The coup to end all coups: A reading culture in Thailand

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STREETWISE
The coup to end all coups: A reading culture in Thailand
Achara Deboonme

BANGKOK: -- The annual book fair returned last week and, as in previous years, it came with new statistics on reading. The Chulalongkorn University study delivered a few surprises, especially for those who stick to the old assumption that "Thais don't read".

Sponsored by the Publishers and Booksellers Association of Thailand, organisers of the ongoing Bangkok International Book Fair, the study covered 3,232 respondents aged 15-69 in eight major provinces.

Twelve per cent said they don't do any reading outside studies or work, citing a lack of time, of interest or bad eyesight.

Among those who said they read, only 40 per cent did so more than three days a week. On average, members of this group spend 46 minutes per day on leisure-time reading. Popular stuff are websites, books, newspapers and magazines.

The average reading time across all groups is 26 minutes a day. That figure is significantly lower than the 37 minutes recorded by a much larger survey conducted by the National Statistical Office (NSO) in 2013. That survey covered over 50,000 households nationwide and concluded that 81.1 per cent of population, or over 50 million of us, do read. Constituting the biggest group of readers were children - 95.1 per cent of them read regularly.

An interesting finding was that homes were the most popular places for reading, not libraries. The next most popular were public places and workplaces.

What do we read? Print materials still rule, followed by websites via PCs, tablets and smartphones. Among print materials, newspapers accounted for 73.7 per cent of reading material, followed by magazines. The most popular books were those about religion, novels and comic books.

The Chulalongkorn University survey showed that 41.4 per cent of those who read said they spent more time on websites than on print material.

This chimes with market research released last October, which showed that Internet users in Thailand spend 3.1 hours a day on their mobile phones. This compares to 2.6 hours spent watching television, 1.5 hours dedicated to PC/laptop time and 0.7 hours on tablets, according the study UK-based DJS Research.

So, are Thais really reading less?

According to the organiser, last year's Bangkok book fair welcomed 1.9 million visitors, who spent about Bt700 million - a record high. An exhibitor survey also showed that 34 per cent witnessed more visitors to their booths than the previous year. They attributed the increase to new titles and promotions, affordability, limited editions and the location of their booths.

The evidence suggests a growing appetite for reading among Thais.

Yet, a lot more could be done to feed that hunger among people of all ages, especially if we believe that reading broadens knowledge, offers fresh ideas and sparks new thinking.

In the NSO's 2013 survey, 39 per cent of respondents said they would read more if book prices were lower. 26.3 per cent suggested that parents should take the lead. Many also said schools and city authorities should improve public reading spaces and increase the number of mobile libraries.

All those suggestions should be taken seriously.

Currently publishers use attractive cover designs and quality paper to lure readers, but that means the average price of a novel is nearly Bt200 - more than half the minimum wage. In a country where millions still earn the minimum wage, that pricing is absurd.

For years, provinces have had their own libraries. Yet few are properly equipped. (Most comprise just a large room stocked with magazines.) Though they now get a bigger slice of national budget, local administrative bodies pay more attention to road construction than to soft infrastructure like books. Some schools now depend on donations for their reading material. No surprise, then, that becoming a librarian is among the least popular career options in Thailand.

It's also no surprise that homes are where most of us read. Silence in Bangkok's few public parks is regularly disturbed by events like aerobic fitness sessions, with their pumping music. Meanwhile the 40-minute BTS ride from Bang Na to Mor Chit would be long enough to finish a comic book, if it weren't for the incessant chatter of TV commercials and people talking on their phones.

What more that can be done? How about a national general knowledge contest that would require competitors read a broad range of material?

Businesses are helping refurbish libraries and donate books. But they could do much more if we had an agency that gathered information on the reading needs of each community and how its library could meet them. Bookstores offer monthly lists of their top 10 best-sellers, but there is no neutral ratings agency to tell us which are the most popular books in Thailand.

One recent innovation that deserves recognition is Siam Cement Group's list of 50 book titles recommended for Thais. Hopefully, these kinds of efforts will continue, and receive endorsement and aid from the government and the private sector.

Though our reading appetite may be growing, it remains modest. For a shocking indicator, consider that the Constitution Drafting Committee's web page (http://goo.gl/UZFZV8), though launched months ago, had drawn a mere 14,939 visitors as of Sunday.

Of course, part of the reason for the lack of interest might be because Thailand has had far too many Constitutions. Yet the number of visitors constitutes just 0.2 per cent of our population of 65 million, despite the fact that the new Constitution will rule all.

Thai society desperately needs more readers.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/opinion/The-coup-to-end-all-coups-A-reading-culture-in-Tha-30257059.html


-- The Nation 2015-03-31

[BSJ]

Thai's are on their phones 3.1 hours a day! Crikey, I would use my phone less than 3.1 hours a year!

[ggold]

in other words this age group spend their time reading text messages!

[upena]

Cartoons and comics is about all they read

[claffey]

Cartoons and comics is about all they read

Wrong! I've been to the book fair many times and went last Saturday. Thousands of people leaving with bags full of books. Most books were text based.Not many cartoon book stalls.Asia books were there and selling hundreds of books to Thais.Mostly fantasy and tv series etc but it's a sign of the growing fluency of the middle classes in English...

[ronwparker]

The middle clases may have started to read books but maily translated into Thai.

The few who read books in Engligh are very well educated but often cannot hold a conversation in English!

Thailands education system is still poor -even the private schools and universities.

[Lupatria]

Cartoons and comics is about all they read

...don't forget the numbers on the bank notes!

[Rorri]

Cartoons and comics is about all they read

Wrong! I've been to the book fair many times and went last Saturday. Thousands of people leaving with bags full of books. Most books were text based.Not many cartoon book stalls.Asia books were there and selling hundreds of books to Thais.Mostly fantasy and tv series etc but it's a sign of the growing fluency of the middle classes in English...

"Thousands" really, and you could see inside their bags...... I see something very wrong with your comment...besides, even IF you are right, you are looking at a VERY small portion of Thais, all congregated in one small area. My personal observation is that I see very few Thais reading printed material or web sites, unless they are social sites. Oops, and of course texting.

[espinoza]

Sure some Thai read, but thats not a common behavior in Thailand.

[espinoza]

But a educated Thai needs 2 minutes to read something somebody reading Latin letters uses 5 seconds to read. Some differences here ?

[espinoza]

How can it be a suprice that the readers read printed paper ? The majority of Thai people do not have reliable Internet, if the have Internet at all. Many rural areas where the majority lives do not have normal communication channels.

[espinoza]

off course: "The Chulalongkorn University survey showed that 41.4 per cent of those who read said they spent more time on websites than on print material." If they have any internet connection it takes very long time to read, because the internet in Thailand is so very slow.

[espinoza]

"For years, provinces have had their own libraries. Yet few are properly equipped. (Most comprise just a large room stocked with magazines.)" Only Thai made. Foreign literature is not liked in Thailand. Thats why Thais knows so little about the world around them.

[espinoza]

Highly educated Thais, even teachers do not have any or little knowledge about whats going on in the world outside Thailand. Frightening.,

[espinoza]

Thais, included teachers just watch Thai news on TV. Most Thai teachers do not know who Benjamin Franklin was, or Leonid Bresnjev.

[espinoza]

The Thai society have not in 2015 figured out how to make a national telephone catalog. I do not need to be a paper version.

[espinoza]

"What more that can be done? How about a national general knowledge contest that would require competitors read a broad range of material?" Would be great, but it has to be set up against foreigners. Then you will get reliable results.

[espinoza]

Is it some special reason that the reader have to read Thai books ? Given by Thai firms ?

[JOC]

^^^^^^

espinoza, dear friend, time to find a hobby!!

[15Peter20]

Feeling better now, Espinoza?

[rubl]

in other words this age group spend their time reading text messages!

and writing of course and thanks to modern technology they can even do so in Thai although if Thai shortspeak is like the English version I wonder about the literary quality

[rubl]

^^^^^^

espinoza, dear friend, time to find a hobby!!

I think he did

[retsdon]

It's getting better slowly. Twenty years ago, you neve saw anyone reading in Thailand. These days it's not uncommon at all.

But really, until the education system is overhauled from top to bottom nothing much is going to change. I once had a class of middle-management bank employees, not one of whom had even heard of Pol Pot. They were completely and utterly ignorant of what had happened the other side of their own country's border within their own lifetimes. And as for simple geography, I've had classes of university students unable find the Atlantic Ocean on a globe without looking at the writing first. Their simple geography was worse than my five year old's. And this was at tertiary level.

And there's the problem in a nutshell. Most of this political wailing and gnashing of teeth can be laid at the door of straightforward ignorance. The growing pains of spreading equality and democratic aspirations are nothing new. There are plenty of societies that have gone through the same process, and the routes they've taken, and the checks and balances they've instituted to guard against reversion or derailment are there for all to learn from. But from top to bottom the Thais are unaware of other's achievements and mistakes.

It's like watching a gang of blokes struggling to shift a load from A to B. You feel like shouting, ' A wheel! What's the matter with you? Just use a pair of wheels and a damned axle, for Pity's sake!'

But of course, if they're utterly ignorant of how a pair of wheels and an axle work, the advice is useless. It's like that with Thai politics. You say,' use a democratic vote and the rule of law'. But they don't know how it's supposed to work or at it looks like. And that's because of the pitiful education system.

[claffey]

The middle clases may have started to read books but maily translated into Thai.

The few who read books in Engligh are very well educated but often cannot hold a conversation in English!

Thailands education system is still poor -even the private schools and universities.

Asia Books is an English bookstore and sold thousands of books over the course of the fair. Its still on if you don't believe me!

I left Thailand for almost four years. I've been back a year. I've noticed that the younger generation's understanding of basic English English has improved since I left. Sometimes, Westerners assume that Thai's cannot speak English. They use pigeon Thai or English to initiate a conversation. Thai's will usually answer in Thai in such a case in order to save face. I always try normal English now before using Thai. Most of the time it works...(Obviously it depends on where you are and who you are talking to)..Last Sunday I was outside Bangkok and had a ten minute conversation with some kids in a village who are learning English in a government school. Their accuracy and pronunciation was very good.

Sometimes we also need to be aware that Thai people use English as a second language. They can be successful in life here without speaking English. Obviously it is to their advantage if they can speak English but it is not as important as many Westerners assume. Chinese and Japanese can be even more beneficial here.

How many people from UK or US can speak French/ Spanish etc as a second language? I bet that more Thai people can speak English!

The education system in Thailand prepares Thai people to live and be successful in Thai society. ESL is only one subject within their system and is not as important as Maths, Science or Thai. Just like French etc is not seen as core subjects in UK. You, like many westerners, arrogantly view the Thai education system from a Western imperialistic point of view. The Thai education system teaches kids here many things that Western systems do not. Respect for elders, how to share (Thai kids are amazing at sharing!), how to be polite etc etc etc... Education is not just about test results! Its about creating well rounded individuals who can function and be successful in the society that the system is created by and for.

Before you talk about Thai students not failing let's look at the UK's system of National Curriculum levels. When students in UK have achieved a certain level they cannot receive a lower level. So a student who receives level 5b in History, for example, will always be assured of at least a 5b. Students become aware of this and start disengaging from subjects they are high achievers in. This is the exact same as a Thai student not studying because they know they will get a minimum of 50%. However, the imperialistic attitude of people from the UK ensures that they never see this fact. They would never compare their system with that of a lowly country like Thailand! Their is no perfect education system in the world as assessment of education is completely subjective. I know teachers in the UK who are going to manipulate the levels of their students if and when pay for performance is introduced. Actually many teachers in the UK are already manipulating the levels for their students by giving them assessments that are too easy. This ensures that the data looks 'outstanding' when their head teacher and ofsted/nanny state come calling!

My point here is that all too often westerners attack the Thai education system here without realising that their own country's systems are probably just as bad. And PISA's attempts at evaluating education also rely on data that is unreliable due to the subjectivity of education in general.

I know one thing for sure. I would prefer my children to be more like Thai teenagers who are respectful, polite and studious in comparison to teenagers in UK who are often to be found hanging around train stations drinking etc! ( Massive generalization here!!)

Wow.That was quite a rant. I've obviously got too much time on my hands!

[claffey]

It's getting better slowly. Twenty years ago, you neve saw anyone reading in Thailand. These days it's not uncommon at all.

But really, until the education system is overhauled from top to bottom nothing much is going to change. I once had a class of middle-management bank employees, not one of whom had even heard of Pol Pot. They were completely and utterly ignorant of what had happened the other side of their own country's border within their own lifetimes. And as for simple geography, I've had classes of university students unable find the Atlantic Ocean on a globe without looking at the writing first. Their simple geography was worse than my five year old's. And this was at tertiary level.

And there's the problem in a nutshell. Most of this political wailing and gnashing of teeth can be laid at the door of straightforward ignorance. The growing pains of spreading equality and democratic aspirations are nothing new. There are plenty of societies that have gone through the same process, and the routes they've taken, and the checks and balances they've instituted to guard against reversion or derailment are there for all to learn from. But from top to bottom the Thais are unaware of other's achievements and mistakes.

It's like watching a gang of blokes struggling to shift a load from A to B. You feel like shouting, ' A wheel! What's the matter with you? Just use a pair of wheels and a damned axle, for Pity's sake!'

But of course, if they're utterly ignorant of how a pair of wheels and an axle work, the advice is useless. It's like that with Thai politics. You say,' use a democratic vote and the rule of law'. But they don't know how it's supposed to work or at it looks like. And that's because of the pitiful education system.

I taught A level history in UK last year. Most of the students couldn't find Germany on the map! Or Russia etc... Geographical knowledge is lacking not just in Thailand!

[KhaoNiaw]

The middle clases may have started to read books but maily translated into Thai.

The few who read books in Engligh are very well educated but often cannot hold a conversation in English!

Thailands education system is still poor -even the private schools and universities.

Why would you be expecting them to read English? I would judge a country's reading culture on its own language rather than what people are reading in a foreign language. If there is plenty of material being translated into Thai, it means there is demand for it. Priority for Thailand is getting Thai kids to read in Thai.