Mahapruttaram Girls' School - Good School?

[bangkokburning]

My niece attends this girls school. Wife says it's quite tops, even better than the public she graduated from.

Is she destined for Chula or a third rate paper mill?

Thanks!

Edited February 12, 2013 by bangkokburning

[aussiebebe]

Won't the school tell you where last year's graduates went? most schools are quite proud about any student achievements.

As a rule, students are destined for whatever Uni their parents can afford - if they can stump up International student fees for US or the UK or wherever then they'll find a suitable course.

[bangkokburning]

Honestly, I have not asked. I'm just a curious Uncle hoping for the b

So if we can pay the fees plus a 100k honorarium I presume - she can go to Chula or Thammasat?

[culicine]

Honestly, I have not asked. I'm just a curious Uncle hoping for the b

So if we can pay the fees plus a 100k honorarium I presume - she can go to Chula or Thammasat?

It depends on the student and how motivated to learn she is. The main thing is that she mixes with like minded students - other motivated students who are keen to learn and have ambitions.

Most of these 'top schools' ride off the fact that they took all the best students from other schools. The kids were already smart to begin with, and were destined for good universities anyway. So, these schools are mostly 'good', because they acquired good students from elsewhere.

Another point is that it seems even very average students can get into 'good' universities here. I had some students actually fail school maths (I wasn't their teacher), but could get accepted into mechanical engineering, Thammasart. Unbelievable.

[SlyAnimal]

My theory around the success, in terms of education and profession, for children in Thailand, is that:

A child's natural ability sets their potential.

However, whether they reach that potential, or how close to reaching it they get, is determined by their motivation and the opportunities available to them.

Children are initially motivated primarily by their parents, who set their life values and define success. Success could then be defined as being able to afford to drink hong thong instead of lao khao, or success could be defined as graduating from a top university.

When children go to school, they become friends with their class mates. If their friends only want to drink hong thong, then their motivation towards working hard for a university degree will be lessened. If their friends want to goto the top university in Thailand, or study abroad, then their motivation for these things will be increased (even if they initially would have been satisfied with just being a rice farmer).

Once their definition of success is defined, and motivation from their classmates has been provided, they then need to be given the opportunity to succeed. This is given by their learning environment both inside and outside of school. If they have a nice place to study, parents and/or tutors who assist them with their learning outside of school, then they have a better opportunity than those who don't, likewise if, at school, they have good teachers and a small class, they'll do much better than if they have terrible teachers and a huge class.

I think that sending your children to a good school, or at the very least ensuring that your children are in a good class at their local school, is essential for academic success in Thailand, as there are significant differences between the best and the worst schools/classes. People who enrol their children in good schools, have usually already set the bar quite high when they defined success for their children, and so at a good school they usually make friends with like minded individuals. These children usually also have a better learning environment outside of school, as private tutors etc are usually the norm.

However sending your children to a good school, doesn't necessarily ensure success, as they might still get in with the "bad boys" of the school. Or they might not have a learning environment at home which is conductive to learning. Or they simply might not have enough natural ability to be as successful as you'd like. So you just need to try and give them the best opportunity you can, not just by paying for a good school, but by providing a good learning environment outside of school as well. After which, it's upto your children as to how much they can achieve.

[bangkokburning]

Thanks for all this general information. All pretty much inline with my thinking. My SIL is a decent woman, met a bad guy, got pregnant, then another. Her life doomed. They all live w/ inlaws and all decent folk. Non drinkers save for the guy who becomes more trouble by the year.

Anyway, they all love the kids. The eldest is said to be very clever and even in top of her class. The younger is average but in same school my wife graduated from which I am told also good. Both all girls schools.

I need to get this young woman in different vocational really professional settings so she can ponder her opptys in life. But she is still young. The family is very poor, the neighborhood sketchy. But we need to get her into a good school.

Don't believe she will become a party girl. Certainly there is no money to party with. They are very good and decent kids.

I'd like to see her become a dentist. Her sister could assist and mom could clean. But that is my thinking. But I will only pay for a serious degree: maths, sci, engineering, architect, medicine, law/business, cpa...

My opinion from where my wife works...good luck is about = to an average univ degree from avg school in Thailand.