ICT Ministry finally inks deal for tablets

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EDUCATION

ICT Ministry finally inks deal for tablets

Published: 11 May 2012 at 00.00
Newspaper section: News

The Information and Communication Technology Ministry finally signed a US$32.8 million contract yesterday to buy the first batch of 400,000 computer tablets from a Chinese supplier.

Information and Communication Technology Minister Anudith Nakornthap, right,whosigned a contract with Shenzhen Scope Scientific Development chairman Liu Jun, left, to buy computer tablets from Scope to be distributed to Prathom 1 students in thenewterm. The contract ceremony wasalso joined by Chineseambassador to Thailand, Guan Mu, middle. TAWATCHAI KEMGUMNERD

The deal with Shenzhen Scope Scientific Development follows a one-and-a-half-month delay.

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johninbkk
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Discussion 22 : 15 May 2012 at 14.0422
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banmebkk - "1 billion plus for something with no proven study"
PTP has been running field studies since October 2011. Results can be found online.

"Converting a hard copy book into ebook format does not make an "outdated text" book more dated."
How do you know if it was just a text book copied into digital form, considering you haven't actually seen the content?
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banmebkk
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Discussion 21 : 12 May 2012 at 09.4821
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@Disc 18 bikeme - Right on. Converting a hard copy book into ebook format does not make an "outdated text" book more dated. Giving students tablets simply won't improve anything if the content is the same and quality of teachers is the same.

I hope 5 years down the road when people reflect why this was a failure, YS or any PTP leader won't say its all in the mind, the weather is hot and people aren't thinking straight.
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banmebkk
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Discussion 20 : 12 May 2012 at 09.3120
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@Johninbkk - Wait and see how many tablets are still working after a year! Let alone how many will still be used in classes, with all that hassle, I bet teacher will just tell the students to take it home and play. Not to mention the tablets are given free to the students after 3 years. 1 billion plus for something with no proven study, and short life span.

With that money, why not buy desktop for schools? Or even update the "outdated" textbooks. Money could be better used, tablet pc for grade 1 is dumb.
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lazar
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Discussion 19 : 11 May 2012 at 23.5219
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Discussion 16 : spot on. I hope it works out for the good
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bikeme
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Discussion 18 : 11 May 2012 at 17.3018
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johninbkk D16 - alas it does not bypass dinosaur teachers. Teachers will still teach, the tablet is simply a replacement for the book. And a book in tablet format still requires the student to read it. And where will the ebooks come from? They will either be international books translated poorly into Thainese or they will be the same old Thai textbooks simply converted to epub or pdf.

Tablets can be a great tool, BUT they require a well functioning education system behind them. Step 1 improve the education system ... Step 2 put an IT infrastructure in place for an electronic based education ... Step 3 buy the tablets to take advantage of steps 1 & 2.
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siamitude
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Discussion 17 : 11 May 2012 at 16.5417
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How come no Thai company is able to produce this not so hi-tech device? Sad really. Public money should go first to stimulate domestic economy.
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johninbkk
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Discussion 16 : 11 May 2012 at 15.1716
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Yes, the whole educational system needs to be reworked, but that's not possible. The entire system refuses to change, and has no motivation to change. Nearly 24% of the national budget is for education, and still no change.

That's why I like the tablets. It completely bypasses the dinosaur teachers, the 20 year old books, and actually innovates. Yes, the first few years will be rocky, but it's the future.

englishbob 14 - "Expect late delivery, shoddy equipment, the whiff of graft, poor content"
You just described the school text books the system currently uses.
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mitrapaap
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Discussion 15 : 11 May 2012 at 13.1115
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10 days ago or so, they were going to print books because the tablets were not ready. So have we spent the money for both now, books and tablets?
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englishbob
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Discussion 14 : 11 May 2012 at 11.4314
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I like the way the Red Faithful say, "It's a done deal." as though that were any guarantee.
Don't you recall it was already a 'done deal'? And then it was undone.

Far from being over, there are lots more twists and turns in this saga to come.
Expect late delivery, shoddy equipment, the whiff of graft, poor content and a short shelf life.
This story will run for a couple of years.
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Ian Wensor
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Discussion 13 : 11 May 2012 at 11.3513
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So long as graft and corruption is condoned in Thailand, kids will never get a good education regardless of all the political rubbish about computer tablets.. Education money is being syphoned off so that those who want to, only learn as much as politicians and the elite want them to know.
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