WORLDSKILLS
Young Thais score big for their trade skills in Brazil
Pratch Rujivanarom
The Nation


Goldmedal winner Kittinan Sornsongkhram, left, and Suparat Rattanapan pose at the 43rd WorldSkills Competition in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Photo credit By Ministry of Labour

SAO PAULO: -- TWO YOUNG Thais won gold and bronze prizes, while 10 other Thai competitors received certificates at the 43rd WorldSkills Competition in the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo.

Kittinan Sornsongkhram, a competitor on turning skills, won the sole gold medal for Thailand in this year's event. The bronze-medal winner was Suparat Rattanapan, who won for his welding skills.

The other 10 certificates were awarded to Thai competitors on restaurant services, mechatronics, polymechanics and automation, wall and floor tiling, cooking, hairdressing, fashion technology, refrigeration and air-conditioning, graphic-design technology and beauty therapy.

The Thai winners will fly back home tomorrow. The gold-medal winner will receive Bt300,000 in cash from the Labour Ministry's Skill Development Department, while the bronze-medal winner will receive Bt100,000 and the skill certificates awardees will get Bt50,000.

Labour Minister Surasak Karnjanarat said during the visit to the venue in Brazil last Wednesday that the WorldSkills Competition was a chance for Thai youth to prove their expertise and show the world that our young people's skills are of an international standard.

Brazilian Education Minister Renato Janine Ribeiro said vocational education was very important for Brazil's economic development and this competition helped boost productivity and economy in his country.

"Vocational education is a new culture. [its] importance is growing, and there is a lot of room for growth in our country," he said. "If we invest properly in education for children and teenagers, we will improve even more."

The WorldSkills Competition is the world's largest professional education event and is held every two years.

This year, 59 countries sent participants to the three-day competition to find the best young people from around the world in their profession.

Fifty vocational skills were open for the competition this year.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Young-Thais-score-big-for-their-trade-skills-in-Br-30266756.html


-- The Nation 2015-08-18

Good on them, there are not enough skilled tradesmen/women in this country. They were obviously not the guys who worked on my house

Non of the tradies or the handymen I had ever working with us or for us would be awarded any medal any

time soon.. not for skills, nor for aptitude or diligence, I can think of other dubious qualification they CAN

win medals hands down though ....

The greatest vocational education and skills excellence Competition in the world

Held every two years, the WorldSkills Competition is the world's largest professional education event. Competitors from over 50 countries and regions in the Americas, Europe, Asia, South Pacific and Africa simulate real work challenges that must be completed to international standards of quality. They demonstrate individual and collective technical skills to perform specific tasks for each of the professional skills.

http://www.worldskillssaopaulo2015.com/en/competition/about/

Give credit where credit is due.

Well done.

"So we can assume Brazilian tradesmen are not good"

A highly necessary contribution to the topic of young Thai people doing something good. If my seven year old son comes home and tells me he won a drawing competition at school for his Iron Man drawing....I would of course turn around and tell him its <deleted>....because it isn't as good a picture of Iron man as I could draw.

There is virtually zero support for Thai youth to learn anything at even a basic level of competence, let alone at an international level of expertise.

The gold medalists have a lot to be proud of.

Congratulations, Farangs and Thai's, as society evolves, expect better technical skills, from the trades people that work

on their projects. With the evolution in electronics and materials, trained technicians are more and more in demand,

and required. One negative comment is that attitude has to evolve too. Tradesmen on the local level are not good

finishers, and will walk away as the going gets tough, whether it be the customer or the project. In trade school customer

relationships needs to be taught, as well as ability for self learning, through the internet.. Finishing the job, so that it

looks professional and well working will be rewarded in references and additional work. It is great that they did so well

in international competition, and it is hoped that they form a role model for the younger trades people coming up,

and that the government does some good PR, in the same mode as an athletes are treated.

Congratulations to these two young gentlemen, their families must be very proud and happy today.

These twelve people who won medals and certificates, are a beacon of hope and an inspiration for all young Thai people. I hope that this story reaches the eyes and ears of everyone here, and inspires them to know that they all have so much potential success in future, with enough devotion and discipline. Being gifted is nice, but it is no substitute for hard work and dedication, and never giving up on your dreams.

These fellows must relocate because, in 11 years here, I've not met up with one person with " Trade Skills " ! Maybe

they are Chinese ringers ?

Will they get work or will the Burmese get the jobs.