Overhaul in teaching methods
Wannapa Khaopa
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Teaching methods in Thailand for science, technology and mathematics will be overhauled with the aim of upgrading students' knowledge and capability to meet international standards in 14 years, a top education official told the media yesterday.

Education in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) is part of a five-year strategic plan (2012-16) for the Institute for the Promotion of Teaching Science and Technology (IPST), said Professor Emeritus Montri Chulavatnatol, chairman of the IPST board.

"The STEM strategy will make huge changes in the teaching of these subjects, as the focus will be to get students to enjoy these subjects instead of learning by rote. Teachers will also be trained on improving their teaching methods.

"This way, both teachers and students will understand how to learn the subjects effectively and how to apply them in real life, as well as how they can use the subjects to create new innovations," Montri said.

He added that IPST aimed for Thai students' scores to reach international standards by 2027, especially in the Programme for International Students Assessment and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study. It also wants the average scores in science and mathematics in the Ordinary National Educational Tests to rise by 4 per cent every year.

"STEM education will reach out to different educational institutions in every province. We plan to have STEM Halls of Fame, STEM Academies and iSTEM in every province.

The project will be officially launched in pilot provinces this year.


-- The Nation 2013-04-24

Is this possible? Thailand will be the new Singapore

Is this possible? Thailand will be the new Singapore

Only if they import Singaporeans to run the Education ministry.

And if the scores do not increase by 4% each year, then easy, the schools will just add 4% to any test results.

In 14 years? By the time that rolls around there will be a whole new perspective to it and thus Thailand will remain as a back runner.

14 years!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? In most countries it can be done in less than 4! Must be the amount of money that is being considered and whose pockets it will be going into.

Oh heavens. Not again! Herein, I believe, is the underlying problem.

It is clear to me that Thais, at a peer to peer level, do not communicate with each other at all in resolving problems; with the exceptions of copying or plagiarizing.

Their problem solving skills consist of identifying a problem that they are arrogant or cheeky enough to believe they saw first (simply because they cannot demonstrate the abilities to actively listen to others and their environment around them), and then without any further thought they sound their heraldry and singularly charge madly into the problem or challenge; singularly and with blinders on.

Due to past and consistent failure, I can only understand this behavior purely as a means to elevate their FACE in the eyes of their fellow self-flattering competitor (a.k.a. every other person, dog, insect out there).

This is the only solution I can arrive at to suggest why these utter imbeciles keep chiseling away at the same nauseating issues every month. In other words, to show everyone else how amazingly intelligent they are that they can point their finger at a problem that they themselves discovered just this moment, and to offer sage advice, and then to do nothing more.

Edited April 24, 201313 yr by cup-O-coffee

In 14 years? My kid will be long out of school by then. They better light a fire under their arse on this one.

I truly hope this works. If ASEAN actually becomes a working reality, very quickly the Thai public will realise how their childrens 'pieces of paper and obligatory photographs' are actually worthless against those of other ASEAN nations. The 20 years they spent in education will no longer guarantee them a job. While the well educated ASEAN nationals will walk into some of the jobs they expected to fill.

So any teacher who is over the age of 45 won't even bother thinking about it.

They can continue to under achieve in the classroom so that they can keep their "extra" classes full at the weekends and after school.

You first have to get the teachers who understand the new curiculum....good luck!

2027....that's a plan...wow...hey, we are not talking of exploring a diffrent universe or flying to Mars.

It seems to me that the general standard of maths here is atrocious. Today, I tried to do a relatively simple transaction of converting USD to Euro. It needed visits to 5 different currency exchanges, before somebody was able to do it. Two said no, cannot. Two wanted to convert the USD into baht, and then the baht into Euro i.e. 2 transactions. At the fifth exchange they did it really quickly and simply.

Makes one wonder about the level of training these poor people get, and also the standard of maths teaching in schools.

When Thai student teachers from local universities stop arriving at my school with the <deleted> bamboo stick under their arms or sticking out of their briefcase, then I believe teaching methods are changing.

Because Thais believe they are the center of the Universe.

They will still insist 2+2=4 and a little bit!

Yes, don't forget that little bit. Got to factor in tea money paid

Well at least they are moving in the right direction, they are acknowledging the problem exists which is a good thing.

Well at least they are moving in the right direction, they are acknowledging the problem exists which is a good thing.

Yes.

Except they have been acknowledging that for at least 15 years. That's where it has always ended - the occasional acknowledgment and the stated resolution to fix it. (No kidding. Do a search for things like "education reform" in the archives of the English language press here, if you doubt it)

Edited April 24, 201313 yr by SteeleJoe

This is a very very important issue for Thailand and it's future.

14 years?! Seems excessively long!!!

14 years?! Seems excessively long!!!

Or not long enough?? Personally, I'll believe it when I see it but then I'm an ageing cynic.

Oh really?

Heard it all before!

This is a very very important issue for Thailand and it's future.

Sure is! And they will have meeting after meeting on the subject too. But what will change?

iSTEM......

There just had to be an 'i' in there some where.

ohhh and anyone who's been here a few years has heard the different variations of the same theme.. But very little changes.

Edited April 24, 201313 yr by thaicbr

Same song, different drummer.

Screw trying to copy American or British education systems.

They need to jump straight to the Finnish model. Complete overhaul but I think it would fit Thailand more than the other Western systems.

Kippis ,,,,,, (the only word I know in Finnish)

Just wait a few months and there will be another article written, and then nothing will happen, again.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnW8dmJ0Fl4

In the UK the quality of my maths and science education was very poor and I think it was generally recognised this operated across the board. One reason for this has it has always been very difficult to recruit top, even good maths and science graduates into teaching, because better opportunities are available in other fields. So no major surprises about the quality here in Thailand, and indeed if this low quality was restricted to science and maths, then it would be almost acceptable; however on the basis of four years teaching here in a small up country bilingual school and talking with other teachers, the education system sucks here. It doesn't appear to have any concern with helping children think, process and evaluate information or indeed use their brains: quite the opposite, methinks. This ASEAN business might finally give everyone here the big wake-up call.

In the UK the quality of my maths and science education was very poor and I think it was generally recognised this operated across the board. One reason for this has it has always been very difficult to recruit top, even good maths and science graduates into teaching, because better opportunities are available in other fields. So no major surprises about the quality here in Thailand, and indeed if this low quality was restricted to science and maths, then it would be almost acceptable; however on the basis of four years teaching here in a small up country bilingual school and talking with other teachers, the education system sucks here. It doesn't appear to have any concern with helping children think, process and evaluate information or indeed use their brains: quite the opposite, methinks. This ASEAN business might finally give everyone here the big wake-up call.

Actually I think the science and math is generally A LOT better here than the UK

Sent from my i-mobile i-STYLE Q6

14 years!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? In most countries it can be done in less than 4! Must be the amount of money that is being considered and whose pockets it will be going into.

You don't understand the extent of the problem here. 14 years is optimistic. I've taught 12 years and have seen a steady decline in performance and motivation of students over this time. To turn this around will be a mammoth task for all involved.

Nice to see they acknowledge that scores on international exams are important - just hope they realise have to drastically change the curriculum (a lot is out-dated), rewrite all textbooks and entrance exams (no more multiple choice), retrain teachers, and halve class sizes! Good luck with that...

In the UK the quality of my maths and science education was very poor and I think it was generally recognised this operated across the board. One reason for this has it has always been very difficult to recruit top, even good maths and science graduates into teaching, because better opportunities are available in other fields. So no major surprises about the quality here in Thailand, and indeed if this low quality was restricted to science and maths, then it would be almost acceptable; however on the basis of four years teaching here in a small up country bilingual school and talking with other teachers, the education system sucks here. It doesn't appear to have any concern with helping children think, process and evaluate information or indeed use their brains: quite the opposite, methinks. This ASEAN business might finally give everyone here the big wake-up call.

That's correct. It seems the mentality here is make the work as hard as possible, and maybe the students will work harder. Just look at the silly PAT entrance exams. The country average in maths was 40 / 300. My best student got 140 - he got into medicine! What was the purpose of the other 50% of the questions on that exam??? And this exam s NOTHING like what is learned at school. I guess it doesn't matter - make it as hard as possible, then just pass the other failing students....yet from entrance exams we can see that most students have just guessed most of the answers (scores in the 20-30% range). If the work was more DOABLE, interesting and relevant, then maybe students would be more motivated to learn.