High marks forInternational Schools

THE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS Association of Thailand (ISAT) is perhaps more ready than any other Thai-based private or public endeavour for the inauguration of the Asean Economic Community at the end of this year. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the association is fully geared up to help cement Thailand’s reputation as a hub of international education in Southeast Asia.
Association president Usa Somboon says the emphasis is now stronger than ever on its mission to provide the best-quality education possible while at the same time raising the bar for international schools in Thailand. The association is committed to producing “global citizens”, she says, by giving students the skills they’ll need in a rapidly changing world.
“The association represents 113 of the 147 international schools in Thailand and, together with other government and private organisations, designs the curriculum,” Usa says.
“The growth of international schools in Thailand has helped boost the national economy, with up to Bt20 billion generated annually. Our standards are ranked among the highest in Asia, and three to five new schools open each year, with more and more coming in the future to cope with demand.
“These schools aren’t being established with Thai funds alone,” she points out. “There are also foreign investors interested in building such schools in Thailand, because the country is strategically situated to become a hub of international education in Asia in the near future.”
Usa explains that many of the foreigners coming to work in Thailand – “whether they’re diplomats or on the staff of leading international companies” – want a good school for their children, and meanwhile Thai students no longer have to study abroad. “Attending school here saves their parents a lot of money and indirectly helps the country.”
Thailand’s advantages over its neighbours include good English and other skills among the teaching staff. Third-, fifth-, seventh- and 10th-grade students at international schools in Thailand, for example, scored better in the 2014 International School Assessment math test than their counterparts in South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland, Finland and the US.
Many have also been accepted at top universities at home and abroad, Usa notes, and tuition fees are cheaper here than elsewhere. “Thailand has a strategic edge for becoming a business hub and a hub for investment in Asean,” she says.
“In terms of our own business expansion, we see international schools expanding into the provinces that have large numbers of foreigners, such as Udon Thani and Ubon Ratchathani. And those schools can attract students from Laos and Cambodia as well. There also tend to be more international schools in provinces like Chonburi, Phuket and Chiang Mai because of the many foreigners there.”

For students, |the freedom |to succeed
SIRI ASDATHORN, 18, one of the top students at ISB International School, praises an education of this type for the freedom it gives youngsters. They have broader choice in curriculum, lesson content and intramural clubs and activities (or can even start their own).
“We tend to have free time to simply do whatever we love to do,” he says. “I think this instils in us a sense of creativity and passion, which has been highly important to my personal and intellectual development.”
Siri has won top prize for his fish in competitions at the King’s Cup of Thailand Grand Pet Show, the National Ornamental Fish Fair and similar events in Singapore and Vietnam and occasionally speaks about them at workshops.
“My Betta hobby isn’t directly related to my schoolwork, but my school life has given me many things that have allowed me to succeed this way,” Siri says. “I collect and breed the fish, take part in world-class contests, travel around Thailand promoting the ornamental-pet industry and organise Betta-related |fundraising events to benefit cancer patients.
“None of this would be possible without the qualities I’ve acquired from school, like creativity, a global and service mind, determination despite setbacks, and of course, public speaking and presentation skills.”

BOX:
- ISAT schools must adhere to rigid regulations and standards as set by the Ministry of Education and pass evaluations from renowned accreditation institutes.
- Of the 147 international schools in Thailand, 91 are in Bangkok and surrounding provinces. As of 2013 they had 6,176 teachers and 42,024 students, according to the Office of the Private Education Commission.
- Yearly tuition fees average Bt600,000 (US$20,000 to $22,000), significantly cheaper than in Malaysia ($25,000 to $26,000), the Philippines ($28,000 to $29,000), Singapore ($26,000 to $27,000) and Hong Kong ($27,000 to $28,000).