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Impacts of American Education on Thailand

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Impacts of American Education on Thailand EDUCATIONAL PERSPECTIVES/ 19 IMPACTS OF AMERICAN EDUCATION ON THAILAND Peter Kunstadter Impacts of American education on proliferating college and university B1blt tracts and the first movable­ Thailand are pervasive and diffusive. system, including two very active type printing press.J This range of They include both the direct and "open" universities. Religious­ activities suggests the nature and indirect transmission of values, ideas, Buddhist and Christian- and, in impact of the first, informal phase of and technology, as well as the recent years, private and commercial American educational efforts. The structure and content of the formal schools play an increasing role. How implicit and, sometimes, overt educational system. Because has American education affected conflict between Thai Buddhist education is so closely interwoven these changes? traditions and modern American with other aspects of social, political, social, material, and economic, and political life, a Early History of US-Thai Contacts religious values, personified by comprehensive study of the impact American contacts with Thailand, missionaries, traders, diplomats, and, of American education on Thailand then known as Siam, began in the eventually, military advisers and would necessarily involve almost the 18ZOs.• The area was viewed by "aid" personnel, has also been a entire range of US-Thai contacts, Americans as an open field for source of tension since the earliest and the processes of westernization missionaries and as a potential days of contact. and modernization of Thailand. A market for American products. The Thailand in the mid-19th century short article can only list some of the tasks of the missionaries were to was a monarchy with power and sources and suggest some of the teach The Word, convert the natives, population concentrated in the consequences. In this brief summary, and, implicitly or explicitly, central plains surrounding and to the a description of some of the changes demonstrate the moral and material north of Bangkok. Caught between which have taken place in Thai superiority of Western civilization. advancing colonial forces, Thai society during the 150 years of US­ Commercial interests in Thailand leaders devoted considerable Thai contact will be provided, as the were minimal for the first century of attention to defining their country's context in which American education contact. American Protestant borders and equipping themselves, has had some effects, and list some missionaries dominated in the through Western education as well of the sources of American unofficial, and sometimes even as a series of alliances, to deal with education, as well as suggest some of governmental, contacts between the the aggressive designs of the British the effects. two countries. in Burma and Malaysia and the Thailand, known officially as Siam The first American missionaries French in Indochina. In pre-colonial until 1932, is a predominantly arrived in the early 1830s, the most days, the border areas were largely Buddhist country with a rapidly noteworthy being the Rev. Dan occupied by Thai and non-Thai modernizing economy and a society Beach Bradley, MD, who reached minority peoples over whom there was competition for feudal rights. .which has incorporated many Bangkok in 1835.2 Despite his very Areas which are now recognized as Western traits while maintaining limited success in converting the much of its own cultural identity. Buddhist masses, he was tolerantly the north and northeast of Thailand The traditional, formal educational received, became an unofficial were threatened by advancing forces system was primarily religious adviser to royalty, and introduced or influences from British Burma education for boys in Buddhist concepts of modern public health and and French Indochina; the border in the south was to be defined in temples. This has been supplanted by medicine- smallpox innoculation, a governmental educational system surgery with anesthetics- along with competition with the British in the with primary schools in almost all loosely- organized Malay states. villages; secondary and technical schools in large district towns and provincial centers; and a rapidly 20 I EDUCATIONAL PERSPECTIVES Thailand was sparsely populated. of having a large foreign, albeit the highest governmental levels from Traditionally, the labor force, and Asian, element in their population. a very early period. This culminated not land or raw materials, was the Unlike the situation in most other in the appointment of the first primary resource to be allocated parts of Southeast Asia, the Chinese official American advisor to the among contending powers; but were generally well integrated into Royal government, E.H. Strobel, in colonial nations- as contrasted with Thai society within two generations. 1903.~ traditional rivals-were interested in Most of them moved rapidly out of American Christian missionaries land and natural resources as well. the rural farm labor sector into were allowed great freedom in what Thai leaders developed several commerce in towns, and especially in was (and continues to be) a policies in an attempt to protect their Bangkok. Usually this was predominantly Buddhist country. nation: population expansion (by accompanied by fluency in the Thai Some were apparently encouraged to encouraging immigration from language, and adoption of the Thai work at the borders of the Thai China), the balancing of one foreign Buddhist religion. Often they used nation (for example in Rev. power against another by political/ Chinese education to preserve McGilvary who was encouraged to commercial alliances, and Chinese language skills and Chinese go to Chiang Mai in 1861, when the consolidating governmental control religious forms, at least in those North was not yet fully incorporated by administrative and infrastructural households in which there was no into the Kingdom). He acted almost modernization. Western education intermarriage with Thais. as an advance guard for the Royal played a key role in implementing Governmental policy over the past Thai government, making an excuse some of these policies. The Thai 60 years ensured that descendants of for Royal interventiorr over his opened their country to a large Chinese parents took Thai names quarrel with the Prince of Chiang number of foreign powers and (sometimes they retained Chinese Mai.' As an American with royal attempted to control the areas of names as well), and received a Thai backing he served as a their commercial and political education. Despite cultural counterbalance against commercial competition and influence by differences, most descendants of and political interests of the French assigning responsibilities for Chinese immigrants learned to speak and particularly the British. particular tasks to different national, Thai, participated in Thai Buddhist Even before Anna Leonowens (of or non- or quasi-governmental "aid" rites, and "became Thai," while Anna and the King of Siam fame) agencies. They actively sought profoundly influencing Thai diet and was engaged to tutor the royal western education for sons of other fundamental customs. The children, King Mongkut asked wives leading families. By trading a few Thai genius for assimilation of of American missionaries (Mrs. concessions in land and offering minority peoples, such as the Bradley, Mrs. Matoon and Mrs. limited opportunities for commercial Chinese, is not a skill acquired as a Smith) to teach English to women of exploitation it was the only result of contact with Americans. the royal household. He dismissed Southeast Asian nation to maintain Indeed, the effect of some American them (and hired Anna) after it political independence throughout missionary education on integration became clear that they were trying the colonial period. of minorities in Thai society might to convert the royal household to One of their major concerns in be an appropriate topic for Christianity, and were preaching this balancing act was to maintain specialized study. By stressing against features of Thai culture "Thainess" despite external non-Thai separate ethnic (and religious) which they found contrary to influences. Faced with the need to identity among converts, it seems to Christian American ideals, including occupy and develop the lands they have been headed in a counter­ polygyny and prostration of controlled, Thai leaders followed a assimilationist direction. commoners in the presence of policy similar to that of the Dutch in Because the United States in the royalty." Indonesia and the British in Malaya. second half of the 19th century was Despite these conflicts, some of They encouraged migration of large perceived as a reasonably powerful the earliest American formal numbers of Chinese workers. country with no territorial designs in educational influence was in the Chinese laborers were used for Thailand, Americans were welcomed form of schools run by Protestant large-scale drainage and irrigation as advisors (and informal teachers) at missionaries, both in Bangkok, where works which opened large areas of a Presbyterian boys' school. later to the Central Plains for settlement and become Bangkok Christian College, intensive cultivation. By importing these laborers, the Thais ran the risk EDUCATIONAL PERSPECTIVES I 21 was established in 18527 and in the and more recently Vietnam came to shift away from subsistence North, where Prince Royal's (for be seen as threats to national and agriculture to wage work. Thai boys) and Dara Academy (for girls)
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