Students of English in for "Fly lice" all year?
I'm not comfortable speaking English In my dailylife,so outside of the classroom it make me feel uncomfortable to speak it"
That was the response of a young student questioned earlier this week by Bangkok Post reporters about the goverment's "The English Speaking Year 2012" project.
No doubt that sentiment is shared by a majority of Thai students who are now being encouraged to improve their skills in the "world's language"
Thais have never had a big problem learning English, we remember everything you tell us to write down and menorise. We just don't know how to put that knowledge into practice.
But now under the governner's ambitious new plan, school around the country are expected to focus on speaking English one day a week, throughout the school day.
Now,just to be clear. That will still be used when teaching subjects such as math and science. However, personal interactions will be expected to take place in English, and there will be an emphasis on actually teaching the language in all schools.
Through this policy all thais will become proficient enough in English to make out workforce competitive enough to compete in all Asean markets, while at the same time making Thailand a more attrative place for foreign investors to do business
Except, it's never going to work.
English is never going to become an official or even unofficial second language for Thailand. At least not untill we take things more seriously than just coming up with a catchy name and telling teachers to fix all our problems.