Preparing for the AEC Era

It is important to look at the context for the AEC era. We are in an age of increasing globalization (usually defined as all kinds of connectivity), “the death of distance”, and internationalism (the growth and influence of international regimes such as the EU and ASEAN). Also we are in age of rapidly increasing academic mobility and the privatization of higher education.
To respond to such challenges, Professor Michael Porter at Harvard stresses the concept of competitiveness, while Professor Paul Krugman at Princeton emphasizes the notion of improving individual productivity. While both are legitimate conceptual frameworks, I will use that of Krugman and focus on how to improve the effectiveness and productivity of the Thai workers and professionals in the AEC era.
Basically what the AEC means is a future with much greater and freer flow of capital, goods, services, and labor among the ASEAN countries. This means that Thais will encounter a much great number of individuals from neighboring countries such as students, teachers/professors, tourists, customers, employers, traders, businessmen, artistic and cultural performers, and laborers. Since few of these individuals will know Thai, it is imperative to communicate with them effectively in English and/or their native languages.
Thus, in terms of preparation for the AEC era, foremost is the critical need to improve the language proficiency of Thais both in English and in the languages of the ASEAN countries. All Thai college students should be developing proficiency in one Western language (normally English but it could be French, German, or another language) and one language of the ASEAN region.
As Dr. Sujit Wongthet stressed in a recent Matichon article, those in different regions of Thailand should focus on the ASEAN language most relevant to their area. Thus, there should be a strong interest in Vietnamese in places such as Mukdahan and Nakhon Panom, close to Vietnam and its ports.
In their study of languages the emphasis should be not grammar/translation but on developing oral communicative competency.
Though Thailand now offers 981 international programs, in the Thai curriculum at any level there is little coverage of developing crosscultural communication skills and intercultural competency. Such skills are essential to interact effectively with those from other AEC countries. Teachers (both preservice and inservice) need special training to teach this important new and challenging subject matter.
Thais also need culturespecific knowledge. It is common, for example, for Thais to take Laos for granted and to ignore the need to study Lao language and culture. It is easy to take areas nearby with cultural similarity for granted. The U.S. does this all the time with Canada to the dismay of the Canadians who know so much about the U.S. relative to the gross US ignorance of Canada.
Interestingly individuals such as H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, former Prime Minister Anand, Dr. Prawes, and Dr. Chanvit, certainly do appreciate the need to understand cultural differences and to develop greater knowledge of Lao language and culture, for example.
Then what then must Thailand do? First, it is imperative to develop a rigorous curriculum at both the high school and college level on the cultures of the AEC nations. This will require related quality teacher training to prepare educators to teach this curriculum rigorously and effectively.
Second, it will be valuable to provide Thai students increased opportunities to have internships in neighboring AEC countries as a practical way to improve the knowledge of their neighbors and how to work effectively with them.
Third, more Thai students should be encouraged to do field research in the region to increase the knowledge base about the various AEC countries and cultures.
The AEC represents both a huge challenge and opportunity for Thailand and its people to move up the economic ladder with more skillintensive industries. However, those exceptional opportunities can only be realized if Thailand makes the commitment to enhance significantly the quality of its human capital and the productivity of its people.

Gerald W Fry
International professor, Department of Organisational Leadership, Policy and Development, University of Minnesota
gwf@umn.edu