OPINION

Education overhaul

I agree with Khun Vint Chavala in his May 20 letter that "The Prayut Chan-o-cha government should stop dragging its feet in reforming the education system, so education can be served in an equitable manner."

Two of the most important changes needed don't have to cost a baht, for they are in the minds of the Minister of Education down to the most humble student.

In my view, students should be taught how to think, not what to think. I believe education is the lighting of a fire, not the filling of a pail (William Butler Yeats).

I suggest that schools be free to adopt any curriculum they want, so long as it meets the MOE's objectives (schools required to teach botany, for example, could study local plants, learning which are edible, etc); be free to charge whatever their market will bear -- so long as full financial aid is available for half of each entering class, granted on a merit-based, gender-blind basis.

Schools should also post average school scores on national tests so parents know what they are paying for; practise age-appropriate democracy, eg, voting between alternative nutritionist-approved menus, and discussing the school's most pressing problems and how to solve them with the PTA and administration.

Re: "By spurning a mask, Trump elevates a symbol", (BP, May 14).

Unfortunately for America, and the rest of the world, Donald Trump is all about tribalism and divisiveness.

His diminishment of medical experts' recommendations to wear masks to stem the spread of Covid-19, and his continued promotion of unproven drugs such as hydroxychloroquine, are but two examples.

Trump's intention is always to create an "us against them" tension of division.

In the past, real leaders such as Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Winston Churchill took great strides to unify diverse elements of society and rally them to confront major challenges together. Roosevelt's "fireside chats" effectively reassured troubled Americans, clearly outlined his progressive policies, quelled rumours and rallied support throughout the course of the Great Depression and World War II.

Donald Trump goes out of his way to do just the opposite. He clearly has no intention of unifying or calming. But, then again, he's not much of a leader.

Now that it appears that Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha has decided to cut off the freeloaders who have been using Thai Airways and helping to run it into the ground, perhaps he will seriously consider raising taxes on the 1% of those who own two-thirds of all the assets in the country. There are so few of them, but so many of us.

And he might take a look at the budgets of some of our ministries. For example, we seem to be paying a lot of taxes for an "education" system whose main purpose seems to be brainwashing our children so that they will know how to salute the flag and sing the national anthem in the morning. Do we really need to be paying so much for that?