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Pattaya School No. 4 opens new building
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
Pattaya City School No. 4 (Nong Yai Temple) expanded
their education area by opening a four-story building on Children’s Day.
Mayor
Niran gives a Buddha image to school director Aporn Ratchasingho for good
luck and prosperity.
At 10:30 a.m. on January 7 Mayor Niran Wattanasartsathorn
presided over the opening of the new school building. The event coincided
with Thailand’s National Children’s Day and was attended by city
administrators and council members from Sector 2. The new building was
constructed to expand education for students in accordance with Pattaya
City’s education development plan. Pattaya City School No. 4 is one of ten
schools under Pattaya City’s responsibility.
The new structure was funded by the Pattaya City
Education Department’s 6.9 million baht budget for 2004. After 8 months of
construction it was completed in December. Aporn Ratchasingho is the current
director.
 The
students are happy with the new building.
The old building was shabby, made of wood and was
irreparable. The new one has 4 floors and 12 classrooms, and an indoor
toilet. The new school has 802 pupils and 32 teachers. They hold a
kindergarten class leading to secondary class one, and will expand to
secondary class 2 and 3 in the next school year.
In the morning 9 priests from the Nong Yai Temple held a Buddhist
ceremony for good luck and prosperity. Mayor Niran then gave a motivational
speech to the students to mark Children’s Day, and asked the children to
study hard and gain knowledge that will be useful for their daily lives so
they may become useful members of society.
Education seminar outlines development policies
Suchada Tupchai
Sripong But-Ngamdee, director for the Joint Development
Administration Department for Local Education recently conducted the
‘Relations Conduct’ seminar aimed at outlining polices and activities
for the Basic Education Course for 2005. Held at the Town in Town Hotel in
Pattaya, the session was attended by education officers, members of the
Municipal Administration Department and Pattaya City administrators.
In accordance to regulations set down by the Ministry of
Education, all schools have been ordered to use the kingdom’s Basic
Education Course initiated to unify curriculum nationwide. Educators were
instructed to follow the guidelines set down to organize teaching
activities which fall in line with global standards and the needs of the
nation.
These guidelines allow flexible structures to meet
community needs, but schools must adhere to the basic structure which is
geared to upgrade the quality of education in Thai schools.
Held from January 3-8 the seminar was organized to help
teachers set up a planned course for student development activities which
will aid in properly educating their pupils. Teachers also received advice
on how they can improve their teaching skills.
People from the Education Department and people
associated with the local administration, including the department’s
supervisor, school administrators, and the chief of the Development
Activity Group for students in the primary class and secondary class
attended the seminar.
Charity Club of Pattaya starts off 2005 with 241,000 baht donation
Children’s Day at Wat Pong School
The Charity Club of Pattaya was kindly invited to share
Children’s Day with the 600 + children at Wat Pong School on January 6.
At 8 a.m. the children were already excitedly gathering
to start the parade. The colours of the costumes were amazing, and what was
more amazing was that all the children had made the costumes worn that day
themselves at school.
Chonburi’s
Minister of Education presents Malcolm Boden, on behalf of the Charity Club
of Pattaya, with a picture of His Majesty the King.
The Charity Club of Pattaya was guests of honour, as was
the Minister of Education for Chonburi. All the children paraded past,
starting with the nursery children until all 600 children were in the arena.
The headmaster then introduced the Minister of Education
for Chonburi who officially opened Children’s Day, and Malcolm Boden from
the Charity Club thanked everyone for the invitation to join in the
celebration.
The fireworks were let off and the day began.
The
guests were entertained throughout the day by traditional Thai music and
traditional Thai dancing preformed by all age groups.
The guests were entertained throughout the day by
traditional Thai music and traditional Thai dancing; these were preformed by
all age groups, even a couple of the falangs from the Charity Club felt the
urge to have a go (well done Jamie and George!).
Not only were the children performing, many ladies donned
grass skirts and showed the youngsters what they could do; they had been
doing it for years and were still doing it!
The children played various games, much to the relief and
amusement of the adults, including tug-of-war, musical chairs for the
younger children, sack racing and lots more, including the greasy pole. The
prize for getting to the top was the handsome figure of 500 baht, and
although many tried, they all failed.
The ladies from Wat Pong and the village laid on an
excellent buffet that just kept on coming and coming (the table was heaving
with dishes). They all gave something to the proceedings as they also wanted
to thank the Charity Club for the donation made to the school in September.
When the Charity Club went to look around the school in
September 2004 after the donation, the headmaster told them about 20
children in the village that didn’t have sufficient funds to attend the
school, so the Charity Club of Pattaya sent out a newsletter asking for
donations for sponsorship and hoped that they would also raise enough for
more educational equipment and books.
The generosity of the people who help support the Charity
Club of Pattaya knows no bounds, and they raised an astronomical amount
241,000 baht.
Many thanks from the Charity Club of Pattaya to all who helped make this
possible and a big thank you from the Charity Club of Pattaya to the school
and villagers who made it a very memorable day (especially Aunty).
Government appeals for adoptive parents for tsunami orphans
The government is making an impassioned appeal for foster
and adoptive parents to come forward to raise hundreds of children orphaned
by last month’s tsunamis. The latest figures show that at least 321
children lost one of their parents in the disaster, while 37 children lost
both of their parents.
A large number the orphaned children are from Baan Nam
Khem in Thailand’s southern Phang-nga Province, which was almost
completely destroyed when the massive tsunamis hit the Andaman coast on
December 26.
On January 11, Social Development and Human Security
Minister Sora-at Klinpratoom said that the ministry was attempting to
contact the children’s relatives to determine whether or not they could
care for them. The ministry has offered to pay for both their maintenance
and their schooling.
However, Sora-at said that the ministry was also
appealing for foster and adoptive parents to come forward for children whose
relatives could not take them. He stressed that all prospective parents
would be thoroughly vetted before children were placed with them, and would
be assessed on a regular basis. (TNA)
Marriott jazzes up Children’s Day
Suchada Tupchai
Among the numerous activities held around Pattaya on
Children’s Day, the Pattaya Marriott Resort and Spa hosted an extra
special event for the children.
Under the hotel’s “Spirit to Serve Our Communities”
project, children from the Fountain of Life Center were invited to attend a
Children’s Day Jazz Charity Dinner on January 8 around the hotel’s pool
area. The Jazz Tet band performed for the charity dinner, and during the
evening the children had the opportunity to perform as well.
The
Fountain of Life children on stage for the Ponglang performance.
Sathit Maisuwan, Marriott Resort and Spa assistant
manager, opened the evening’s proceedings.
The Fountain of Life children performed a number of acts,
such as the Ponglang and Four Regions of Thailand performances. Their stage
finesse drew large applause from the audience.
The Jazz
Tet band in full swing...
Shortly thereafter, Pol. Col. Somnuk Changate, Pattaya
police superintendent, who was the guest of honor, handed over 20,000 baht
on behalf of the hotel to the Fountain of Life’s Sister Kalayani
Tuanrassamee.
Sister Kalayani said, “On behalf of the Fountain of Life I would like
to thank the Pattaya Marriott Resort and Spa, especially the Spirit to Serve
Our Communities project for the generous support of the children. This will
help the children to lead better and fuller lives and benefit the future of
the nation.”
Chonburi’s “Born to Cheer” team takes top honors in To Be No.1 Teen Aerobics & Dancercise Thailand Championship 2005
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
An amazing performance from Chonburi teenagers won the
‘To Be No.1 Teen Aerobics & Dancercise Thailand Championship of
2005’ competition for the central and eastern parts of Thailand.
All the
teams put in a great effort.
On January 8 at the Central Festival Center in Pattaya,
the Department of Mental Health, and Ministry of Public Health held the
competition to support and provide wholesome free-time activities for
Thailand’s youth. The aerobic dance competition was open to all teens
nationwide. The event was geared to advance a healthy lifestyle for the
nation’s teenagers and aimed to encourage them to engage in fun activities
which will replace the urge to experiment with drugs.
Winners,
the “Born to be Cheer” team from Chonburi.
Dr. Sonchai Wattana, from the Provincial Public Health
Department in Chonburi presided over the event and joined Wuttisak
Rermkitjakarn, Pattaya deputy mayor and Apichat Puetphan, deputy assistant
mayor in the prize giving ceremony.
Deputy
Mayor Wuttisak Rermkitjakarn presents the runner up prize to the “Body
Language” team from Suphanburi
In the past, the To Be No.1 Teen Aerobics &
Dancercise Thailand Championship competitions have been held only in
Bangkok. This year the competition included a large participation from women
and men’s teams from the central and eastern parts of Thailand.
Participants
had great fun in the competition.
The team members ranged between 13-22 years of age; there
were not less than 12 and not more than 20 members per team, and
participators had to be members of the To Be Number One Club. This year the
competition was enlarged in scope and in addition to a wide variety of
aerobic dance, included Hip Hop and Rock n Roll music.
The dancers were judged on their costumes, style, energy,
originality and precision. The winners received an honorary plaque and
20,000 baht in scholarship money. The winner and runner up from each sector
will participate in the final competition in Bangkok on March 27 on the 4th
floor of the Ngam Wongwan Mall at MCC Hall. Ten teams from the entire
country will be participating in this final competition for the Princess
Ubonratanaratchakanya Siriwattanapannawadee Cup and 50,000 baht in
scholarship money.
The “Born to be Cheer” team from Chonburi wowed the judges with their
outstanding stage presence and took top honors. They received an honorary
plaque and 20,000 baht in scholarship money. Runner up was the “The Body
Language” team from Suphanburi, who received an honorary plaque and 15,000
baht in scholarship money. The “Victory” team from Chantaburi came in
third and received an honorary plaque and 10,000 baht in scholarship money.
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