Education reform forgotten amid the crisis

It seems that one political crisis or another has always disrupted educational reform efforts. Even without the current political problems, educational reform has been progressing at a snail's pace. The officials at the Education Ministry normally won't risk taking an initiative, as they prefer to wait for signals from the government. Therefore, whenever the political situation becomes confusing and there is a lack of leadership, the officials tend to play it safe by following the incumbent educational policy, which does not promise any changes for the better.

Traditionally, the Education Ministry portfolio has not been a coveted one for Thai politicians. Although education is the most important element in the development of the country, the ministry has often been perceived as simply a sideline. Governments have tended to fill the education minister's post with unqualified people simply to reward them as politicians.

We have never heard any government saying that it placed the highest priority on education. Instead, administrations tend to cite political issues such as constitutional amendment highest on their agenda.

The new government must place higher priority on the educational reform effort. The country's economic master plan highlights the strength of communities and community development, in line with environmental and natural resource issues. However, development will not be fully realised if youngsters in all communities are not sufficiently educated to enable them to apply knowledge to their lives and communities.

The new government should work to ensure that every student has an equal right and opportunity to be well educated, and that the teaching standard be raised to this end. We hope that the new government will place priority on education for the future of the nation.