China agrees deal on 900,000 tablets for Thai schools

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China has agreed to a deal with Thailand to provide 900,000 tablet computers to Thai schools. The "One Tablet PC Per Child" policy was a high profile promise of the ruling Puea Thai party's election campaign in July last year. With this new reform, the Thai government hopes to improve the overall quality of their education system. Our correspondent, Dusita Chumsri reports.

It seems that chalkboards will be a thing of the past as Thai students begin a pivotal transition to a digital classroom.

Young students at this school in Bangkok have leapt into the 21st century with one of the most ambitious educational reforms ever devised. A reform that stems from a high-profile promise that helped the ruling Puea Thai party win by a landslide in the election last year in July.

Chinnapat Bhumirat, PH.D. of Office of Basic Education Commission, said, "It is in the policy of the government that would like our children to be exposed to ICT which is a very important equipment for learning at this age. To do the best, we would like to introduce it at the very beginning, to be introduced to the Grade 1 students all over the country".

The Thai government has inked a deal with China that will see it import 900,000 tablet computers for its one-tablet-per-child scheme. At a cost of $70.6 million dollars, the project will distribute the device to all first grade students throughout the country.

This is one of 5 schools in Bangkok that has been selected for the pilot project. Teachers and students here have seemingly welcomed the modern gadget.

Nang Noi Leongthavornpot, teacher of Prasarnmit Demonstration School, said, "I think they will get some new interest in new knowledge. They can share their experiences with friends and teachers, stimulate their thinking skills, by searching, analyzing, systematizing and problem solving."

In conjunction with the initiative, Thai authorities are also planning to introduce WiFi connectivity at all schools across the country.

CCTV's Dusita Chumsri said, "With the Thai government hoping to see the tablets reach the hands of students by March, this initiative has come at a crucial time as Thailand's quality of education has become one of the country's most worrisome chronic problems."

International studies place Thai's among the worst in Asia for English proficiency, despite being among the biggest spenders in the world on education. Many past attempts to fix the broken educational system have resulted in an overall decline in student grades.

Prof. Sirichai Kanjanawasee, dean of Education, Chulalongkorn Univ., said, "Without careful planning I think that the policy will do more harm than good. I think that technology is not the answer in education but the answer is the quality of teaching, quality of teachers and the quality of school administrators."

Thailand remains divided in several ways. It is hoped, by the government, that the tablet PC will narrow the gap between the privileged children and those less fortunate. But with rural schools lacking in facilities and technological know-how, many fear that it is these children that will ultimately be left in the dust.