Not understanding the language of instruction despite attending school for six years - what sounds unimaginable was a reality in Thailand for a long time. Suthira Chompootong experienced this herself. She is all the happier that her children will not suffer the same fate thanks to our project.
Suthira Chompootong lives with her family in a small village in the hills of northern Thailand. School was a difficult experience for her. Like everyone here in the village, she belongs to the Karen ethno-linguistic minority. This means she speaks a language that is very different from Thai.
When Suthira went to school, Thai was the only language of instruction. She could barely follow the lessons and felt insecure and anxious at school. Although she completed the 6th grade, she still only has a rudimentary command of Thai.
Lessons that are understood
It's different with Suthira's children. Her 5-year-old daughter is only attending kindergarten and already understands Thai quite well. Unlike her mother, Tantara is not afraid of not understanding her teacher and enjoys going to kindergarten.
This has been made possible by the mother-tongue-based multilingual education (MTB-MLE) that the Pestalozzi Children's Foundation supports in Thailand.
Together with the local partner organisation "Foundation for Applied Linguistics (FAL)" and in collaboration with committed community members and teachers, we are developing new teaching materials adapted to the local context.
In further training courses, we show teachers how to apply the mother-tongue-based multilingual approach in the classroom and teach with the materials we provide. The children first learn in their mother tongue and then gradually switch to Thai. This enables them to follow the lessons better and makes the transition to the official language of instruction easier for them.
"I'm almost jealous that I wasn't able to learn like this as a child. If I had, I would speak Thai better today."
More tolerance towards linguistic minorities
It is a great relief for Suthira to see her children enjoying learning and making progress in both Karen and Thai. Tantara is self-confident, motivated and learns quickly.
The introduction of MTB-MLE has not only significantly improved the children's academic performance, but has also given them the self-confidence that the pupils often lacked in the past.
"I'm almost jealous that I wasn't able to learn like this as a child," admits Suthira. "If I had, I would speak Thai better today." But instead of dwelling on the past, she is optimistic about her children's future. She hopes that this education will help them to realise their dreams - be it as a teacher, doctor or in another profession - and that one day they will return to their community to give something back.
Suthira dreams of a future in which her children not only build a better life for themselves, but also contribute to ending discrimination against ethno-linguistic minorities in Thailand. Through our work, we are strengthening her hopes.