Losing our voice in the global village: Thai editorial

[webfact]

EDITORIAL
Losing our voice in the global village
The Nation

Ranked "very low" for English-language proficiency, Thailand needs an education boost to be competitive in this era of globalisation

BANGKOK: -- Thailand has fared poorly in a global survey on adult English-language proficiency. The Kingdom ranked 55th among 60 countries where English is not the mother tongue, falling into the "very low proficiency" group.

We are now in the lowest band of the 2013 English Proficiency Index, compiled by Switzerland-based Education First (EF), an international language school. EF's latest global ranking is based on data from the 750,000 adults who took its English tests in 2012.

Highest ranked among Asian countries is Malaysia, 11th, followed by Singapore, 12th. Both are in the "high proficiency" group. Fellow Southeast Asian countries Indonesia (25th) and Vietnam (28th) show "moderate proficiency". The major powers in Asia are all ranked higher than Thailand - India is 21st, South Korea 24th, Japan 26th, Taiwan 33rd and China 34th.

Of the 60 countries ranked this year, just five performed worse than Thailand - Panama, Kazakhstan, Algeria, Saudi Arabia and Iraq.

The rankings are significant because English is the most vital tool for communication in this era of rapid globalisation. As such, Thailand is being left behind. Poor language skills have left us with just a small base of competent adult English speakers who make up our globalised workforce.

Education policy must be changed if we are to halt this slide.

Christopher McCormick, head of EF's Academic Affairs and Research Network, said: "Comparison of countries with their neighbours, trading partners and rivals provides a fascinating study in divergent national priorities and educational policies."

Dr Krissanapong Kirtikara, vice chair of Thailand's Quality Warning Foundation, has emphasised the need to improve our English-teaching standards in order to boost competitiveness in preparation for the Asean Economic Community's launch in 2015.

Those standards are currently being held down by an education system that focuses more on passing exams than improving skills. Stuck with a curriculum that focuses on rote learning of grammar and vocabulary, our English-language students are failing to develop the basic tools of communication - speaking and writing.

Meanwhile bad memories of their childhood English classes mean that many adults refuse to take action to improve their language skills after they graduate.

This deep-rooted aversion can be overcome if the Education Ministry and other relevant agencies ensure that teaching methods encourage Thai students to develop actual language skills, particularly speaking and writing, rather than the ability to memorise grammar rules and vocabulary. Students should straightaway get to grips with the language itself by speaking easy phrases and sentences, rather than memorising rules.

A familiar excuse for our deficiency is that we have never "had to" speak English, since Thailand was never colonised by Britain. This excuse might work for those of us who don't need to communicate with non-Thai speakers or who never need to find information in English. But those who can't speak and read at least some of the language will find their potential is limited in a "global village" whose mother tongue is English.

Improving our English proficiency will boost not only personal skills and potential, but also the competitiveness of the country as a whole. Right now we are losing out on opportunities to progress economically, socially and even politically.


-- The Nation 2013-11-21

[MaxLee]

So the newspapers in Thailand are just running out if topics, so just state the obvious again to attract international Falang pityyyyy

As long as the ruling government and its corrupt agencies and ministries don't give a damn about changing the backstabbing system, things will never change and many students around the entire nation have to bear the anguishful burden...

[NongKhaiKid]

When will Montenegran, or is it Serbo Croat, become compulsory in schools ?

[noitom]

Bad memories of their "childhood" English classes. What exactly does that mean and why is it slammed as a key point in the middle of this terribly constructed editorial about English language skills?

[jaltsc]

How many times do they have to run the same article before people realize that those in power do not want an educated populace? Learning foreign languages,among other mind expanding activities will lead to exploring different ideas, which will lead to questioning the status quo. The power structure has learned well from history on how to maintain power: "Keep them ignorant, but keep them fed". This way the people will always choose between one of two corrupt political parties. It is much easier and more lucrative to fight an opposing political party than it is to fight a revolution.

[noitom]

One thing Thais can be grateful for is that rarely if ever are they taken seriously. Come to think of it, Thais rarely if ever express "genuine" gratitude by their behavior.

[Lupatria]

When will Montenegran, or is it Serbo Croat, become compulsory in schools ?

The answer from Dubai is: ‏إن شاء الله‎ in schā'a llāh.

Losing our voice in the global village

You can't lose what you ain't got...

Edited November 21, 2013 by Lupatria

[canopus1969]

An earlier article said their comprehension of Thai is very poor - what chance do they have of a different language, admittedly far easier to learn than Thai.

[Time Traveller]

But better English skills could make foreigners think that Thailand was colonized.

[upena]

Thais have to learn Thai first and then worry about English

[Local Drunk]

An earlier article said their comprehension of Thai is very poor - what chance do they have of a different language, admittedly far easier to learn than Thai.

Basic English is a snap to teach. Who, what, when, why, where, how and basic yes or no questions with do or does are not a problem with Thais and they generally learn tenses quite easily. Where I see most of my students having problems is mixing tenses in a simple conversation and when to use a particular tense. I get around that with a series of questions in different tenses that are related to a singular topic such as food. "How often do you eat out?" This is all written on the board in a dialogue so the students can see the changes in tenses and visualize their answers. I then change the verb and the subject. How often do you go to the movies? This lets the student see that the change in content words does not affect the structure words. I then erase the questions leaving the student's answers on the board and ask them the first question and allow them read their answers off the board in different tenses.Next I erase the whole board and ask them the original question and get them to string their answers together in a continuous flow of different tenses.

It's a drop in the bucket of how I teach... but it works well to get them speaking.

[Spare]

Thai must learn Thai first. Other languages can wait.

Japanese don't speak better English than Thai people, so why must Thai people be single out for their bad English?

I think this is just a plot by the Khao San Road junkies who want to find some cash, free money for their full moon party trip, without any investment.