A voice from the school and community, toward sustainable development
“The panel discussion that day revealed to us what everyone wants. We would like to thank Teach For Thailand for bringing forward everyone’s visions,” Phattharanan Phrumpool, director of Huay Krajao Pittayakom, Kanchanaburi province, told us during an interview about the Collective Vision panel discussion on July 20, 2023.
Teach For Thailand (TFT) has continuously held Collective Vision activities, connecting organizations, schools, and communities to work together under a shared vision.
“Many attending parties have expressed their needs, such as us installing more fans in classrooms. Several parents wanted us to install fences around the school, which led to a (fundraising) Robe Offering (ทอดผ้าป่า) event organized by parents and alumni,” added director Phattharanan.
Nipon Pootrakool, director of Huay Krajao Hospital, recalled his experience during the discussion,
“This panel’s purpose is to design a collective vision with the school and community. Attendees get to talk about the future of the school, allowing them to become aware of its future direction for development. It’s good that the hospital is informed about this.”
“The activity was a great opportunity as normally district-level offices aren’t invited to this kind of discussion,” added Nipon.
Uthen Adkonghan, head of the parents’ network, also added:
“During the discussion, all parties talked and listened to each other’s suggestions and comments. The school also asked for our support on matters such as the PM 2.5 dust crisis, which we have now coordinated with the parents’ network to bring in Hydro-Pump Washers to alleviate the problem.”
“The school board can now make suggestions relevant to the school, student, and community’s context,” commented Acting Sub Lt. Kamon Ninrote, a teacher in Huay Krajao Pittayakom School. “During the activity, school board members, students, and community residents were grouped using the Jigsaw Model to brainstorm their collective visions for the school. These ideas were then combined, creating a complete picture. Everybody had a say in it; we accepted our differences to find the true shared vision.”
“For example, several teachers commented that they wanted to increase their time in classrooms, which was obstructed by their workload. This is agreed upon by the students.”
Lawan Vejapikul, deputy director of Thailand Collaboration for Education (TCFE), Yuvabadhana Foundation, recalls the designing process for the panel discussion.
“The TCFE has been working with TFT. We believe in the inclusion and involvement of the school with the community, and TFT is our important partner – we pushed forward the collective vision agenda, inviting schools to expand their vision further.”
“We have been working together since the activity design process. TCFE has done several Community Engagement activities with schools, to leverage career skills for their students. We wanted to expand from those projects and invite schools to create a collective vision instead, and TFT has been our partner in ensuring school’s visions were covering more relevant aspects,” added Lawan.
During these collective vision panels, all attending parties will have time to voice out their needs – an important developmental component that we cherish. With the collective vision, change is sustainable and can bring teachers, students, schools, and the community toward an equitable education for everyone.
