Education team’s transformational Thailand trip

Staff and students combined their talent for teaching earlier this month for a trip to Asia, all about enhancing excellence in education.

Joined by students from two Education subjects – BA Primary Education (QTS) and BA Education Studies – the team jetted off to Thailand to visit UON partners including:

• Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok – to focus in-person on the Memorandum of Understanding between the two institutions. This enables student visits and field trips and opportunities for staff, such as research and other educational activities.
• Srinakharinwirot University for a knowledge exchange talk about teacher training programmes and have a tour of their school.
• Bangkok Prep International School for discussions about the global recognition of UK teaching qualifications, especially in Bangkok.

Among the other people they visited were Mr Harshi Sehmar, MBE and founder of The Village International Education Centre to discuss further opportunities for academic collaboration. Mr Sehmar has been a key supporter of this Thailand trip and link for the students and staff. The University’s MA Special Needs and Inclusion course has been delivered there for several years now.

One of the main reasons for these meetings was to explore how the two organisations can continue ensuring children have the best possible opportunities in their education, for instance by supporting teacher development. You can read more about Mr Sehmar’s recent honour in this news story.

These meetings were part of a wider programme of activities involving UON students, part of the Turing Scheme which supports international work placements and study opportunities.

With their lecturers, the students delivered CPD workshops that covered English, maths and science across International Schools including those that were hosting placements for the students.

Sarah Cave, Senior Lecturer in Education, was part of ‘the Thailand team’*. She sums up a busy few days: “The University has long-established credentials with excellent education and teaching programmes, not just at home but also abroad, none more so than in Thailand.

“This visit was more than just a prime opportunity to catch up with colleagues face-to-face. They allowed us time to reflect on what has been and to look forward to developing new and excellent ideas and workstreams.

“We had many productive discussions about global recognition of UK teaching qualifications, especially in Bangkok. This work will continue to support high-quality teaching across the region and beyond.”

*The full list of staff team members is:

• Sarah Cave
• Simon Chapman
• Dr Laura-Jayne Devenney
• Dr Lucy Westley
• Dr Rachel Bassett-Dubsky