Page 7 - ELITE PLUS MAGAZINE VOL6

GUIDING LIGHTON THE JOURNEYOF EDUCATIONTertiary education may be a key factor in launching a successful career, but quality instruction in childhood can be the key start to a successful life, says lifelong educator Mom Dusdi Paribatra na AyudhyaMom Dusdi Paribatra na Ayudhya has spent most of her life encouraging and nurturing early childhood and primary school education. The Phuket- born pedagogue, now in her nineties, earned a BA from Chulalongkorn University and an MA in child development, as well as a diploma in childcare from Mills College in California. Mom Dusdi was one of the first to introduce rhyming techniques for teaching Thai to kindergarteners, and launched the country’s first picture books to foster young imaginations and help children connect visual images with linguistic properties.As the wife of the late Prince Sukhumbhinanda and mother of Bangkok Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra, her achievements have at times been overshadowed by her illustrious family but are no less impressive on a national level.Mom Dusdi speaks to Elite+ about the importance of early childhood education and some of the continuing problems with the Thai education system.What is your view on the overall state of education?The problem we have is that the foundation has been neglected. Early childhood education, up until the age of seven, provides a crucial foundation. It’s no good to build something and pay no attention to its foundation. You can look up reports from the likes of UNICEF and the UN; it receives no mention. Children’s rights, hygiene and safety are covered. But there’s no mention of the groundwork of education from early childhood.There is little awareness of the fact that children can learn even without complete comprehension. The importance of learning at the subconscious level has only recently garnered interest and become trendy, although I’ve already been at it for 30 years. They still haven’t got around to making that connection to the foundation and explaining how brains can be optimized. They know how a child’s brain grows physically but are at a loss as to how to explain+ Elite 5There“is little awareness of the factthat children can learn even without complete comprehension. The importance of learning at the subconscious level has only recently garnered interest and become trendy, although I’ve already been at it for30”years