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College students enjoy their field trip
Students at Bang Pa In.
Susan Joyce
We all remember school trips from our childhood, wherever we may
have been brought up. And in Thai schools today, this tradition continues,
especially as recent educational acts have stressed the need for Thai
children to experience their culture close up and first hand.
 Chompoo,
Arrisa and Bow learn about farming techniques.
With this in mind, the staff from the College at Asian University organized
an instructive and enjoyable social trip for its M.4 and M.5 students,
taking in the central plains provinces of Ayutthaya, Suphanburi and Chainat.
Students studying Thai literature, history, geography and Buddhism were
given the opportunity to experience their subjects in the real world,
outside the formal study atmosphere of their classrooms.
Among the sights the students were treated to were the great ruined temples
of Ayutthaya, traditional farming techniques in Suphanburi, and one of the
Kingdom’s largest hydroelectric dams in Chainat. The students saw for
themselves the hard work involved in farming, and tried their hands at
planting rice and ploughing with buffaloes.
A weary, but thoroughly satisfied group of students and staff returned home
late on Sunday night at the end of their three day tour. All believed that
their cultural adventure had been very rewarding, that it had enhanced their
understanding of their school subjects, and had motivated them to find out
more about their fascinating country.
Benz and the buffalo.
Regent’s students well represented in Kenya, part 1
The Regent’s School was well represented in the 2009 RSIS Project Kenya.
Three students: Tyler, Jae, Uhsang and the leader Miss Redler
participated in this year’s project, joined by Mr Walton and his family.
The aim was to build a library for Ilbissl Girls Secondary School and
give access to the wider community. The project gave the students a
unique experience and made a lasting impression on their lives.
Part 1:
Kenya Project
Jae Geun Lee
Spending 18 days in Kenya, I was able to learn many things and
realize how gifted my life was. Thus, I found out how life can be so
different as well as being so similar between the Kenyan people and
myself. What really amazed me was the integrity of the people I met and
how happy and proud they could be despite their poverty and poor living
standards. We, the people living in wealth, live a materialistic life
where we live to buy the things that we want, while Kenyan people know
how to get the most out of life despite their situation.
 Elvis,
the school captain, was the first Starehe student we met.
Starehe Boy’s Centre was a school in Kenya where we stayed for the first
few and last few days. During the time we spent there, we were able to
learn about the school’s system from the Starehe students.
Elvis, the school captain, was the first Starehe student we met. Unlike
what I expected, he was very proficient in English and might have been
better than me! Anyway, Elvis took us around the school, explained what
each building was for and as we walked around we met other Starehe boys
and got to know each other.
What really fascinated me about the school was its system; everything
was run by the students. The things which are “normally” thought to be
done by the teachers were done by the students themselves and the tasks
that are thought to be done by the maids like cleaning the dorms,
clothes and classrooms were done by the students also.
What really amazed me was that 200 students were admitted from 20,000
applicants each year and despite their impoverished backgrounds they
were strong leaders, always positive and highly motivated in everything
they did.
Ten days working at the Ilbissil Girl’s Secondary School was amazing.
The thing that really touched me was when we were doing the home visits.
At the beginning, when I first met the girls, I couldn’t imagine them
living in such horrible conditions but when we actually went to visit
their homes, the houses they were living in shocked me. As soon as we
entered the house, the blast of smoke stung my eyes and since there was
no light, we weren’t able to locate anything. Yet these girls were proud
and happy and welcomed us into their homes. They have a lot to teach us
about happiness. It certainly isn’t what you have!
Finally, the whole trip wouldn’t have been fun without all the other
international students. Students from Germany, Canada, Australia,
Denmark and India all came together and mixed different cultural
traditions making up a whole new culture which everyone on the trip
could enjoy.
The hottest issue between us was the difference between accents (and
ways of saying a word) and became quite intense as the project
progressed. “It’s soccer not football, it’s ketchup not tomato sauce,
etc”. These all became memories that I’ll never forget.
Ten days working at the Ilbissil Girl’s
Secondary School was amazing.
Tyler, Jae, Uhsang and the leader Miss
Redler participated
in this year’s project, joined by Mr Walton and his family.
Students from Germany, Canada, Australia,
Denmark and India all came together and mixed different cultural
traditions making up a whole new culture which everyone on the trip
could enjoy.
Thai Garden Resort raises 40,000 baht for Tungklom-Talman School
The children of the
Tungklom-Talman school enjoy an evening at the Thai Garden Resort.
Staff reporters
Students from Pattaya’s Tungklom-Talman School received more
than 40,000 baht raised by the Thai Garden Resort as part of its annual
Toys for Joy program.
Each year the resort organizes a holiday drive to collect toys, books
and cash to support a school in Pattaya, poor children and orphans.
Students from Tungklom-Talman came to the hotel Christmas Eve to perform
classical dances and sing Christmas carols as a thank you to all who
donated. The money will go toward school uniforms, food and equipment.
Of course the Toys for Joy program event wouldn’t be complete without
play things and the school kids were not disappointed when, after
performance, Santa Claus arrived with a bag of toys. The evening
continued with a gala buffet at poolside and live music from the
Folksmen strolling trio band.
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