|
Administrative
Structure
The
major government and private organizations which are directly or
indirectly involved in the development and implementation of
education include the Ministry of Education, the National
Education Commission, and the Ministry of University Affairs.
They are entrusted with planning, administering, and
coordinating the national education. Almost all formal and non-formal
education is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education.
However, specialized schools such as the Border Patrol Police
schools of the Police Department and schools operated by the
Office of the Bangkok Metropolitan Education Commission are
operated by departments within the Ministry of Interior. The
Office of the National Primary Education Commission handles the
largest percentage (63.5%) of students in the overall education
system. The remainder are the responsibility of the Private
Education Commission (PEC) and the Department of General
Education.
Non-formal
Education
Adult
education was introduced in Thailand in 1940 in an attempt to
educate those excluded from the school population. Educational
programs offered stress both literacy [level 1-4] and vocational
skills and can be found throughout the country.
Special
training services are also provided for low-income groups in
urban and rural areas, new labor market entrants, the unemployed,
and certain categories of people such as ex-convicts, homeless,
and sexually-exploited persons who require skills to make them
active contributors to society.
Special
and Welfare Education
Special
education refers to the provision of education for all kinds of
disabled and handicapped children, including the deaf, the blind,
and the mentally retarded, while welfare education caters to the
culturally and socially handicapped such as hilltribe children,
slum children, and children of lepers. To ensure that such
children receive an equal opportunity in education, and
education suitable for their abilities, special schools and
welfare schools equipped with special educational programs and
facilities have been established throughout the country.
Vocational
Schools and Specialized Institutes
Seeing
the necessity to adapt the educational system to the development
and labor needs of the country, vocational educational and
training has been given much promotion. Various types of courses
and training programs are offered and administered by the
Department of Vocational Education and the Institute of
Technology and Vocational Education.
There
are eight levels of studies programmed to suit the student's
previous academic background, ranging from the semi-skilled
level, offered to students who have completed the lower
secondary level, to technical teacher training programs[degree
level], open to holders of Higher Certificates in Technical
Education with high academic records and a desire to become
technical teachers in colleges and vocational training centers.
Teacher
education has undergone various changes since 1892, when the
teacher training school for elementary school teachers was
founded. In the 1960's a larger number of teacher training
institutions were established to meet an urgent demand for more
teachers. This expansion was precipitated by three major factors:
the extension of compulsory education, population growth, and
the availability of secondary education to a lager population.
The attention that has been paid to expanding teacher education
was evident in the dramatic increase in teacher. However, this
effort was concentrated on the quantitative rather than on the
qualitative. At present there is concern about improving the
quality of the teacher education programs. |
