Thailand : rural nonformal education -- the mobile trade training school

This report traces the history and analyzes the impact of MTTS's. In 1960, despite a 30% literacy rate among the 87% of Thailand's population which was rural, educational change came slowly and favored the cities. Based on the belief that peasants valued education, the MTTS's were designed in the early 1960's to operate from provincial polytechnic schools, using portable tools and travelling instructors, to teach employable skills to drop outs. Under USAID assistance (1966-72), the 45 MTTS's became more permanent and expanded their courses to include skills upgrading and skills for personal use in traditional subjects (e.g., auto mechanics, dressmaking) and newer fields (air conditioning, radio repair). Of the 80,000 students enrolled, 56,000 graduated, and many non-graduates acquired employable skills. Since 1972, MTTS's have had a lasting impact on the Thai educational system and on the lives of the rural poor, supporting and diversifying rural values and offering a local alternative to the traditional apprentice system. About one-half of the MTTS's are still operating, but many others have been absorbed by a broader nonformal education system of Lifelong Education Centers which are modelled on the MTTS's, employ many MTTS teachers, and, together with the MTTS's, annually enroll 40-45,000 students. The success, popularity, and endurance of MTTS's has shown that: (1) Providing short-term vocational training to a large number of marginally educated people can positively effect rural development. (2) Nonformal education can integrate the rural poor into the mainstream of national life and thus aid national unity. (3) Projects conceived to serve a limited purpose can sometimes become a catalyst to broader development efforts. (4) Projects which appeal to the perceived needs of beneficiaries can succeed -- contrary to conventional wisdom -- even without beneficiaries participating at the design stage. MTTS enrollment and staffing data, a course listing, and profiles of six graduates are appended.