An Internship report submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master Science in Development and Sustainability

Internship Report (M. Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2023

Thailand faces significant challenges with regard to educational inequality. Despite the government's efforts to provide universal access to education, there are still disparities in access and quality of education between urban and rural areas, as well as between socio-economic groups. Especially in rural areas, there are often fewer resources and less funding for schools, resulting in a lower quality of education. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing educational inequalities in Thailand, particularly for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. The closure of schools and the shift to online learning has widened the digital divide, with many students from low-income families and rural areas lacking access to the necessary technology and internet connectivity for remote learning. Many families have had to prioritize their immediate needs over education, which has resulted in a drop-in enrollment rate. The 12 Education Management Policies of the Ministry of Education are designed to improve the curriculum, learning process, language and digital competencies, NDLP, administrative efficiency, and quality of teaching and learning. The agenda focuses on learner safety, competency-based training, Big Data, driving the Vocational Education Center of Excellence, improving professional skills, lifelong learning for all ages, and special education management. My internship with the UNESCO Bangkok Office aimed to understand the problem of children falling out of the education system in order to give recommendations for projects for the development of better non-formal education. The study collected education-related data from two projects of the UNESCO, namely, the LearnBig project and the Equity Education Hub project. The collected data were systematically analyzed to (1) suggest guidelines for educational institutions in preventing the spread of COVID-19, in Thailand, (2) assess the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on education, (3) investigate the obstacles that hamper bringing back children who have dropped out of the education system, and (4) identify the number of students, schools, and teachers participating in and its partners in developing the project. v It was found that the LearnBig project of the UNESCO provided free and open digital resources to learners and educators, particularly in low-resource settings, and promoted children{u2019}s reading in exchange for funds via the LearnBig application. While the Ministry of Education of Thailand developed 12 Education Management Policy aims to improve the curriculum, learning process, language and digital competencies, designating an organization to create a national digital learning platform, and improving administrative efficiency and educational management. The Ministry of Education has updated educational evaluation and quality assurance systems, given equal access to resources. Moreover, the policies also work with the Agenda 7 which are encourages the education of those with special needs to realize their full potential and contribute to the advancement of their nation.