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Thai primary students sweep up 33 medals at maths contest
The Nation

HONG KONG: -- A team of primary students is set to return from the Po Leung Kuk Primary Mathematics World Contest 2015 (PMWC2015) in Hong Kong with 18 prizes and 33 medals.

The contest, which kicked off on Sunday and will wrap up on July 17, had participants from 15 countries, namely Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, South Africa, the United States, Indonesia, India, Hong Kong, Bulgaria, China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Macau, Mongolia and Thailand.

Kamol Rodklai, chief of Office of Basic Education Commission (OBEC), said yesterday that the 16 students have claimed 33 medals so far.

In the individual category, Thailand won four gold medals, four silvers and five bronzes. The gold medallists were Worapas Meechitpaisan from the Bangkok Christian College, Wethit Kaljaras from Nakhon Ratchasima's Anuban Nakhonratchasima School, Arisara Jirachaikitti from Bangkok's Amnuay Silpa School and Paramat Samutsindhu from Siamsaamtri School.

In the team category, Thailand won three prizes and 12 medals. Two prizes and eight silver medals went to Bangkok Team A and the Nakhon Pathom team, while the consolation prize was given to Bangkok Team B.

Two prizes and eight medals were conferred to Thai teams for achieving the overall highest scores, with Bangkok Team A winning the first runners up prize and Team B winning the consolation prize.

China won the highest overall score this year.

"Thai student teams were also praised for their muay thai performance as part of the cultural exchange exhibit," he said.

Kamol went on to say that Obec was calling on students to join the four upcoming international competitions. They are a mathematics contest from July 25 to August 1, the Asia-Pacific mathematics Olympiad for high-school students from July 24-August 1 in China; the Asian Mathematics Olympiad for secondary school in Malaysia; and the mathematics and science contest for primary students in November in Thailand, he said.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Thai-primary-students-sweep-up-33-medals-at-maths--30264634.html

-- The Nation 2015-07-17

[Plutojames88]

Sadly the gap between Chinese Thais in up market schools and that of rural village kids struggling to tell the time , or figure out math (like tables ) , is all to evident.....to anyone visiting an area where a partner has friends with kids doing their homework .

The praise is still there ....but hardly representative of an education system where propaganda gets more careful consideration as does reworking historical events ...then 12.5 % expressed as a fraction.

But they know 87% of people approve of the junta .

Edited July 16, 2015 by Plutojames88

[bangkokfrog]

I know some kids aspiring to this competition and feel sorry for them. They are wonderfully talented but pushed by parents, teachers and peer pressure to work incredibly long hours at the expense of a normal childhood. So sad, but congratulations to all who took part whether they won a medal or not.

[sammygood]

one medal for attendance

one medal for write down their name correctly

one medal for being on time

one medal for no ink stains

[monkey4u]

The rest of the school children have been declared a wasted space

[Manbing]

It would seem they got the key gongs for this competition:)

[godden]

sorry can't go with this story after seeing young Thais using a calculator to add 50 and 50.

[Down the rabbit hole]

Sadly the gap between Chinese Thais in up market schools and that of rural village kids struggling to tell the time , or figure out math (like tables ) , is all to evident.....to anyone visiting an area where a partner has friends with kids doing their homework .

The praise is still there ....but hardly representative of an education system where propaganda gets more careful consideration as does reworking historical events ...then 12.5 % expressed as a fraction.

But they know 87% of people approve of the junta .

Not really. 87% of the people asked approved of the junta, but only about 1300 people are ever asked in Thai surveys,. and we have no way of assessing them because we don't know who they are or how they were 'selected'.

The population of TL is 65m (including non-voters, children etc), so the sample is about 0.002%, a statistically irrelevant sample even though non-eligible-to-vote people are included. There is never any data supplied as to how those picked were picked, what the demographics of the sample were or anything else.

Thais are expert at cheating if you don't look too closely, and the numbers they use are routinely fraudulent or rubbery. Surveys like Nida and Dusit are worth nothing, zip, nada, not a damn thing, the square root of zero.

Edited July 17, 2015 by Down the rabbit hole

[Kannikapor88]

sorry can't go with this story after seeing young Thais using a calculator to add 50 and 50.

not only young thais - they all do it ... Amazing Thailand

[ttthailand]

33 Medals out of how many possible ?

[Emster23]

I did some remedial teaching of my gf last weekend, as she had screwed up figuring percentage cost at work. She went to regular school, is not stupid, but it was quickly apparent she was not taught any concepts or explanation of what the processes of math are. Had to get some coins out to demonstrate just what division is, she never learned to convert % to decimal, could not do decimal multiplication such as 2.09 x 6.37... she learned quickly, but OMG so many years wasted in rote learning without understanding. Jesus wept.

[DLang]

Congratulations to them.

And to the local Toyota Hilux dealer when the teachers are put in charge of the prize money.

[jerojero]

The Thais exceeded the US?

[ksamuiguy]

Congratulations, great job representing The Kingdom.

Best of luck for your futures.

[jerojero]

Participation medals. Whoopee.