Wednesday, February 29, 2012

"Free education" Not Really Free

Test scores & education quality falling. Lack of accountability the problem, not money, 20% of govt budget to education, more than ASEAN neighbors.

Free education policy needs overhaul, ombudsman report says

Lamphai Intathep

The 15-year free education scheme has failed due to resource mismanagement by the Education Ministry and may be unconstitutional, an ombudsman's report says.

Ombudsman Sriracha Charoenpanich said the ministry needs to reconsider the policy initiated by the Democrat-led government.

A study conducted by independent academic Kittiya Evans under the supervision of the Office of Ombudsman discovered that supposedly free scholarships under the scheme were not actually free, Mr Sriracha said.

Parents have the perception that a "free education" policy means "free of all charges" but, in fact, only five things are free under the policy - uniforms, text books, equipment, a learning activity charge, and tuition fees.

But there are hidden fees such as school electricity bills, air conditioning fees, and fees by tutors directly requested from parents, the study revealed.

Mr Sriracha also contended that despite having a 300-400 billion baht annual budget, the programme has not improved students' academic performances.

National standardised examination results indicate students' scores on core subjects have actually decreased since the policy was implemented.

Mr Sriracha said the programme is unconstitutional because it fails to provide free, equal and quality education as required by Section 46 of the 2007 constitution, which says every person is equally entitled to receive a respectable state-funded education free of charge for at least 12 years. He proposed the constitution stipulate nine years instead of 12 in order to improve education management and ensure more reasonable spending.

He suggested the state leave the education system to market demand instead of managing it with pre-allocated budget restraints that damage the education system as a whole.

Ammar Siamwalla, a distinguished economist at the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI), said the issue of financial resources is not a cause of the failure of education in this country.

Over the past 10 years, many budgets have been allocated for education purposes and at present the education budget is about 4% of the country's gross domestic product and 20% of the government's overall budget.

"It is higher than other Asean countries," he said.

A key factor behind poor education quality in this country is a lack of accountability.

This applies to teachers, school directors, executives, all the way up to education ministers, he told a recent conference on education reform organised by the TDRI.

Mr Ammar said almost all schools have passed external quality assessment tests conducted by the Education Ministry and teachers have higher salaries and gained academic standing from presenting hundred plus-page reports.

"But the performance of students has become poorer in both national and international tests, especially in sciences and maths," he said. "A new approach is needed.

Somkiat Tangkitvanich of the TDRI agreed, saying standard test results must be taken into account when evaluating and assessing teachers and schools.

Varakorn Samakoses, rector of Dhurakit Pundit University, said politicians have played around with education too much.

As a result the nation's education policy is often changed even by ministers coming from the same political party.

This has led to discontinuity throughout the education system spanning from elementary and secondary to high school.

(Source: Bangkok Post, SCHOOLS, Free education policy needs overhaul, ombudsman report says, 17/02/2012, Lamphai Intathep, link)

Free Education Policy

policy - a plan of action to guide decisions and achiev eoutcomes นโยบาย (See Wikipedia)
free education policy

overhaul - repair completely and rebuild; to improve something so that every part of it works properly ปรับปรุงใหม่
ombudsman - a person whose job is to deal with complaints made by people about an organization or company (example: the ombudsman of the New York Times who deals with issues and complaints raised by stories in that newspaper)

Free education policy needs overhaul, ombudsman report says

scheme - a plan that is developed by a government or large organisation in order to provide a particular service for people แผนการ โครงการ
free education scheme

resources - things needed for proper functioning, to get a job done; things such as money, workers and equipment that can be used to help achieve some goals ทรัพยากร
mismanagement - not managing well, resulting in failure or poor performance การจัดการผิด
resource mismanagement

constitution (noun) - a set of basic laws (principles, rules) for a country that describe the rights and duties of the country's citizens and the way that the country is governed (See Wikipedia)

constitutional (adjective) - following the rules in the constitution
unconstitutional (adjective) - not following the rules in the constitution; violating the constitution

The 15-year free education scheme has failed due to resource mismanagement by the Education Ministry and may be unconstitutional

ministry - a government department dealing with an area of activity กระทรวง
reconsider - to think again about a decision in order to decide whether you should change it พิจารณาอีกครั้ง
initiated - created; started ริเริ่มโดย

Ombudsman Sriracha Charoenpanich said the ministry needs to reconsider the policy initiated by the Democrat-led government.

independent - separate, not connected, working by yourself with your own resources; not influenced or affected by others; free from outside influence;  not taking help or money from other people เป็นอิสระ พึ่งตนเอง

academic - someone who teaches at a college, or who studies as part of their job นักวิชาการ
supervision - the process of making sure that something is being done properly การควบคุมดูแล การตรวจตรา

supposedly - believed to be; thought to be เป็นที่เชื่อว่า
scholarships - money given to a student to pay for the cost of education ทุนการศึกษา

A study conducted by independent academic Kittiya Evans under the supervision of the Office of Ombudsman discovered that supposedly free scholarships under the scheme were not actually free, Mr Sriracha said.

perception - the way that people think about or feel about an issue การรับรู้

charges - a payment that has to be made for something เงินที่เรียกเก็บ
free of all charges

tuition - 1. extra teaching outside of school hours; 2. teaching; the work of a teacher ค่าเล่าเรียน

Parents have the perception that a "free education" policy means "free of all charges" but, in fact, only five things are free under the policy - uniforms, text books, equipment, a learning activity charge, and tuition fees.

fees - money that you pay to be allowed to do something ค่าธรรมเนียม
hidden fees - money that you have to pay (but people don't see; hidden; not made public)

bills - money owed to others that must be paid quickly
electricity bills

revealed - made known or showed somthing that was surprising or that was previously secret เปิดเผย
tutors - private teachers (outside of classes in schools)

But there are hidden fees such as school electricity bills, air conditioning fees, and fees by tutors directly requested from parents, the study revealed.

X contended that Y - X says that Y is true or is the case; X asserts Y (not completely proven though; still debateable)

annual - happening once a year ประจำปี
budget - the amounts of money that an organisation has available to spend on different things during a period งบประมาณ (See Wikipedia)
annual budget

student academic performances - how well students do in school (whether they get good grades and test scores)

Mr Sriracha also contended that despite having a 300-400 billion baht annual budget, the programme has not improved students' academic performances.

results - 1. student grade or score in a test; 2. what is produced in the end by an activity or task
standardised examination - a test that everyone in a large group of students take (not tests made by individual teachers for small groups of students)
national standardized exam - a test that all students in the country take

National standardised examination results
indicate - show

score - a grade; a number that shows how well a student did in a test or other schoolwork
students' scores

core - the central part, most important or basic part of something, the heart  แก่น แกนนำ สิ่งที่สำคัญที่สุด
core subjects - the most important subjects that a student takes in school

students' scores on core subjects

implement - when a plan is put into action, actually doing the things in a plan
implement policy - put a policy into action; make it work

National standardised examination results indicate students' scores on core subjects have actually decreased since the policy was implemented.

provide - to give someone something that they want or need

state - government รัฐ
funded - given money บริจาค money provided for operation of a business or organisation ให้ความช่วยเหลือทางการเงิน ให้เงินลงทุน
state-funded education

entitled - having the right to have or do something มีสิทธิโดยชอบ
entitled to receive a respectable state-funded education free of charge for at least 12 years

proposed - suggested, presented as a possible project (but not yet chosen or decided upon)
stipulate - to state exactly how something must be or must be done ระบุ, ระบุเงื่อนไข

improve - to make better ทำให้ดีขึ้น
ensure - to make certain that something happens or is done รับรอง ให้ความมั่นใจ ให้การยืนยัน

reasonable -
reasonable spending

Mr Sriracha said the programme is unconstitutional because it fails to provide free, equal and quality education as required by Section 46 of the 2007 constitution, which says every person is equally entitled to receive a respectable state-funded education free of charge for at least 12 years. He proposed the constitution stipulate nine years instead of 12 in order to improve education management and ensure more reasonable spending.

market demand - the need and desire to buy goods and services by households and businesses

allocated - given for a special purpose or use
pre-allocated - allocated before activity begins
restraints - limits on how much or what can be done
pre-allocated budget restraints - meaning determined or set from above long before activity starts (unlike the free market which is determined by demand as the activity proceeds)

He suggested the state leave the education system to market demand instead of managing it with pre-allocated budget restraints that damage the education says.

Ammar Siamwalla - a famous Thai economist and specialist in food and agricultural economics and has contributed considerably in the development of modern economic discipline in Thailand, having taught at universities ranging from Yale, Thammasat and Stanford, and served as director of the TDRI research institution, he is now retired but still active in economic debates อัมมาร สยามวาลา (See Wikipedia)
Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) - Thailand's foremost private research research organization and think tank (See Wikipedia)

distinguished - describes a respected and admired person, or their work มีชื่อเสียง
a distinguished economist

issue - matter; a subject that people discuss or argue about ประเด็น
financial resources - the amount of money given to a project, organization or business
the issue of financial resources

Ammar Siamwalla, a distinguished economist at the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI), said the issue of financial resources is not a cause of the failure of education in this country.

gross - being the total before costs and taxes are taken away
domestic - within the country ภายในประเทศ
gross domestic product (GDP) - the total value of all the goods and services produced by a country in one year (See Wikipedia)

Over the past 10 years, many budgets have been allocated for education purposes and at present the education budget is about 4% of the country's gross domestic product and 20% of the government's overall budget. "It is higher than other Asean countries," he said.

key - important คนสำคัญ
factor - a fact or situation which influences the result of something ปัจจัย
key factor - some important thing that influences a situation or outcome of an event

accountability - a situation where people have the right to ask you about or criticise you for something that has happened ความน่าเชื่อถือ must answer and explain what you did and the results (good or bad); must explain what you have done and be rewarded if successful, punished if a failure; being required to explain why all your decisions or actions were made; being responsible for an activity and able to explain and justify it

lack - does not have ขาดแคลน
lack of accountability - have no accountability; not required to explain actions or suffer for failure

A key factor behind poor education quality in this country is a lack of accountability.

executives - a high level manager in a company (making plans and ensuring they executed successfully) ผู้บริหาร
conference -

reform - improvements in the way government or an organization operates; a change that is intended to correct a situation that is wrong or unfair การแก้ไข การปฏิรูป
education reform - the process of improving public education (making it more fair and more efficient) (See Wikipedia)

This applies to teachers, school directors, executives, all the way up to education ministers, he told a recent conference on education reform organised by the TDRI.

assessment - a judgment or opinion; the process of making a judgment or forming an opinion, after considering something or someone carefully การประเมิณสถานการณ์ looking at something closely and then making a judgement about it (example: teacher assessment or grading of students in a class)
quality assessment test - a test given to measure quality

pass test - achieve a score that shows that you are ok (meet the requirements)
fail test - do not achieve a score that shows that you are ok (meet the requirements)

external quality assessment tests - meaning: someone outside the organization gives the test (to make sure there is no cheating or favouritism) (See Wikipedia on external examiners)
passed external quality assessment tests

Mr Ammar said almost all schools have passed external quality assessment tests conducted by the Education Ministry and teachers have higher salaries and gained academic standing from presenting hundred plus-page reports.

performance - how well or badly something works (or whether an investment provides a reasonable return)
performance of students in tests

national - within a country
international - including all or many countries
in both national and international tests

approach - a particular way of doing something or thinking about something; or of solving some problem วิธีการทำให้ถึงจุดหมาย การจัดการกับปัญหา

"But the performance of students has become poorer in both national and international tests, especially in sciences and maths," he said. "A new approach is needed.

standard test results - student scores in "standard tests"
take into account - use information when making some decision
evaluating - thinking carefully about something before making a judgment about its value, importance or quality

Somkiat Tangkitvanich of the TDRI agreed, saying standard test results must be taken into account when evaluating and assessing teachers and schools.

rector - the person in charge in some schools, colleges, and universities อธิการบดีของมหาวิทยาลัยหรือวิทยาลัย
play around with - doing things to something that are a waste of time (achieve no goals, do not actually improve the system)

Varakorn Samakoses, rector of Dhurakit Pundit University, said politicians have played around with education too much. As a result the nation's education policy is often changed even by ministers coming from the same political party.

continuity - something that happens for a long time without stopping (without a break)
discontinuity - not having continuity; a break in a process that is continuous
span - including many things (or a long period of time) (example: the life of the old man spanned the period from before cars to the age of  jets)

This has led to discontinuity throughout the education system spanning from elementary and secondary to high school.

Read more at http://www.bangkokpost.com/learning/learning-from-news/280329/free-education-not-really-free

http://www.languagecorpsasia.com

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