October 10-11, 2020 at Pote Sarasin Building – Khon Kaen University by the Institute for Research and Development in Teaching Profession for ASEAN organized a workshop for teachers on the Lesson Study and Open Approach. The workshop was arranged under the Teacher and School Development Project to continuously upgrade education quality and was subsidized by the Education Equity Fund.
Assoc. Prof. Jumpon Rachwijit, Advisor to the Institute for Research and Development in Teaching Profession for ASEAN explained that this workshop was the first of its kind under the Teacher and School Development Project to continuously upgrade education quality. It was the second class of 2020 and had as its objectives to build the basic understanding of the Lesson Study and Open Approach innovation as well as of the project implementation approach. The participants would be the key people that helped the project to grow. They included school principals, academic teachers and Grade 1-3 teachers, totaling 150 people from 30 schools under the project; 29 being in Khon Kaen and 1 from Nakhonsawan.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Maitree Inprasitha, Vice President for Education and Academic Service of Khon Kaen University said that in April this year, Khon Kaen University was ranked the first in Thailand, making two consecutive years in the top rank, as the university with the greatest impact on humanities according to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. KKU scored highest in promotion of quality, equality and life-long education as well as in promotion of good health among all ages of citizens, reduction of income gaps both in the outside the country, and integration of work with all sectors in the world for sustainable development.
“Therefore, this workshop aims at continuously upgrading education quality and at giving importance to promotion of quality education and promoting integration of work with all sectors in the world for sustainable development according to SDGs. In addition, the activities in the workshop will enable all participants to acquire basic knowledge in the Lesson Study and Open Approach, which are the key innovations of the institute. The participants will be able to observe the classroom where these innovations are being applied, see how the classroom builds the 21st Century skills for the students, and see what school principals and teachers should do to have such classroom, what plans and implementation should be taken,” the Vice President for Education and Academic Service said.
The workshop lasted two days. On the first day there was the offering of textbooks and instructional media to the schools. There were the sessions in introducing the project and the operational schedule of the project, which was run by Acting Director and Advisor of the Institute for Research and Development in Teaching Profession for ASEAN and in the lecture on the “Lesson Study and Open Approach: the Innovation for Continuous Education Quality Upgrading” by the Director of the Institute. The 11th of October featured the Open Approach activity, integrated instruction management, world geography learning unit, ‘Knowing Covid-19” class for Grade 3 of Khukhampittayasan School, Khon Kaen taught be Khun Khru Pacharin Sata. Finally, there was an activity in planning a lesson using the Open Approach based on the Whole School Approach concept.
The Institute for Research and Development in Teaching Profession for ASEAN began in 2002 when a group of researchers in mathematics education began to conduct research studies on this field and to develop the Lesson Study and Open Approach innovations under an overseas collaboration with Tsukuba University, Japan. Then in 20023, the research outcome was extended in order to request for support from the working group on human resource development of APEC. In 2004, Faculty of Education supported the mathematics education research group to establish the Mathematics Education Research Center under the faculty. The Faculty was later granted an amount of budget by the government to implement the project for developing advanced thinking skill in mathematics for students in the Northeast from 2014-2018. This project was under the Project: “Solution of Public Health and Education Problems in the Northeast to Reduce Social Gaps”. Because the work of the Institute is in line with human resource development and reduction of education gap, the Education Equity Fund therefore assigned the institute to carry out the project to support teacher and school development for continuous upgrading of education quality. This project lasts 3 years from September 2019 to August 2021. The first group of trainees attended the workshop in 2019, consisting of 60 medium-sized schools from 18 provinces all over the country, namely, Chiangmai, Lampang, Pitsanulok, Khon Kaen, Nakhonpanom, Nakhon Ratchasima, Buengkan, Srisaket, Sakonnakhon, Surin, Nongkhai, Amnat Charoen, Ubon Ratchathani, Ayuthaya, Nakhon Srithammarat, Suratthani, Phuket, and Pattani. The workshop this time was for the second class including 150 school principals, academic teachers and Grade 1-3 teachers from 30 schools under the project; 29 being in Khon Kaen and 1 from Nakhonsawan.
