Thai schools
- Covid-19 News
As schools prepare to reopen, Thai officials discuss Covid-19 regulations
Thai health and education officials held a meeting yesterday to plan Covid-19 regulations, as the new school semester is right around the corner. Schools are expected to reopen on May 17. Officials from the Ministry of Public Health and Ministry of Education discussed how day schools and boarding schools alike will prevent and minimise any rebound of Covid-19. Both types…
- Covid-19 News
PM calls on schools to implement strict Covid safety measures on re-opening
The Thai PM, Prayut Chan-o-cha, has instructed the Education Ministry to ensure schools are equipped to manage Covid-19 when they re-open. According to government spokesman, Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana, the PM wants education facilities to implement strict Covid-19 prevention measures when they re-open on May 17. According to a Nation Thailand report, the measures include: • Conducting regular checks on the virus…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand’s Prayut urges schools to follow Covid-19 measures
Ahead of the upcoming new school semester, Thailand’s PM Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday called on schools to follow so-called ‘6-6-7’ safety measures for Covid-19. The first six measures of the plan include well known precautions such as social distancing, wearing masks, washing hands, and temperature checks. The next six measures include school check-in and check-out, surveys and examinations, and self-quarantine. The…
- Covid-19 News
Officials say no need to close schools with Covid cases, measures already in place
A Public Health Ministry official says there’s no need to close schools where Covid-19 infections are found as effective measures are already in place. According to a Bangkok Post report, Sumanee Wacharasin says nearly all schools have passed a Covid-19 control evaluation, which checks their disease prevention measures. Furthermore, 95% of students over the age of 12 have now received…
- Covid-19 News
School students could see return to online learning due to Omicron variant
The Office of Basic Education Commission says schools could end up returning to online learning as a result of the highly-contagious Omicron variant. However, the commission says that decision will be left up to individual education areas and provinces. OBEC boss Amporn Pinasa says some schools may decide to move to online learning for a week after the New Year…
- Northern Thailand News
Schools closed in north-east as shared transport blamed for Covid-19 outbreak
A Covid-19 outbreak has closed 2 schools in the north-eastern province of Ubon Ratchathani, with students and teachers quarantined. According to a Thai PBS World report, provincial health officials are blaming shared school vans for the spread of the virus. 24 students have tested positive and 295 other students and their teachers have been quarantined for observation. It’s understood a…
- Education
A snapshot of Thai government schools’ curriculum
Thailand’s young learners have access to cheap or free education through government-sponsored schools. Also known as public schools, the curriculum is determined by the country’s Ministry of Education. As Thailand is a theocracy, the Buddhist practises that are recognised by the government are also taught at public schools. At the elementary level, students are taught 8 core subjects each semester.…
- Covid-19 News
On-site learning resumes in over 10,000 Thai schools, another 20,000 to follow
Over 10,000 schools across the country have resumed in-classroom learning, with another 20,000 to follow. Dr Suwanchai Wattanayingcharoenchai from the Department of Health says over 35,000 schools around Thailand have met the Public Health Ministry’s requirements for a safe re-opening. However, under the “Thai Stop Covid Plus” assessment system, final approval needs to come from the communicable disease committee in…
- Covid-19 News
Education ministry to accelerate vaccination of over 200,000 teachers
All vocational and secondary school students should be fully vaccinated by November 15 and the vaccination of 210,000 teachers is being accelerated ahead of schools re-opening. So says Suphat Champatong from the Education Ministry, adding that the government has taken delivery of 3 vaccine types – viral vector, live attenuated, and inactivated. In a Bangkok Post report, Suphat says the…
- Covid-19 News
Education Ministry confirms timeline of vaccine rollout for school students
Thailand’s Education Ministry has confirmed the timeline for vaccinating school students ahead of a planned November re-opening of both state and private schools. Yesterday, Supat Jampathong from the ministry chaired a conference call between senior government officials, school district staff, schools, and educational facilities. According to a Bangkok Post report, those in attendance discussed the timeline of the vaccine rollout…
- Covid-19 News
On-site learning to resume in November, subject to students being vaccinated
The Education Minister says schools can re-open for in-classroom learning from November 1, provided enough students are vaccinated. Addressing a press conference, Treenuch Thienthong confirmed the plan to re-open schools following consultation with health officials and the interior ministries. According to the minister, the re-opening hinges on the rollout of Pfizer vaccine doses, which will be offered to students between…
- Covid-19 News
UNICEF says ongoing closure of schools is affecting child development
The United Nations Children’s Fund says many young children are missing the milestone of their first day at school as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. According to a Bangkok Post report, UNICEF says ongoing school closures risk harming children’s development and mental health. UNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore says countless children have already missed out on months of face-to-face…
- Covid-19 News
Unused Thai schools to be transformed into field hospitals as infections surge
Empty or unused school buildings across Thailand are to be converted into field hospitals as Covid-19 cases surge and the hospital bed crisis continues. Amporn Pinasa from the Office of the Basic Education Commission has issued an order for all unused buildings to be repurposed as makeshift field hospitals to increase the number of treatment facilities available. With hospitals in…
- Covid-19 News
Online learning only for schools in Bangkok and other dark red provinces
The government’s Covid-19 task force says students at schools in Bangkok and other dark red provinces will not have on-site classes while infection rates remain high. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration says online learning will be used in 4 central provinces when schools re-open on June 14: Bangkok, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, and Samut Prakan. So far, the third wave…
- Thailand News
Thailand’s first female Education Minister targets bullying in schools
Thailand’s first female education minister is targetting bullying in schools as part of 3 policies she says she will start implementing today. Trinuch Thienthong, an MP from the coalition – core Palang Pracharath Party, says she will promote safety at schools, access to digital resources and knowledge and campaign for vocational education. Trinuch says Thailand’s schools, must be free of…
- Thailand News
Research shows home-learning causes 50% drop in mathematical ability among Thai students
Research shows that online learning causes a 50% drop in mathematical comprehension, and a 30% drop in reading literacy among Thai students. Research presented by the government’s Equitable Education Fund indicates that months of home-learning cannot match in-school study and in fact, can cause a deterioration in students’ ability. With schools currently closed in 28 Thai provinces, thousands of children…
- Covid-19 News
Over 10,000 schools to close across Thailand in bid to curb virus spread
Over 10,000 schools, in at least 28 Thai provinces, are to close until January 31 and switch to online learning, in an effort to curtail the spread of the Covid-19 virus. The Kingdom is in the grip of a resurgence after months of no local transmission. On the southern resort island of Phuket, Governor Narong Woonciew has ordered all schools…
- Covid-19 News
Schools closed in 28 Thai provinces
Thailand’s Ministry of Education is closing all schools in 28 ‘highly controlled red zone’ provinces until January 31, or until further notice. The statement was released over the weekend and applies to all education institutions and both “informal and formal, public or private” schools. Parents should contact their schools to find out about alternative online teaching arrangements for affected schools. Here’s…
- Thailand News
Report highlights glaring disparity among school-age children in Thailand
A report carried out by the National Statistical Office in collaboration with UNICEF has highlighted the significant inequality between children of school-going age in Thailand. Nation Thailand reports that, while students rallied outside the Education Ministry in Bangkok earlier this week, calling for reforms that include an end to strict uniform requirements, the biggest hurdle they face continues to be…
- Thailand Protest News
#ByeByeDinosaurs – Jurassic Park comes to Bangkok’s streets
Jurassic Park meets Bangkok politics. Some students attending yesterday’s Bad Student protest in Bangkok dressed in dinosaur costumes to represent Thailand’s establishment. The high school-aged students are joining in the calls for the Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to resign and reform of the Thai monarchy. They are also demanding reform of Thailand’s education system and an end to sexual abuse…
- Thailand News
Thai students rank highest for social awareness, weak on view of different cultures
A global survey carried out the by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development reveals that Thai students are highly attuned to social issues compared to students of other countries. However, they fare less well when it comes to respecting and viewing foreign cultures as equal. Nation Thailand reports that the OECD findings are based on a 2018 survey of…
- Thailand Protest News
Education ministry says curriculum revamp will promote analytical thinking over rote learning
As anti-government sentiment among Thailand’s student population shows no sign of abating, the Education Ministry says it plans to overhaul the Basic Education Core Curriculum to provide students with a better understanding of political developments in the Kingdom between 1932 and 1957. Supat Chumpathong says the new curriculum will also place more of a focus on analytical thinking, instead of…
- Crime News
Parents press ahead with class-action against school at centre of abuse claims
A school in the central province of Nonthaburi is facing a class-action lawsuit from parents, amid allegations of abuse at the facility. The claims originally came to light when a teacher was captured on CCTV physically abusing students in her care. In the footage, Ornuma Plodprong, aka, “Khru Jum”, can be seen repeatedly hitting students, pushing one to the floor,…
- Northern Thailand News
Khon Kaen school director accused of sexually abusing students
5 students in the north-eastern province of Khon Kaen are accusing the director of Ban Thung Mon School, in the district of Ban Phai, of sexual abuse. The girls have filed an official police complaint, with the assistance of Pawanamporn Thaewnon-ngiew, a teacher at the school. The Bangkok Post reports she accompanied them to the police station after they confided…
- Thailand News
The myth of native English speaking teachers in Thailand – OPINION
OPINION from guest writer Dr. Mariano Carrera There is a myth in Thailand that one must learn English from a native speaker. Propagating this myth are the many beneficiaries of the practice, which does not include learners. Ignoring research that shows to learn English, one does not need a native English speaker (NES) only emphasises the myth-makers dominance. After all,…
- Thailand News
Thailand News Today | Business people exemptions, road checkpoints, Phuket delay | October 6
Daily TV news on The Thaiger. Up to date information, delivered to you, free. Thai government considers easing restrictions for foreign business travellers The Thai government is considering further easing entry restrictions for foreign travellers coming to conduct business in the Kingdom. Up to date, around 11,000 businesspeople and work permit holders have been granted entry by the Centre for…
- Thailand News
7 foreign teachers found working illegally at Sarasas school
The Sarasas private school network continues to find itself in hot water, with revelations that 7 foreign teachers at one school have been working illegally. All 7 have been found to be employed without work permits at Sarasas Witaed Sainoi Pitiyakarn School, in the central province of Nonthaburi, around half an hour outside central Bangkok. All 42 Sarasas schools are…
- Thailand News
Minister calls for all complaints against Sarasas schools to be monitored amid abuse allegations
The Education Minister, Nataphol Teepsuwan, is asking the Office of the Private Education Commission to closely monitor all complaints filed against all Sarasas Witaed School branches around the country. Nation Thailand reports that 34 out of 42 have had complaints filed against them. Allegations of abuse first emerged when the actions of an abusive teacher at a branch of the…
- Politics News
Student representatives accuse teachers of bullying, call on Education Ministry to act
Student groups have met with officials at the Thai Education Ministry and submitted a letter urging the ministry to take action against teachers they accuse of intimidation. The students say they are being bullied for expressing their political views at school. There’s been an outbreak of student involvement in the pro-democracy voices in the country. It has spread from the…
- Politics News
Education commission says students can protest, but must remain vigilant over Covid risks
After students at a number of high schools around the country used the flag-raising ceremony to flash a 3 finger salute in solidarity with political protesters, the Office of the Basic Education Commission is weighing in on the matter. OBEC is writing to schools at the request of Anek Laothamatas, the Minister for Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation. The…
- Politics News
School pupils show solidarity with anti-government protests – VIDEO
At high schools across Thailand, pupils have used the daily flag-raising ceremony to show their solidarity with anti-government activists. A report in Khaosod English says pupils in at least 10 schools wore white ribbons and held up three fingers, in what is widely recognised as an anti-military gesture. The students’ actions have been captured in photos and video, which have…
- Education
Opposition party threatened with boycott over comments about “haircut” teacher
The president of The Association of Secondary School Administrators says the group will boycott the Kao Klai party unless one of its members apologises for comments he made about the teacher at the centre of the “ugly haircut” debacle. In a report in Thai PBS World, Ratchachai Sornsuwan calls Wirote Lakhana-adisorn’s comments offensive and demands an apology. The MP has…
- Education
Teacher made to apologise after forcing student to undergo “ugly” haircut
A teacher who forced a pupil to submit to a haircut when he deemed her hair too long, has been reprimanded and made to apologise. The unnamed teacher is accused of humiliating the young girl by chopping off her hair in front of other pupils during assembly, leaving her with one side dramatically shorter than the other. The incident took…
- Covid-19 News
Government prepares for safe reopening of schools on July 1
Officials from Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health are working closely with the Education Ministry to facilitate the safe reopening of schools on July 1. There has been recent debate if the schools system would be ready by that date. The rollout of online learning has only been since Monday this week, with early bugs being ironed out and teachers, and…
- Covid-19 News
Thai virus expert says careful consideration needed before reopening schools
Thailand’s chief virologist Dr. Yong Poovorawan, from the Faculty of Medicine at Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University, says reopening the country’s schools should not be a political decision. Instead, he says it should be based on science, with consideration given to the risks involved, and adequate safety measures put in place. Thai PBS World reports that Dr Yong says that while most…
- Education
Online learning system to support re-opening of schools
Thailand’s Ministry of Education is launching an online learning system designed as a back-up in the event that the re-opening of schools is deemed unsafe. With Thaialnd’s schools set to reopen their doors from July 1, a televised and online system is being tested to supplement children’s learning. The new system, set to be tested next Monday, May 18, will…
- Thailand News
3 solutions to Thailand’s English teacher shortage
by Eric Haeg Thailand needs 10,000 English teachers. News of a teacher shortage is no surprise, but news that the Ministry of Education has recently urged embassies to find English teachers has raised eyebrows. The US Embassy confirmed it participated in the meeting, and it has also been reported that over 20 other embassies participated in the discussions. According to Thailand’s…
