Govt unveils after-class course details

[Horatio Hornblower]

Education Minister Dapong Ratanasuwan yesterday unveiled the curricula of new electives to be held during the school day after the government cut academic class hours.

Gen Dapong said he told the cabinet meeting yesterday that academic class hours will be cut from 30-35 hours a week to 22 hours a week for elementary schools and from 35 hours to 27 hours for secondary schools.

Under a pilot scheme to introduce elective courses, activities will be divided into three categories: encouraging learning capability, cultivating attributes and good values, and enhancing working and living skills, he said.

Each category contains 13 activities such as communication and thinking development, vocational training, use of technology and upholding the values of nation, religion and the monarchy, he said.

Gen Dapong said the plan would not affect the state's obligations to provide academic instruction to be assessed under the Ordinary National Education Test (O-Net).

At the end of the academic year students at Grade 6, Grade 9 and Grade 12 are required to assess academic proficiency under O-Net. He said the elective courses, likely to be held in the afternoons, would help develop children's learning skills.

Gen Dapong said currently around 2,948 schools nationwide are ready to launch the extra curricular classes. Teachers will attend workshops on the new courses organised by the Office of the Basic Education An outside body would then assess the project to make sure it was meeting its goals.

The general said if the pilot project succeeds, the extra classes would be introduced at all schools nationwide in the next academic year.

"In my view, a good education system has to comprise three aspects which are analysis, forging a positive attitude and boosting learning skills," he said, adding the electives should help achieve that goal.

Govt unveils after-class course details | Bangkok Post: news

[kmart]

Thai "Ministries" seem to have been titled by George Orwell. They are set up to actually counter what they are supposed to enable.

[Dapper]

upholding the values of nation

So new classes in ignorance, laziness, corruption and racism then?

[chassamui]

vocational training

Are they planning to restrict building trades to Thai only in the near future? Some of the plumbing and electrics I have witness in LOS are literally shocking.

[Latindancer]

academic class hours will be cut from 30-35 hours a week to 22 hours a week for elementary schools and from 35 hours to 27 hours for secondary schools.

That's quite a cut in hours. It will have serious effects.....no doubt about that.

[Bettyboo]

^ that's the point, isn't it. Thai education has never been good, but it has been slightly better than desired, so that'll need undoing to take us forward in to a happy feudal future....

The well-heeled will of course get themselves excellent educations. Have the PADites introduced who can vote yet? Will it be only families who can show proof that their children study more than 40 hours per week???

[bankao dreamer]

Well the roads are chock full of pupils now an hour earlier. Not many takers for after school activities. Thai social media is of the opinion that Internet cafes will be booming.

[Horatio Hornblower]

Anyone saw this in the Thai media, in Thai language.

[bankao dreamer]

The wife was telling me Thai FB comments regarding the cut in school hours that Internet cafes and short time establishments would reap the benefits.