Public education is sensitive to policy interventions, often with unintended consequences. Some changes such as an increase in teacher rewards or a tweak in curriculum design can cause a long-lasting effect on how schools operate, how teachers teach and ultimately how students learn.
The Thai education system is under pressure not only to catch up with other countries and but also to keep pace with technological changes. Thus the government has tried to improve the system with many reform initiatives designed to produce better outcomes, so far without success.
The 1999 National Education Act was one of major reform milestones. Its creation of school districts in charge of supporting and managing schools within a geographical area was a remarkable step towards decentralisation. However, school districts have provided little support to schools under their supervision, mainly due to the lack of capacity. Without the capacity to help, they inadvertently switch their role to ardently follow centralised commands from the Education Ministry. The act turned out to create the opposite of what it aimed for, and generated a costly administration that burdens schools as well as the country's budget.
