........... connect to the ultra fast wifi......go in on the weekends for a bit of extra knowledge'?...... Do they F*****u!!!

If anyone really cares about the future for the thai kids, would it be possible to do something positive for them, rather than to sit in glass houses throwing stones?

[otherstuff1957]

What a good idea, after all, the original tablet scheme has been a huge success. As promised almost a year ago, every child is in possession of a shiny new high end tablet. Already I see the children in our village are much smarter, knowing far more about the world than they did previously. They positively line up to get into the class rooms every morning so they can unplug their tablets from where they were simultaneously charging and downloading the day's activities overnight, power them up, connect to the ultra fast wifi and start learning. Some even go in on the weekends for a bit of extra knowledge. And the whole deal was conducted in such a trouble free, transparent manner too. The sooner the secondary schools start this scheme the better.

. I recently spoke to groups of grade 10 pupils in the UK who had no idea how to use a spreadsheet for simple calculations. .....but to give them their dues, they are s**t hot on Facebook, MSN and texting on a smartphone. Do our kids 'positively line up to get into the class rooms every morning........... connect to the ultra fast wifi......go in on the weekends for a bit of extra knowledge'?...... Do they F*****u!!!

If anyone really cares about the future for the thai kids, would it be possible to do something positive for them, rather than to sit in glass houses throwing stones?

Buying the kids tablets won't teach them how to use spreadsheets... unless you buy one of the various Office Suites on Android Market a tablet cannot open a spreadsheet, a document or a powerpoint. Hundreds of millions of baht are being spent on toys rather than on real, useful computers.

As for the remark about high-speed wifi that you 'F----u'd, it was a bit of sarcasm that points up the fact that most Thai schools have pitifully slow internet connections and frequently no wifi at all.

[Yunla]

I'm sure that these plastic tablets will nourish the young minds and produce a new generation of critical-thinkers with bright enquiring minds, capable of independent conceptualising, and correlative compare-and-contrasting. This scheme cannot fail to generate young people with innovative leadership-skills built on comprehensive and participative learning, rising to meet the challenges of the 21st century marketplace.

Edited June 30, 2012 by Yunla

[surangw]

have these tablets been programmed not to use all the free software available ?

[espinoza]

What they are doing, is spending billions in the hands of some Chinese companies. Why do they not give PC`s ? They cannot because thats FREEWARE. Somebody will grow very rich on this strange manouver by the Thai government.

[tomross46]

So that means.... that all those millions of THB that was spend in sourcing a manufacture from China, signing a deal with then, and the use of all the government funds to create software for the tablets and the teachers, are now wasted? Private companies can offer their version of software, hardware and so forth?

Sounds like they are looking to get more money for the funding besides the billion+ that they already got approved? (can't remember the exact number)

Additionally,

"Private companies will be allowed to bid for sale of the tablets," he added.

the government already awarded the contract for the tablet sales to ShenZhen Scope... now they speak of opening a yet another new round of bidding?

Could this whole tablet scam scheme get any more convoluted?

.

.

The politicians need more money for the safe room in the house. To hold the money for the doughters wedding.