Tablet Computer Use: Foreign Academics Warn Of Unready Teachers, Too Young Students

[rreddin]

This is old news already. What's the point? A final attempt to throw the tablet program in the garbage and "prove that PTP was wrong to offer?" This topic has been discussed ad nauseam in this and I am sure other forums since its inception.

Thailand never allowed student to use calculators; as it inhibit Thai student ability to calculate.

Tablet is worst that calculator. It also inhibit Thai student the ability to read books.

The success of Amazon's Kindle and the other ebook readers has not resulted in fewer people reading books. It has just changed the way they do it. Often, the ebooks cost very much less than the printed version. There has been a casualty of this, but it is not the ability to read, it is the sale of paperback books which have plumeted.

[simple1]

When I was living in Australia I tried for seven years to get my Thai stepson to engage with reading. Initially was going OK but then moved to another school that had other Thai kids. No matter what approach I tried just completely lost interest in reading & eventually failed his final year exam & now if a minimum salary job; yes in a Thai restaurant. Sorry to say in Oz the overseas born Asian students who excel and come in the top percentile are usually Chinese and Vietnamese - very rare for a Thai. As had been said many times there needs to be a fundamental overhaul of the Thai education culture that at the moment seems to be years away.

I've had similar experiences with Thai students in the UK.

It's also true that children of all nationalities that engage in reading from a young age are always the ones that then go and achieve their potential. There are of course exceptions, but without reading, all aspects of learning are a struggle.

The need for home support and encouragement with reading cannot be underestimated. Teachers can only do so much in the time they have each day with the children. It's not just an overhaul of the education system that is needed, but an entire attitude change of the whole populace. Not an easy task.

Agreed. Off topic, but it didn't help when the teacher said to me your wasting your breath, up to the child if they are motivated or not. When I asked the teacher why she had not disciplined him when he had not completed his reading assignments, said she didn't want to make him feel like an under achiever???

[sirchai]

The Australian government implemented similar roll outs of notebooks. My wonderful Thai stepson, whilst at school, typed in a search for porn. This triggered an automatic alert to the teacher and I was contacted and requested to attend the school and stepson was reprimanded. You can only hope the Thai education department will implement similar technology as well as lock down the tablet configuration so that the students cannot load games.

Guess your stepson wanted to search for Popcorn....... .

[GiHadOrange]

Go back to korea thai children are not your business

3000 comments a la " No, Thais are dumb and all foreigners will know better" will follow.

[GiHadOrange]

The Australian government implemented similar roll outs of notebooks. My wonderful Thai stepson, whilst at school, typed in a search for porn. This triggered an automatic alert to the teacher and I was contacted and requested to attend the school and stepson was reprimanded. You can only hope the Thai education department will implement similar technology as well as lock down the tablet configuration so that the students cannot load games.

Guess your stepson wanted to search for Popcorn....... .

"porn..." is part of many Thai names in English transliteration. females have names like Pornchitta or Titiporn for example.

[sirchai]

The Australian government implemented similar roll outs of notebooks. My wonderful Thai stepson, whilst at school, typed in a search for porn. This triggered an automatic alert to the teacher and I was contacted and requested to attend the school and stepson was reprimanded. You can only hope the Thai education department will implement similar technology as well as lock down the tablet configuration so that the students cannot load games.

Guess your stepson wanted to search for Popcorn....... .

"porn..." is part of many Thai names in English transliteration. females have names like Pornchitta or Titiporn for example.

I've got about 160 kids with a sort of porn in their names........guess they were watching porn when they made them.....

[FOODLOVER]

The Australian government implemented similar roll outs of notebooks. My wonderful Thai stepson, whilst at school, typed in a search for porn. This triggered an automatic alert to the teacher and I was contacted and requested to attend the school and stepson was reprimanded. You can only hope the Thai education department will implement similar technology as well as lock down the tablet configuration so that the students cannot load games.

Guess your stepson wanted to search for Popcorn....... .

"porn..." is part of many Thai names in English transliteration. females have names like Pornchitta or Titiporn for example.

I've got about 160 kids with a sort of porn in their names........guess they were watching porn when they made them.....

Made the children or the names?

[GiHadOrange]

The Australian government implemented similar roll outs of notebooks. My wonderful Thai stepson, whilst at school, typed in a search for porn. This triggered an automatic alert to the teacher and I was contacted and requested to attend the school and stepson was reprimanded. You can only hope the Thai education department will implement similar technology as well as lock down the tablet configuration so that the students cannot load games.

Guess your stepson wanted to search for Popcorn....... .

"porn..." is part of many Thai names in English transliteration. females have names like Pornchitta or Titiporn for example.

I've got about 160 kids with a sort of porn in their names........guess they were watching porn when they made them.....

Don't tell me you are a teacher here in Thailand.

[mrtoad]

This is old news already. What's the point? A final attempt to throw the tablet program in the garbage and "prove that PTP was wrong to offer?" This topic has been discussed ad nauseam in this and I am sure other forums since its inception.

Thailand never allowed student to use calculators; as it inhibit Thai student ability to calculate.

Tablet is worst that calculator. It also inhibit Thai student the ability to read books.

You're having a Giraffe.

If that was the case then how come most shop assistants can't even subtract 90 baht from a100 baht without a) using a calculator and checking it about 4 times?

[simple1]

The Australian government implemented similar roll outs of notebooks. My wonderful Thai stepson, whilst at school, typed in a search for porn. This triggered an automatic alert to the teacher and I was contacted and requested to attend the school and stepson was reprimanded. You can only hope the Thai education department will implement similar technology as well as lock down the tablet configuration so that the students cannot load games.

Guess your stepson wanted to search for Popcorn....... .

"porn..." is part of many Thai names in English transliteration. females have names like Pornchitta or Titiporn for example.

I guess your post was an attempt at humour. Anyway he admitted he was stupid enough to search for pornography whilst using the school's internet access facility. At least it was female stuff & not some aberrant content. I did let him know pornography for the WWW is often produced by organised criminal activity.

EDIT: I was attempting to point out that if they are providing internet access schools should be implementing filtering/ security policy

Edited July 30, 2012 by simple1

[mrtoad]

WOW much debate on instructing pupils how to play Angry Birds, after all thats all these tablets will ever get used for

Tablet issue in Thailand has nothing to do with education it was buying off voters thats all...populist promises

And that's sadly the real reason. There is no change in educational ideology or development in Thailand, the tablet is just a way of grabbing a vote.

I wonder if all of these Tablets are loaded with SKYPE, so that the DL can call into the young each day?

[BillyBobThai]

As was pointed out earlier, this was never about education. It was about two things, getting elected and another way for someone to scam more money from the government. The kids were the last thing on their mind.

[Buchholz]

Who are these foreign 'experts' to form an opinion about Thai learning devices? They cannot understand Thainess: 'this is Thailand and we do it this way whether is well thought through or not'. Cancelling their visas will be the number one item on the Foreign Minister's to-do list. Maybe he will even make a formal complaint at the US and Korean embassies.

Shenzhen Scope Tablet Computers and Sheet Meal Manufacturing & Industrial Pesticides Co., Thailand, Ltd. Corp.could also sue the professors in Thailand.

..

[simple1]

Who are these foreign 'experts' to form an opinion about Thai learning devices? They cannot understand Thainess: 'this is Thailand and we do it this way whether is well thought through or not'. Cancelling their visas will be the number one item on the Foreign Minister's to-do list. Maybe he will even make a formal complaint at the US and Korean embassies.

Shenzhen Scope Tablet Computers and Sheet Meal Manufacturing & Industrial Pesticides Co., Thailand, Ltd. Corp.could also sue the professors in Thailand.

..

Why? They are commenting on other factors that could contribute to the success of the project goals, not the product

Edited July 30, 2012 by simple1

[SuneeTH]

This is old news already. What's the point? A final attempt to throw the tablet program in the garbage and "prove that PTP was wrong to offer?" This topic has been discussed ad nauseam in this and I am sure other forums since its inception.

Thailand never allowed student to use calculators; as it inhibit Thai student ability to calculate.

Tablet is worst that calculator. It also inhibit Thai student the ability to read books.

You're having a Giraffe.

If that was the case then how come most shop assistants can't even subtract 90 baht from a100 baht without a) using a calculator and checking it about 4 times?

They could.

But it is stated in the stupid "operation procedure" of a major hypermarket retailers forcing them (their Thai staffs) to do that (quadruplet checking with calculators) or be sack for non-conformance.

No doubt the operation procedure was brought over from the retailer home country, due to experience gain in Britain, without taking into consideration like; Thai staff are good with mental calculations.

[Soi Sauce]

Go back to korea thai children are not your business

Does that comment apply to all foriegn charities in Thailand, or is the money ok but education not?

Please tell kids with HIV that they are not the Red Cross's or UN's business.

If you are THai, you are living proof the education system needs reforming.

[Petertimo]

I've got about 160 kids with a sort of porn in their names........guess they were watching porn when they made them.....

Don't tell me you are a teacher here in Thailand.

No, he's got 160 kids with 300 different wifes!

[Moruya]

Go back to korea thai children are not your business

Yes, Thai children love to stay ignorant.

If they are ignorant, how can they know?

[belg]

effective? does it have to be ? it was only a way to get votes... promise a lot of things to the crowds, give them a little something something and everybody happy

[happysanook]

somewhat shocking even for the Thai...i think the whole program is silly, but giving tablet computers to 5 year olds??

[hellodolly]

Go back to korea thai children are not your business

So you are Thai? If not, using your own logic, it is none of your business either.

"Dumb Comment Award of the Day" But it is still early.

It is quite obvious that the two Professors don't understand that Thai's are different.

The Thai government had them here in Bangkok hoping they could learn from all of the Thai experiences and wisdom.

Would not surprise me to see them come up with a scheme to get pads for every one over 2. And if they need the plan to get more votes they will plan it soon.

I said right from the get go that they were giving them to early to give them one when they were in the late second grade or grade three would be far more appropriate. And even then give them some thing besides junk.

[Moruya]

Technologically, Android was developed by Google as a mobile phone operating system. Sure, it's built on Linux, but it's really a phone system that has only recently been a serious market player in the phone market and even more recently a player in the tablet market.

That said, it does have some potential for kids. Although I have never heard any Thai official mention it, Google Docs could be very useful for homework.

The bottom line is not just who will teach the teachers and who will teach the kids but just as much, who will teach the tablets.

[hellodolly]

The tablet is nothing more that an instrument to store and retrieve information. If the information is useful then it will benefit the user when it comes time to retrieve it. It comes down to nothing more than" Useful information in,..Useful information out. Crap in, Crap out." What needs to be addressed is who is teaching the students how to best use these tablets in order to maximize their learning experiences. If the teachers have no proper training on the tablets uses, then the students would be no better off than if they were using a piece of slate on chalk.

I wonder how many teachers will be taking lessons from the kid's.

That is not meant as a joke. It is a serious consideration.

Just think about it a whole generation of first grade teachers learning to play games on a pad.

There is no sense in trying to help the schools get a better learning system. They are not interested in one.

I would love to see the degree of thinking ability of a four year graduate who never got the pad until the third grade as compared to the level of thinking ability for the students getting a pad now.

I would think the ones receiving them today the first thing they would do is reach for a pad to get the answer rather than think. Where as the student who did not receive one would be able to say he lives next door to me.

[hellodolly]

Technologically, Android was developed by Google as a mobile phone operating system. Sure, it's built on Linux, but it's really a phone system that has only recently been a serious market player in the phone market and even more recently a player in the tablet market.

That said, it does have some potential for kids. Although I have never heard any Thai official mention it, Google Docs could be very useful for homework.

The bottom line is not just who will teach the teachers and who will teach the kids but just as much, who will teach the tablets.

Are the tablets they are getting able to learn. Lets face it even with no profit. Shipping or corruption it is still a cheap price. How much can such a simple thing learn.

[Moruya]

Technologically, Android was developed by Google as a mobile phone operating system. Sure, it's built on Linux, but it's really a phone system that has only recently been a serious market player in the phone market and even more recently a player in the tablet market.

That said, it does have some potential for kids. Although I have never heard any Thai official mention it, Google Docs could be very useful for homework.

The bottom line is not just who will teach the teachers and who will teach the kids but just as much, who will teach the tablets.

Are the tablets they are getting able to learn. Lets face it even with no profit. Shipping or corruption it is still a cheap price. How much can such a simple thing learn.

Software is a business. Does something already exist? Is it available in Thai?

If not then all they have is a phone that can't make calls and a big screen

[Lannig]

WOW much debate on instructing pupils how to play Angry Birds, after all thats all these tablets will ever get used for

If they ever manage to run Angry Birds properly on them. If the sample I have seen is for real, they're really, really cheap low-spec tablets that definitely don't have enough CPU power and graphics abilities to run Angry Bird decently without constant hiccups and freezes.

Tablet issue in Thailand has nothing to do with education it was buying off voters thats all...populist promises

As well as a very large scale corruption scheme. Considering the price they're paid for the said tablet in the said quantities, a whole lot of people are making a whole lot of money on this. I'm sure I can get a better price from the Chinese supplier for a quantity of 10.

[rbrooks]

It seems that this act by the government to give first graders the PC tablet was not well planned but the idea was for a good cause. I and probably the rest of the western and eastern world, view this act as a show by the government to convince their own people they are making great strides in improving the education for their young children. All the advice in the world will not prevent the Thai government from understanding that this is ridiculous and total waste of money similar to using boat propellors to divert water during a massive flooding.

[looping]

Maybe the Thai govt should explain to these concerned people that they're merely trying to fulfill an election promise to stop their party being dissolved, and in fact have no intention of improving the quality of education in Thailand whatsoever. With an educated population, who would vote for them?

[hansgruber]

Nothing story.

Half will get sold, a quarter broken and a quarter will just play games.

I bet the pawn shops are already full of them.

[Nigel1500]

Go back to korea thai children are not your business

A world-renowned professional, with years of leaning and experience in educating children, and this is your best contribution?