Rosie, de 33 años, es profesora del Centro de Aprendizaje Comunitario Ban Nai Soi. Fue fundado hace 18 años por su padre, quien huyó de Myanmar en 1996. Cuando llegó a Tailandia, vio que muchos estudiantes inmigrantes, refugiados y niños tailandeses pobres tenían perspectivas sombrías. Las mujeres tenían que elegir entre encontrar un marido rico o prostituirse. Los hombres tenían como únicas opciones trabajar como jornaleros o vender drogas. El Centro de Aprendizaje Comunitario Ban Nai Soi nació para ofrecerle mejores perspectivas a estas personas.
Al principio, Rosie era reacia a seguir los pasos de su padre y convertirse en educadora de adultos. Comprobó de primera mano el tiempo y la paciencia que se necesitan para enseñar a los alumnos adultos. Pero, en 2007, su padre tuvo un accidente de moto que lo dejó sin poder trabajar. Rosie y su madre se comprometieron a continuar su trabajo. A los 17 años, asumió el papel de educadora de adultos en el centro que había establecido su padre. Una vez alimentados los sueños de trabajar en el extranjero, Rosie se quedó dónde estaba para continuar la visión de su padre.
Lea nuestra historia para saber más sobre su trayectoria.
My father always said, “if I give you a house or a car, people can steal this, but education they cannot steal. If these young people have education, they can have a better life and promote better community living and there will be fewer problems for Thailand".
Continuing her father’s legacy
Initially, Rosie was reluctant to follow in her father’s footsteps and become an adult educator. She saw firsthand how much time and patience it took to teach adult learners.
But, in 2007, her father had a motorcycle accident which left him unable to work. Rosie and her mother vowed to continue his work. At the age of 17, she took on the role of adult educator at the centre her father had established. Once nurturing dreams to work abroad, Rosie stayed put to continue her father’s vision.
When we pass away from this world, we cannot take anything with us. The only thing we will leave is our name and our visions and our work for the new generation to pick up.
A wider system of support
After completing her high school level education at Mae Hong Son Adult Education, Rosie studied for her master’s degree at Chiang Mai University.
Without Mae Hong Son Adult Education and Thailand Adult Education providing training opportunities for prospective teachers, people like Rosie would not be able to become adult educators and support thousands of learners through their local community learning centres.
Nurturing visions
Rosie gets great satisfaction from seeing her students succeed and realize that they can be whatever they want to be in this world. They are the pride of the community, prized for their ability to speak multiple local languages and Thai, acting as a conduit between the local community and wider Thai society.
For Rosie, the most important thing adult learners can take away from their classes is their ability to take all their knowledge and give back to society.
Expanding beyond Thailand
With this in mind, Ban Nai Soi Community Learning Centre has expanded its offering to provide an online course for disadvantaged youths in Myanmar, where education has been severely disrupted by the ongoing conflict.
Last year, 10 students in Myanmar took online examinations in Thai. Students are also taught ICT skills, community development, livelihood subjects and local languages such as Burmese and Karenni, as well as English.
This year, the programme has enrolled 35 adult students, many of whom have been severely affected by the ongoing conflict.
My dream is to meet with universities and organizations abroad and discuss with them how we can cooperate together and expand this programme to other parts of the world.
Background
The developments in adult learning and education in the Ban Nai Soi Community Learning Centre and 170,000 others across the region are featured in the Fifth Global Report on Adult Learning and Education (GRALE 5), launched on 15 June 2022 at the Seventh International Conference on Adult Education (CONFINTEA VII) in Marrakech, Morocco. GRALE 5 combines survey data, policy analysis and case studies to provide policy-makers, researchers and practitioners with an up-to-date picture of the status of adult learning and education in UNESCO Member States.
