When you and I were in school, we were able to learn so much about the world we were growing up in. How the earth moved, how the human body works, what makes up a sentence, and hearing about the events that led us to today. At least for me, my eyes were opened to see how much possibility there was out there. Endless potential for further study, working in, ways to live life, to find purpose, and so much more. This is a privilege that a lot of us get to experience throughout our lives – whether we always saw it as a privilege or not is a different issue…
Unfortunately, that’s not the experience for a lot of Thai youth in the northern hill tribes.
Education in Thailand
On a national average, 85% of Thai youth are able to attend school from Preschool through at least 6th grade. However, this percentage significantly decreases if we are looking at just the Northern Hill tribes. Only about half of children in the Northern Hill Tribes are able to attend primary school. There are many factors as to why the numbers are low. One of the reasons is due to the inaccessibility of the schools for these rural areas and the distance between these families and the closest school.
Part of how Lanna Foundation and ITDF are working to solve this issue is to provide resources for different villages to build schools. We have been blessed to see one of these primary schools start in the village of Ma Oh Jo. In fact, they graduated 13 students at the end of March!
We are also excited to see a new school building getting started in Ban Mae Ra Ar Nai so that more youth are able to find hope through education!
This school that has been flourishing in Ma Oh Jo has been a place where kids can gather and learn about new things in this world. They are able to be challenged and grow as they sharpen their minds. Their education includes language learning, basic math, science, culture, and technology.
This school that has been flourishing in Ma Oh Jo has been a place where kids can gather and learn about new things in this world. They are able to be challenged and grow as they sharpen their minds. Their education includes language learning, basic math, science, culture, and technology.
Another aspect of their education is Makerspace. Makerspace is a portion of their schooling that is dedicated for the students to pursue education and experience in what they are interested in.
Makerspace is also a time where ITDF is able to bring in education on different subjects that they aren’t guaranteed exposure to. Each student has the freedom to try new things in a safe environment that promotes growth and learning. They can use the tools that are available to them to build their confidence as participants in their homes and communities.
Because of this different exposure, they are able to visualize new goals for themselves and are full of hope and excitement! Even just from our 13 that graduated, they expressed a wide variety of life pursuits. Some hope to be mechanics, teachers, doctors, chefs, nurses, and more.
12 out of the 13 graduates from Ma Oh Jo are committed to continuing their education to pursue these goals!
Being able to bring accessible education to these hill tribes is so vital to the mission of ending poverty in a holistic way. Through education, we get to see the next generation start to thrive at such an early age in order to bring more hope to themselves, their families, and communities.
The people in this area have such incredible potential and little opportunity. We never know what is going to become of those who are given the tools to show what they are capable of.
Who knows what can come out of this next generation of Thai youth unless we give them EVERY opportunity?
What’s Next?
A lot of work has been done in Thailand for education and there is still a lot to be done for this generation.
