Thailand's ICT Ministry denies claim of 200,000 broken tablets

[webfact]

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY MINISTRY
ICT Ministry denies claim of 200,000 broken tablets
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The Information and Communications Technology Ministry on Thursday insisted that only 3,244 devices bought under its "One Tablet per Child" programme were broken and sent for repair - not 200,000 as a news report claimed.

In the House of Representatives, Democrat MP for Pathum Thani Kiatisak Songsaeng questioned the tablet policy, saying the Office of the AuditorGeneral (OAG) had found that 200,000 devices out of the 860,000 bought for Bt2.6 billion had broken.

ICT Minister Anudith Nakornthap said OAG official Pichet Trakulkan had said the figure was not as high as reported by the newspaper and the OAG did not say there was corruption. In fact, he said, the office even stated that it was a good project that should continue. From August 2012 to August this year there were 3,244 broken tablets sent for repair, he added.

Education Minister Chaturon Chaisang said the OAG report actually found 295 broken devices at 80 schools and affirmed that the tablets improved students' academic performance by 50 per cent. He said the ministry would continue the programme next year.


-- The Nation 2013-10-10

[patongphil]

"and affirmed that the tablets improved students' academic performance by 50 per cent. He said the ministry would continue the programme next year"

The mind boggles!!!

[bkkgriz]

50% improvement in one year. Amazing Thailand. I wonder how he came up with that data? I'm guessing the pi**sing in the wind method.

[slapout]

I am not sure how or to what standard the 50% improvement figure is based on, but it seems one of those promotions that seem " to good to be true"

Its too bad the free tablets given to the people in government positions has not seemed to improve their preformance in carrying out the duties they have sworn to do by any measurable increase

I attended 1 room school for 8 years, this was also the number of grades/classes taught by a single teacher. It took the local conserened parents to combine 5 of these school by physically moving them together, hireing additional teacher for a total of 4 (they had no job for 1 who was a waste of space) incorporate a school lunch program transport for students and got serious about education for the students.County, state, and federal government monies were applied for, approved and it proved very successful. The present system of top down funding, appointments, etc with virtually no local input, does not seem to accomplish what is admited as needed When the overall system has produced failure, that is what needs to be changed before you will have a chance of improving the product of the school system.

Edited October 10, 2013 by slapout

[Pib]

...and affirmed that the tablets improved students' academic performance by 50 per cent.

I know where this stat was pulled from.

[rametindallas]

3,244 out of 860,000 is a failure rate of 0.00377. I can't imagine Apple, Samsung, or Asus with numbers that low. I don't think the ITC Minister thought his lie through properly. For a lie to be believable, it at least need to be possible if not probable. Must save face though and who can prove him wrong since he controls all the information.

[jbrain]

ICT Ministry denies claim of 200,000 broken tablets

Have they even delivered 200.000 Tablets so far?

[jbrain]

He said the ministry would continue the programme next year.

Will the programme be comtinued similar to this year /

promise to have them delivered at the start of the school year, then announce some delays and at the end of the first term everything has gone quiet.

Well not really quiet, they already start to make false promises for the next year.

Edited October 10, 2013 by jbrain

[GentlemanJim]

Education Minister Chaturon Chaisang said the OAG report actually found 295 broken devices at 80 schools and affirmed that the tablets improved students' academic performance by 50 per cent. He said the ministry would continue the programme next year.

Obviously fearing he is approaching his demise, Chalerm has passed on his 'Little black book of PTP one liners and press statements to keep a stupid population happy'. Talk about lies and dam_n statistics!

[rubl]

Hugely succesful program, to be continued.

In the mean time P2 student with a working tablet are still waiting for the new P2 oriented program set, and P1 and M1 students waiting for their shiny new, upgraded spec tablet with appropriate program sets.

No problem, we're only halfway the 2013-2014 schoolyear.

[Yunla]

There's this big papery thing called a book, full of knowledge, which Einstein and Darwin (and many more!) used to become educated. Books don't usually need serious repair for centuries, are cheap to make and buy, and don't provide a distractive barrier to learning which is integral in hitech learning. Teachers don't have to waste time telling kids how to turn pages.

The problem is that books are so passe, they do not make for eyecandy party slogans or tell the world that your nation is totally 21st Century. Books just teach kids boring stuff like knowledge, and teach kids to love the medium of books themselves. Books inspire kids to become writers, and teach kids how to manually cross-reference information from multiple sources, which is an invaluable skill in the workplace. I love computers, but this scheme was eyecandy from the start. A couple of shared PC's per school is better, and lots of good quality books. And clean well-maintained classrooms and roofs etc. When the kids are older they can buy their own computers and sit gazing into them if they want to.

[nottocus]

How to express it?

Pathetic. As if anyone believes this muppet. Yet he continues to be allowed to be a muppet. Like the rest of them.

[nong38]

"and affirmed that the tablets improved students' academic performance by 50 per cent. He said the ministry would continue the programme next year"

The mind boggles!!!

The tablet is a good sunstitute for a Thai teacher then?

[nong38]

General comment: Most Thais dont know what is going on around them, eg. the number of motorcycles that just pull away from the curb without looking around first.

Govt employees from whatever level, sometimes described as "muppets" fit the above perfectly and if you look around you you will see its a national trait, they think its normal!!!!!

[hansnl]

3,244 out of 860,000 is a failure rate of 0.00377. I can't imagine Apple, Samsung, or Asus with numbers that low. I don't think the ITC Minister thought his lie through properly. For a lie to be believable, it at least need to be possible if not probable. Must save face though and who can prove him wrong since he controls all the information.

But of course the quality control in the factory was faultless.

The tables were also very well designed, and only the best materials were used, and the producing factory only used highly qualified staff.

Don't forget the end control was just.........ehhh.......the end.

[MMarlow]

3,244 out of 860,000 is a failure rate of 0.00377. I can't imagine Apple, Samsung, or Asus with numbers that low. I don't think the ITC Minister thought his lie through properly. For a lie to be believable, it at least need to be possible if not probable. Must save face though and who can prove him wrong since he controls all the information.

You need check your maths before you slag off the minister with incorrect figures.

The failure rate according to the minister, simply as a number, is 3244 not 0.00377. As a percentage of the 860,000 quoted figure, 3244 is (a failure rate of) 0.3772093%. That is 100 times greater than your calculation

[MMarlow]

But of course the quality control in the factory was faultless.

The tables were also very well designed, and only the best materials were used, and the producing factory only used highly qualified staff.

Don't forget the end control was just.........ehhh.......the end.

The tables were an entirely different issue.

[whybother]

3,244 out of 860,000 is a failure rate of 0.00377. I can't imagine Apple, Samsung, or Asus with numbers that low. I don't think the ITC Minister thought his lie through properly. For a lie to be believable, it at least need to be possible if not probable. Must save face though and who can prove him wrong since he controls all the information.

You need check your maths before you slag off the minister with incorrect figures.

The failure rate according to the minister, simply as a number, is 3244 not 0.00377. As a percentage of the 860,000 quoted figure, 3244 is (a failure rate of) 0.3772093%. That is 100 times greater than your calculation

You need to learn what a % sign does to a number. 0.377% = 0.377 / 100 = 0.00377.

[AleG]

Tsk tsk... nobody noticed the weaseling?

The Information and Communications Technology Ministry on Thursday insisted that only 3,244 devices bought under its "One Tablet per Child" programme were broken and sent for repair

Assuming the number would be actually believable (fat chance), the weaseling is in the "and sent for repair" part. In another article about this particular boodongle it says that the company responsible for mainteinance has been slow in doing so and has closed some branches.

In any case, anyone who would swallow that out of almost 900.000 tablets, which unlike the purposedly designed One Laptop Per Child computer are not designed and built for rough handling, only 3244 (precisely) have broken needs to have their heads examined.

[kimamey]

There's this big papery thing called a book, full of knowledge, which Einstein and Darwin (and many more!) used to become educated. Books don't usually need serious repair for centuries, are cheap to make and buy, and don't provide a distractive barrier to learning which is integral in hitech learning. Teachers don't have to waste time telling kids how to turn pages.

The problem is that books are so passe, they do not make for eyecandy party slogans or tell the world that your nation is totally 21st Century. Books just teach kids boring stuff like knowledge, and teach kids to love the medium of books themselves. Books inspire kids to become writers, and teach kids how to manually cross-reference information from multiple sources, which is an invaluable skill in the workplace. I love computers, but this scheme was eyecandy from the start. A couple of shared PC's per school is better, and lots of good quality books. And clean well-maintained classrooms and roofs etc. When the kids are older they can buy their own computers and sit gazing into them if they want to.

I'm sure someone said something similar about books when they first came out. People learnt without books at one time but it doesn't mean we should get rid of books. It's not a big papery thing called a book it's hundreds of thousands of books many of which can be put on an electronic device and can be updated very easily.

There's nothing wrong with computers of any sort as part of teaching so long as they are used correctly. I agree that the main reason for this scheme was because it looks good and probably won't help much with education but that's nothing to do with computers and tablets. They are just tools which need to be used appropriately.

I'd love to hear where the data for the 50% improvement came from.

Edited October 10, 2013 by kimamey

[NongKhaiKid]

The claimed increase in student performance is nonsense but in keeping with officialdom justifying another expensive populist idea.

If students are improving so much because of the tablets it indictes the teaching system and the teachers but I'm sure if students are being left to study virtually unsupervised because they have a tablet thet will not be using them or study.

On the overall issue of tablets I wonder if a ' roll call ' of tablets was to be announced how many students would be able to produce theirs ?

[MamaSan]

The math is simple (but elegant): 0 x 50% = 0

[Bagwan]

...and affirmed that the tablets improved students' academic performance by 50 per cent.

I know where this stat was pulled from.

I hope that it was thoroughly cleaned up before it was put on public display.

[MMarlow]

3,244 out of 860,000 is a failure rate of 0.00377. I can't imagine Apple, Samsung, or Asus with numbers that low. I don't think the ITC Minister thought his lie through properly. For a lie to be believable, it at least need to be possible if not probable. Must save face though and who can prove him wrong since he controls all the information.

You need check your maths before you slag off the minister with incorrect figures.

The failure rate according to the minister, simply as a number, is 3244 not 0.00377. As a percentage of the 860,000 quoted figure, 3244 is (a failure rate of) 0.3772093%. That is 100 times greater than your calculation

You need to learn what a % sign does to a number. 0.377% = 0.377 / 100 = 0.00377.

No I don't.

[truckerjoe]

"and affirmed that the tablets improved students' academic performance by 50 per cent. He said the ministry would continue the programme next year"

The mind boggles!!!

The tablet is a good sunstitute for a Thai teacher then?

In the sixties I had a lot of friends who thought it was!

[whybother]

 

 

3,244 out of 860,000 is a failure rate of 0.00377. I can't imagine Apple, Samsung, or Asus with numbers that low. I don't think the ITC Minister thought his lie through properly. For a lie to be believable, it at least need to be possible if not probable. Must save face though and who can prove him wrong since he controls all the information.

 

You need check your maths before you slag off the minister with incorrect figures.

 

The failure rate according to the minister, simply as a number, is 3244 not 0.00377.  As a percentage of the 860,000 quoted figure, 3244 is (a failure rate of) 0.3772093%.  That is 100 times greater than your calculation

 

 

You need to learn what a % sign does to a number.  0.377% = 0.377 / 100 = 0.00377.

 

 

No I don't.

Ok. You don't. You can continue to make an idiot of yourself.

Sent from my HTC Desire HD A9191 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[LincsLad]

... the tablets improved students' academic performance by 50 per cent.

He forgot to add "in 90 days".

[tominbkk]

50% improvement in one year. Amazing Thailand. I wonder how he came up with that data? I'm guessing the pi**sing in the wind method.

The public should demand to see what kinds of assessment were given to determine that improvement.

[jbrain]

... the tablets improved students' academic performance by 50 per cent.

He forgot to add "in 90 days".

Chalerm has a copyright on that one.