Transana Training Sessions / Pictures

Visit of IRD Representative - Pictures

The representative of the IRD in Thailand, Dr. Régine Lefait-Robin, visited the CELS on Friday 13th November 2009.

Training Sessions / Transana

The CELS has held two training sessions on how to analyse video-taped research material using the software Transana:

18-20 November 2009 at Lampang Rajabhat University
Participants from Uttaradit, Chiang Mai and Petchaboon

24-26 November 2009 at Udon Thani Rajabhat University
Participants from Sakhon Nakhon

Some figures regarding the blog

This blog was launched one year ago.

Every month, the CELS blog is in average visited by 120 persons.

Every day, the blog welcomes 4 readers.

The most uploaded publication is CELS Working Papers No5.

Thanks for following up the CELS activities!

Coming soon...

Silkworm Books will soon be releasing the result of a long-lasting, fascinating CELS research programme: the book "Education and Knowledge in Thailand. The Quality Controversy".

Their website presents it with the following details:

If an observer asked today whether Thailand is becoming a “knowledge-based society”, the reply might be yes—provided that the country continues to invest in the education of her citizens.

Yet the authors of this book take a strongly critical view of Thai education. Investing more money in education is certainly essential, but it will not automatically lead to a knowledge-based society. On the contrary, they say, current changes in policy and approach are actually moving Thai education away from transmitting and producing knowledge and scholarship, away from developing and honing individual abilities to think and learn. This failure parallels world trends: the uncontrolled and unbalanced increase in enrolment; the interference by political and economic interests in the orientation and management of educational institutions; and the commodification of education—in particular, privatisation, internationalisation and vocationalism. These symptoms are diagnostic of the so-called diploma disease which pervades the system. Public policymakers in Thailand are unfortunately too quick to compromise and may be unable to reverse this trajectory.

To overcome obstacles to a quality education, a society must place the transmission and production of knowledge at the core of the educational endeavour, genuinely and authentically, without making concessions to lesser aims and rationales. This commitment would give present and future Thai students the skills and abilities they need to master their own future and contribute to the destiny of the nation.

The book is a lively interplay between theory and well-documented facts. It offers a quantitative and qualitative analysis which is fundamental to understanding the overall situation of Thai education, to advancing the debate on educational quality and to charting a course for the future. It will appeal widely to educators, students, parents, academics, researchers and policymakers who are concerned about the state of education in Thailand.

Highlights

• An original and critical scientific analysis of the Thai education system in historical and comparative perspectives
• A critical look at the 1999 Education Reform
• A comprehensive survey of education theories
• The first study of education in Thailand using field data from the last half-century
• A detailed analysis of the determinants of educational quality
• An analysis of current impediments to educational quality
  

Visit of IRD Representative

On Friday 13th Nov. 2009, the representative of the IRD in Thailand, Ms.Régine Lefait-Robin, will visit the CELS regarding the JEAI research programme (JEAI stands for "Jeunes Equipes Associées à l'IRD" - Young research teams associated with IRD).

Training Sessions / Transana - some pictures

Last week, the CELS successfully organised training sessions on the use of Transana software at Sakon Nakhon, Udon Thani, Uttaradit and Lampang Rajabhat universities.

Each of them was in average attended by 15 participants.

Participants were elementary school teachers, supervisors from Educational Service Area and from Thesaban, as well as professors from Faculty of Education and research centers of Rajabhat Universities.

Training Sessions / Transana

This week, Dr Phasina Tangchuang and Dr. Alain Mounier are leading training sessions on the use of Transana software in Sakhon Nakhon, Udon Thani, Uttaradit and Lampang Rajabhat Universities.

Transana is a qualitative analysis software designed for professional researchers to analyse digital video or audio data. More info on the software on their official website.

Presentation of Dr. Phasina - 2009 Council on Thai Studies Conference / NIU

On October 23-24, Dr. Phasina Tangchuang attended the 2009 Council on Thai Studies Conference held by the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Northern Illinois University (USA). There were around 70 participants from American universities (i.e. Wisconsin University, Ohio University, Southern Illinois University), from Australia, the UK and Thailand.

Many participants were professors but also PhD students who had just defended their dissertation. Topics presented were of different kinds: Religion, Social issues, Economics, Politics, Language, Education and Concentration. All of them were of course related to Thai studies.

Dr. Phasina made a well-documented presentation entitled "Globalization and Traditionalism: A Case of Northern Thailand", based on field works carried out as part of his research work within the CELS. The audience showed deep interest and asked many questions.

Workshops 18-20 and 24-26 November 2009

With the assistance of two experts from France (Université Lumière Lyon 2), Dr. Andrée Tiberghien and Dr. Sylvie Coppé, Dr. Alain Mounier and Ajan Phasina Tangchuang will lead two 3-day workshops.

The subject of the workshops is the use of Transana programme for video transforming and for classroom video analysis and reflection to Pratoom 4 Mathematics teachers.

The details are the following.

18-20 November 2009 at Lampang Rajabhat University
Participants from Uttaradit, Chiang Mai and Petchaboon
Limit: 20 particpants

24-26 November 2009 at Udon Thani Rajabhat University
Particpants from Sakhon Nakhon
Limit: 20 participants

Participants are video-taped Pratoom 4 Mathematics teachers, Rajabhat University professors, supervisors from Thesaban and Provincial Education Service Area.

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Programme

Day 1: Didactic of mathematics and analysis of lesson plan videos
09:00 - 12:00 Introduction to didactic
13:30 - 16:00 Analysis of lesson plan videos

Day 2: Didactic of mathematics and analysis of classroom videos
09:00 - 12:00 Analysis of classroom videos
13:30 - 16:00 Analysis of classroom videos (continued)

Day 3: Comparing analyses and research reports
09:00 - 12:00 Some methods of comparison
13:30 - 15:30 Prospects: Organising a video database for the research network

Training Sessions / Transana Programme

Please note that the CELS will hold the following training sessions on how to use Transana Programme.

• 2nd and 3rd November 2009: Drs. Alain Mounier and Phasina Tangchuang will go to Sakhon Nakhon and Udon Thani Rajabhat Universities to hold a workshop training on how to use Transana Programme for video transforming and interpretation. Attendants will be professors from Rajabhat University and supervisors from Thesaban and Provincial Education Service Area. The workshop will be organised as a one-day session in each Rajabhat university. Attendance will be limited to ten participants per workshop.

• 5th and 6th November 2009: Drs. Alain Mounier and Phasina Tangchuang will lead the same training sessions in Uttaradit and Lampang Rajabhat Universities.
  

Pictures from field work

Videorecording of a teaching session. The record was made in a small-sized rural elementary school in Chiang Mai.

Videorecording during a teaching session. The videotape was done in a small-sized elementary school in Lampang.

OP 11 Education, Economy and Identity Ten Years of Educational Reform in Thailand

The CELS is proud to announce the release of the Occasional Paper published together with the IRASEC.

Irasec – Occasional Paper n°11, September 2009, 114 p.

ISBN : 978-61616-90282-0-83

Abstract:

The last educational reform in Thailand, starting in 1999, has tried to balance two challenges: safeguarding the Thai culture and identity, and ensuring a solid basis for Thailand in a world economy oriented towards knowledge-based and high-tech goals.
Policy-makers have put the stress on strengthening “Thai local wisdom” and this has been put in practise through the obligation for schools to develop a local curriculum. This curriculum shall represent 30% of the overall teaching hours. This provision epitomises the search for a balanced schooling system, between indigenous wisdom, global knowledge and employability.
The other dimension of the reform has been to secure Thailand’s position in a context of high value-added industrialisation. Policy-makers have put the stress on the development of vocational and technical education, and cooperative education programmes. Their goals in terms of labour force training improvements have proved difficult to achieve.

The Editors:

Audrey BARON-GUTTY (Université de Lyon, Institut d’Asie Orientale) is a PhD Student in Political Science. Her thesis deals with the impact of globalisation on the making and implementation of national educational policies, with a special focus on Thailand and its educational reform launched in 1999. She was sponsored for two years by the IRASEC to carry out her field work and the CELS (Centre for Education and Labour Studies), based at Chiang Mai University, provided her with institutional support.

Supat CHUPRADIT (CELS, Faculty of Education, Chiang Mai University) is a PhD student in Research and Development in Education. His thesis topic deals with dual vocational training in vocational and technical institutions in Thailand, and its role in skills and knowledge formation and transmission. He has taken part in CELS-conducted research projects, including the one funded by NRCT (National Research Council of Thailand) on education and poverty.

The Contributors:
Audrey BARON-GUTTY, Chitrlada BURAPHARAT, Kwanchewan BUADAENG, Supat CHUPRADIT, Prasit LEEPREECHA

Follow the links for more details and free download in PDF format.

CELS activities - update

Phasina Tangchuang will present a paper at the annual Council on Thai Studies (COTS) that will be held on October 23-24, 2009 at Northern Illinois University, DeKalb Illinois (USA).

Here are some details:

Globalization and Traditionalism: a Case of Northern Thailand
Phasina Tangchuang, Centre for Education and Labour Studies, Chiang Mai University

The theme of the council this year is: Thailand's Reponse to Globalization: Globalization vs. Traditionalism.

More information and detailed programme can be found here, on the Center for Southeast Asian Studies website.

Blog / CELS researcher

Phasina Tangchuang, researcher at the CELS, has launched his blog. It presents some of the papers he has published so far.

Please visit it at http://phasina-cels.blogspot.com/

This week...

The CELS will be conducting some field work in Uttaradit and Lampang provinces.

It deals with the NRCT project (Education and Poverty) and the CELS-JEAI programme.

Some pictures from the field research (2)

Interview rural area wickerworkers / Ngew Subdistrict, Sakhon Nakhon Province, 2nd June 2009










Interview of a group of farmers producing organic fertilizer for their own farms









At Milk Cow Farm

Some pictures from the field research

Interview of Mathematics Teachers
Thesaban, Sakhon Nakhon, 3rd June 2009







VDO Taping at Sakhon Nakhon 4th June 2009

Planned CELS activities for the following weeks

From 25^th May to 5^th June 2009, Phasina Tangchuang, Ben Kittikhun and Visarut Tangchuang will go to Udorn Thani and Sakon Nakhon provinces to fulfil the JEAI-CELS and NRCT research programmes.

Their research activities during these two weeks will include:

1) Interviewing around 150-200 poor workers, from different occupations in various villages, sub-districts and districts in these 2 provinces, to back up the CELS research programme studying the links between education and poverty.

2) Studying the context of education by focusing on schools. Around 10 teachers from each school (4 schools per province) will be interviewed.

3) Observing mathematics teachers, from different schools, preparing lesson plans (and sharing their experiences) on Multiplication and Division for the 4th grade students. Teachers will be video-recorded when preparing lesson plans; in-depth interviews will be conducted to study their professional and individual backgrounds. The recorded materials will then be used to allow analysis using Transana Programme by researchers from CELS and involved Rajabhat Universities, and also supporting experts from University Lumière-Lyon 2 (France).

From 15^th to 27^th June, the CELS team will carry out the same tasks but in Uttaradit and Lampang provinces.

New documents available at CELS - April 2009

New documents have been made available at CELS Documentation Centre.

Click here for the list.

Opening hours of the Documentation Centre: 9am-4pm, do not hesitate to pop in!

Presentation of CELS (Thai version)

ศูนย์วิจัยเพื่อการศึกษาและแรงงาน(CELS) ย่อมาจากคำเต็ม the Centre for Education and Labour Studies ก่อตั้งโดยความร่วมมือระหว่างคณะศึกษาศาสตร์ มหาวิทยาลัยเชียงใหม่ และสถาบันวิจัยฝรั่งเศส IRD (Institut de Recherche sur le Développement) เมื่อปี 2002 โดยมีเป้าหมายเพื่อสร้างเสริมศักยภาพการวิจัยระดับอุดมศึกษา ในด้านการเรียนการสอนรวมถึงการพัฒนาเศรษฐกิจและสังคมของประเทศไทย ตั้งแต่ปี 2008 เป็นต้นมา ศูนย์วิจัยเพื่อการศึกษาและแรงงานได้รับการส่งเสริมจาก IRD ให้เป็นหน่วยปฏิบัติการวิจัยรุ่นเยาว์ (young research laboratory) ภายใต้ชื่อ JEAI ส่งเสริมการวิจัยด้านการขยายตัวทางเศรษฐกิจ ปัญหาด้านแรงงานและสังคม การพัฒนาการศึกษาและคุณภาพการศึกษา

ผลจากดำเนินการวิจัยที่ผ่านมาและเชื่อมโยงถึงประเด็นที่กำลังดำเนินการต่อที่น่าสนใจมี ดังนี้

1) การขยายตัวทางเศรษฐกิจของประเทศไทยในช่วงที่ผ่านมาเน้นการผลิตที่ใช้แรงงานราคาถูกและใช้เทคโนโลยีล้าสมัยและเนื่องจากทักษะการทำงานเกิดจากขณะปฏิบัติงาน การใช้เทคโนโลยีล้าสมัยจึงไม่ได้ช่วยให้มีการเรียนรู้ทักษะใหม่ ๆ ด้วยเหตุนี้การศึกษาของไทยจึงให้ความสนใจกับประเด็นอื่นมากกว่าเน้นความรู้ เช่น มุ่งการเป็นพลเมืองดีและการขัดเกลาความเป็นตัวตนของแต่ละชาติภูมิ (ความเป็นล้านนา อีสานและใต้ ฯลฯ)

2) หลังจากวิกฤติเศรษฐกิจในปี 1997 ค่าแรงงานมีแนวโน้มสูงขึ้นซึ่งทำให้ผู้ประกอบการและระดับนโยบายกระตุ้นให้ผลิตภาพแรงงานสูงขึ้นซึ่งเชื่อมโยงถึงการใช้เทคโนโลยีสูงขึ้น นั่นคือทักษะใหม่ๆ และเทคโนโลยีทันสมัยจะถูกนำมาใช้ในการผลิตแทน แต่เนื่องจากการได้มาซึ่งทักษะเกิดจากการปฏิบัติงานจะเกิดขึ้นได้อย่างรวดเร็วและมีประสิทธิภาพได้นั้นต้องอาศัยความรู้ที่ดี มีคุณภาพที่เรียนรู้จากสถาบันการศึกษา จากความเชื่อมโยงส่วนนี้เองที่เป็นหน้าที่ของสถาบันการศึกษาที่ต้องปรับเปลี่ยนเป้าหมายการผลิตและกระบวนการใหม่

3) ความผิดพลาดของนโยบายทางการศึกษาที่เชื่อว่าทักษะวิชาชีพ(technological skills) เกิดขึ้นในสถาบันการศึกษา ทำให้มีความเชื่อว่าการอาชีวศึกษาต้องจัดให้ทันกับการเปลี่ยนแปลงหรือคาดว่าเทคโนโลยีจะเปลี่ยนแปลง ด้วยเหตุนี้จึงได้สุ่มเสี่ยง ละเลยจัดการศึกษาที่เป็นหน้าที่หลักของสถาบันการศึกษาคือการจัดการเรียนการสอนวิชาความรู้ (cognitive skills)

4) การสร้างความเข้มแข็งให้กับการศึกษาก็ต้องโดยการจัดการศึกษาที่มีคุณภาพ โดยมุ่งให้การศึกษาส่งเสริม พัฒนาองค์ความรู้(knowledge)ให้กับผู้เรียน ให้มีศักยภาพที่จะเรียนรู้ด้วยตนเองได้ เนื่องจากสังคมวิทยาการศึกษาและระบบการเรียนการสอน(didactic) เป็นปัจจัยสำคัญที่เกี่ยวข้องกับคุณภาพการศึกษา งานวิจัยที่ศูนย์วิจัยเพื่อการศึกษาและแรงงานกำลังดำเนินการจึงมุ่งเน้นในสองมิตินี้ในรูปแบบการวิจัยเชิงปฏิบัติการแบบมีส่วนร่วม

CELS Discussion Papers, 2008/4

Publication from CELS

Title: Population and Labour Market Prospective in Thailand and Vietnam
Authors: Xavier Oudin
Language: English

In this discussion paper, we have gathered some studies based on statistical comparisons between Vietnam and Thailand. They were the material used for numerous presentations, discussions and of course, for the final report submitted to the Thai Research Fund.
It was not in the terms of reference of this project to compare economic performances of the two countries. The few materials presented here are just contextual information, recalling that Vietnam, despite rapid economic growth in the last two decades, still lag behind Thailand. The demographic frame seemed important to the participants inasmuch as it impacts on the labour market and on economic choices.
As shown in a previous discussion paper, Vietnam and Thailand face opposite constraints from population evolution. In this paper, we detail the projections of population and their impact on the age structure. We then focus on the consequences of the demographic transition on labour markets in the two countries. We try to draw some perspectives on labour market and even introduce some hypotheses concerning skills. This allows us to make a simulation of what the labour market will look like in 2025.

To download CELS Discussion Papers 2008/4, please click here.

This CELS Discussion Papers supported the Research Project "Labour Capacity Preparation in Thailand and in Vietnam 1980-2025", sponsored by TRF (June 2007-June 2008).

To see how you can contribute to "CELS Discussion Papers" series, please follow this link.

Meeting CAMT - CELS

On Monday 23rd March, the CELS met with the CAMT team (College of Arts, Media and Technology - Chiang Mai University) to discuss on the issue of skills formation.

This meeting was a great opportunity for the two teams to exchange on issues related to skills and co-op education programmes for instance.

CELS Discussion Papers, 2009/1

Publication from CELS

Title: The implementation of the local content provision in Thai basic education
Authors: Audrey Baron-Gutty and Supat Chupradit
Language: English

This paper is based on questionnaires submitted by the CELS in schools located in poor areas of Northern and North-Eastern Thailand. The aim was to assess to which extent the schools have implemented the so-called 'local curriculum' that they have been put in charge with.
This field survey was also a way to evaluate the content of this curriculum and the hurdles towards its implementation.
To download CELS Discussion Papers 2009/1, please click here.

This paper supports the reasearch project launched in December 2008, 'Education, Identity and Economy. Ten Years of Educational Reform in Thailand'.

To see how you can contribute to "CELS Discussion Papers" series, please follow this link.

Training Session on Didactics / CELS-JEAI

On Saturday 15th March 2009, the CELS organised a training session for its partners from Rajabhat Universities.
Participants attended the session from 9am to 5pm. The topic was the transposition process of knowledge, from expert down to the classroom and the students.
The session was conducted by Laurent Veillard, from the University Lumière-Lyon 2 in France. Dr Veillard is a specialist of didactics, especially regarding vocational and technical education.
He introduced participants to the theoretical framework of didactics and explained how to conduct classroom observations using video-recording.
Click here to download his presentation.
This training session was greatly appreciated by all attendees and is part of an overall project conducted under the programme of Jeunes Equipes Associées à l'IRD (JEAI-Young Research Laboratory Associated to the IRD). The full brochure related to this session is available at the CELS Ofiice (Chiang Mai).

New books purchased - March 2009

The CELS has purchased new books related to its fields of research.

See here the list of the new purchases (March 2009).

Books are available at the CELS Documentation Centre for reading. Do not hesitate to come and have a look!

Training Session on Didactics / CELS-JEAI / Announcement

With the cooperation of the French University of Lyon 2, the CELS-JEAI organises on Saturday 14^th March a one day training session with research teams from Uttaradit, Lampang, Sakon Nakorn, and Udon Thani Rajabhat Universities.

This training session is part of a collaborative research project on didactics, aiming at improving the quality of teaching by producing reflexive teachers.

This session will provide theoretical and practical insights into the observation of educational practices, by using - among other methods of observation - video recording.

The training session will take place in the premises of CELS-JEAI, at the Faculty of Education, Chiang Mai University.

Meeting for prospective research project / January 2009 - การประชุมเพื่อกำหนดข้อเสนอโครงการวิจัยใหม่/ มกราคม 2009

On Tuesday 27th January 2009, the CELS met with researchers from other institutions to discuss about a prospective common research project. The aim of that research would be to study the impact of migrant workers on the Thai labour market. The proposal will be submitted mid-2009 to TRF (Thai Research Fund) for sponsorship.

เมื่อวันอังคารที่ 27 มกราคม 2009 CELS ได้ประชุมร่วมกับนักวิจัยจากหน่วยงานต่าง ๆ ที่มีความสนใจในประเด็นใกล้เคียงกันเพื่อแสวงหาแนวทางในการเสนอโครงการวิจัยร่วมกัน เป้าหมายของการวิจัยที่พูดคุยกันคือ การศึกษาผลกระทบของแรงงานต่างด้าวต่อตลาดแรงงานไทย ข้อเสนอเพื่อการวิจัยจะได้รับการพัฒนาและเสนอขอรับการสนับสนุนงบประมาณการวิจัยจาก สกว. ในกลางปี 2009

CELS Discussion Papers, 2008/3

Publication from CELS

Title: The development of education and training systems in Vietnam and current situation
Author: Prof. Dr. Nguyen Tien Dat
Language: English

After a brief overview of the development of educational and training systems in Vietnam, this paper provides a description of the current situation in Vietnam.This CELS Discussion Papers has supported the Research Project "Labour Capacity Preparation in Thailand and in Vietnam 1980-2020", sponsored by TRF (June 2007-June 2008).

To download CELS Discussion Papers 2008/3, please click here.

To see how you can contribute to "CELS Discussion Papers" series, please follow this link.

CELS Discussion Papers, 2008/2

Publication from CELS

Title: Comparing population structure and education systems between Thailand and Vietnam
Authors: Xavier Oudin and Phasina Tangchuang
Language: English

Following short articles are the basic material used to popularise some findings of the research programme funded by the Thai Research Fund (TRF). At their request, articles were published in order to disseminate findings of research projects to a larger audience. Final articles were published in Thai in the Krungthep Thurakit (Bangkok Business) in 2008.
The first article compares the age structure of population of Vietnam and Thailand and shows the implication of different situations in both countries. One of them is the pressure for migration, as explained in the second article. The third and fourth articles deal with education systems, more particularly with the organisation of the Vocational and Technical Education and the paths or trajectories of study in VTE. A last article gives some reflexions on selection in the education system in the two countries, which were discussed during this project.
This CELS Discussion Papers has supported the Research Project "Labour Capacity Preparation in Thailand and in Vietnam 1980-2020", sponsored by TRF (June 2007-June 2008).

To download CELS Discussion Papers 2008/2, please click here.

To see how you can contribute to "CELS Discussion Papers" series, please follow this link.

Link to CELS Publications and CELS Research Themes