A model for others

[reader]

From The News Hour - US PBS (6 Feb.)

How this Thai educational movement empowers rural students

More and more in Thailand, rural students learn in traditional classrooms, but with an emphasis on hands-on activities. The idea is to empower young villagers to bring economic development to their communities, as well as learn leadership, empathy and compassion. Special correspondent Fred de Sam Lazaro returns to Thailand to talk with the man leading the effort there.

It's not something you typically see in a Thai public school. There's dancing, games and paper-making. And the teachers on this day were visiting students from a unique nearby high school.

It's part of a new approach the government is seeking to expand across Thailand. It's begun with an initial 180 schools, and is based on the nonprofit 7-12 grade Mechai Bamboo School named after its founder, Mechai Viravaidya.

The Bamboo School was started nine years ago in rural Eastern Thailand as a way to inspire young villagers to bring economic development to their communities.

On a typical day, students might be performing for patients at a nearby hospital. That's after handing out meals they had prepared at the school kitchen using produce grown in the school garden. Students do learn in traditional classrooms, but the emphasis is hands-on.

The Bamboo School was started nine years ago in rural Eastern Thailand as a way to inspire young villagers to bring economic development to their communities.

On a typical day, students might be performing for patients at a nearby hospital. That's after handing out meals they had prepared at the school kitchen using produce grown in the school garden. Students do learn in traditional classrooms, but the emphasis is hands-on.

Continues with video

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/how-this-thai-educational-movement-empowers-rural-students

 

[reader]

The Thai public school a reputation for adhering to a strict rote learning approach to education. News about the this innovative project (and he one in the previous post) I find encouraging.

From Channel News Asia

Can ‘alternative schools’ revolutionise Thai education and improve children's capabilities?

HUAY PAN, Thailand: The school children of Huay Pan are getting ready for their afternoon lesson where they will be taught about water.

There is nothing particularly unusual about what their teacher has got planned for them, with one exception. The classroom will be the Nan River, a 740-km tributary that flows through their little village in one of the most remote parts in northern Thailand.

Eight students aged between six and 14 swim to a clearing on the muddy riverbank. They sit in a circle with their teacher and discuss what they have to find out during the class.

“Today, we’ll learn how to find food in the river. Do you see what your parents are doing in the water behind you?” Saranporn “Mon” Ratsiwo asks her students. 

“Fishing!” they all reply.

“Your parents will be your teachers this afternoon. So, let’s find out what methods they use to catch fish and what else we can find in the water besides fish, shrimps and seaweed. There may be other things in there,” the teacher says to her excited pupils.

The class moves into the river. Young children hold their parent’s hand as they walk on slippery river rocks while the older ones dash past with fishnets and swimming goggles. 

Hands-on experience in outdoor classes forms a significant part of teaching and learning at the Huay Pan Learning Centre – the only school that is easily accessible by the village children, who would otherwise have to travel up to 120 kilometres to get a basic education.

Unlike Thai mainstream schools, the Huay Pan Learning Centre offers ‘alternative education’ to children from kindergarten to junior high school. Its curriculum not only covers the core subjects laid out by the Education Ministry but also incorporates lessons on issues that directly impact the village such as soil, water, forest and food security. 

Even more unusual when compared with mainstream schools, the Huay Pan Learning centre offers its students a say in what they are taught. Children get to choose what they want to learn and do not have to sit exams. Evaluation takes place throughout the academic year and marks are accumulated through project work. 

As for teachers, they are not lecturers but rather mentors who design an active learning environment and ask questions designed to trigger students’ curiosity. 

“Traditional education in Thailand is like learning in a small square room. But here, our students learn from first-hand experiences in their environment. They learn by seeing and touching real things, and that brings happiness to the learning process," Mon told CNA.

Continues with photos and video

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/alternative-school-education-helps-students-in-thailand-11570494