TSUWESTERN WALL RSS FeedThai children are still being denied decent education
By jamesstaley | August 31, 2010
By The Nation
Published on August 31, 2010
As other countries progress, our teachers remain disillusioned and our students lag behind their peers
US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has been touring several American states to raise public awareness about the importance of education. He has said on multiple occasions that education is a civil rights issue. His goal is to ensure that every American child is provided with the opportunity to obtain a quality education. He also notes that the quality of teachers is one of the most significant factors in this goal.
One of the challenges facing US public schools is how to attract qualified graduates to teaching, given the current low remunerative return compared to other professions. Good teachers are unsung heroes in any country, and unless the problems they face are not resolved, the education system will continue to suffer.
The statements by Duncan, a former chief executive officer of Chicago public schools, are true indeed, and should be noted here. Thai education ministers tend to focus on grand projects in their efforts to reform Thai education, with emphasis on infrastructure and procurement of equipment. However, they should really be concentrating on the quality of teachers and ensuring that good teachers are properly rewarded.
There are always good teachers who want to make a difference, but eventually they tend to be discouraged by a system where the majority – who resist change – accuse them of trying to rock the boat. Traditionally, the education departments in most colleges tend to require the lowest examination scores. The result is that students in most of our public schools are stuck in big classrooms with deadwood teachers who hardly receive any training to improve their teaching methods.
The lack of incentive for people to become teachers starts with the failure to instil a sense of desirability to enter the profession. Duncan rightly points out that good teachers should receive praise and commensurate compensation for their work. But this is not the case. Good teachers are barely even recognised.
Due to the low pay for teaching, suitable candidates tend to choose other areas of study such as finance. Those that do end up in schools cannot put all their effort into teaching students in class because they have to earn extra income from tutoring the same students in cram schools.
In fact, the Thai Education Ministry has a massive annual budget, but it is never spent wisely. The large class sizes in public schools are never reduced, and the quality of teachers hardly improves. Not many Thai schools have an effective system to evaluate teachers, and the government is failing to address the issue of making the system more attractive for the best graduates.
While well-off parents can send their children to expensive international schools that offer international-standard curricula, the public schools are still forcing rote learning on students. In short, we are denying our children equitable access to good education.
It’s time the government understood that quality education is the most important factor in driving a country forward. A recent Newsweek survey to find the “Best Country in the World” ranked South Korea as the world’s second best nation for education after Finland. Singapore ranked fourth after Canada, while Japan came fifth. The magazine said South Korea had made an amazing leap from the 1960s when its national wealth was on a par with Afghanistan. “Today, it’s one of the world’s richest nations, in large part thanks to its focus on education,” the magazine reported.
Unfortunately, the Thai government has so far taken no leadership role in reforming our education system. While US Secretary Duncan gladly took his portfolio because of his passion for improving education standards for American children, the Thai Education Ministry is seen as a third-rate consolation job for politicians. No education minister has demonstrated any significant initiative or determination to prepare the younger generation for a changing world. Our children are not simply lagging behind in terms of academic achievement, but also in social awareness and responsibility. What we have seen so far is the education budget consumed by programmes for building infrastructure and information technology without addressing the issue of how these facilities can teach our children.
It’s time for a sea change in the way we educate our children, otherwise this country will never reach its true potential.
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Mother’s Day: The Thai Celebration of the Queen’s Birthday
By jamesstaley | August 29, 2010
Our next student example is a process analysis essay is by Duangmanee Jinayong. Thank you for sending in this paper.
Mother’s Day is a special day to Thai people. On August 12 in Thailand is the Queen is considered as the mother of all people. It was being to the Mother’s Day celebration. Mother’s Day is celebrated all mothers that express gratitude for the hardships. They hold in bringing up a child. In this celebration, you will have three important things that should to do to your mother.
Before beginning Mother’s Day, you should be preparing something to use in the Mother’s Day. First, must buy a garland when you buy it, you could be selecting a beautiful bunch of jasmine. Jasmine is symbolic of the selfless virtue of a mother who gives to her children. But if you have a time, you should be made a card with yourself by using your own idea. It will make you proud in your success more than a card that you buy. In the card you can write anything that you would like to tell to your mother. If you don’t like write a normal, you can write it in the poem.
On Mother’s Day, we must have an activity in family. At the morning we usually go to make offering to monks with our family, you can offer by food, fruits or dessert. Next, we go out together at the special place, it makes mother to relax and happiness time for her. Such as, go to beauty salon, shopping, massage and spa. After that, we join to cook a special menu. So, we have dinner together.
On Mother’s Day, we will have a celebration to do in this day too. Most of children usually give a jasmine’s garland and they will give a special gift to their mother. In this day we have obeisance to mother. While we pay obeisance to our mother, we will tell apologize in every thing that we done with her. Maybe you will be tell or confess something that you make wrong with her. The last thing is mother will give a blessing for us. And then we tell to love our mother.
I think Mother’s Day is special for everyone. We use this day to honor our mothers all ever the world. It is the one way that we can require an obligation to her. Especially, this day is a day that we can commemorate to the important of our Queen and our mothers, too. The most important thing of the Mother’s Day is the children can be showing respect to mother.
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Fast Food: Useless Food
By jamesstaley | August 27, 2010
Our next argumentative essay is by Nattika Ploonung. Thank you for letting us see your work.
Nowadays, fast food is becoming to a part of a culture eating style for everybody in the world. Because of fast food is a kind of food that convenient and comfortable. There are a lot of service shops of fast food such as a big city and a big department store. In face, many people don’t think about a good and bad thing from eating fast food. I believe that fast food is a bad thing because it is less nutritious and destroy an environment.
In my opinion, fast food is less of nutrition. Because fast food is full of chemical substance for example, a chemical in some meat that make some meat fresh all the time and Borax make some meat and fruits are crispy. The most ingredients in fast food have some nutrition that unnecessary for self and a lot of fat, carbohydrate and salt. Fast food often cooks with some meat by deep-fried, roast and grill. Whoever eating a lot of fast food especially children if they eat a lot, they will be abnormal and the brain not develop. For adult who love fast food you will get a problem or risk to be seriously ill such as heart attack, cancer and obesity.
Plastic and foam are come together with fast food is the important thing that make an environment to decline. Fast food is the fast Manu then a lot of seller and producer must be use plastic and foam for convenient. Such as dish, spoons, forks and glass that made from plastic and foam. So, when customer take at home and go to picnic in public place a lot of plastic and foam are scatter around and difficult to disband. Some people burning many plastic and foam until going to a big pollution. Some shops are throwing oil that fried into the river. That is an effect from fast food that makes a problem to the world. Especially, in today the earth is come to many problems such as flood, earthquake and season change.
Fast food is convenient and very fast for who that hurry and can not wait for a long time especially who live in the big city and race against time. I understand their point of view. However, fast food it not good for health and the consumers will get a problem. For Thai people it is not good rule and manners for eating. It can make Thai people forget an original eating Thai style. So, Thai food is a famous in the world and has nutrition for customers. Some Thai food that has only vegetable by the way, it can make customer healthy more than fast food that have meat and bread.
In conclusion, I think that people take care yourself and health, eating a lot of fruits and vegetable. Not copy an eating culture from anywhere, consider well before you choose and reduce using plastic and foam. When we finished eating and cooking should be known about how to methodize. Then we will get a better life, healthy and an environment is become to rich forever.
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American or British English
By jamesstaley | August 26, 2010
What’s the difference between American and British English? Well, actually, the two languages are much more similar than they are different! Generally speaking, Americans speak with a very broad accent, which can be easily understood anywhere within the country. On the other hand, there are hundreds of dialects of British English, some of which are very distinct and impossible for non-native speakers to understand and very difficult for many British. While most British can easily understand Americans (maybe because of the advent of TV and movies), some Americans can find some British accents difficult to understand. Vocabulary is the least of the problems! Nevertheless, here is a page listing some of the main differences in vocabulary you can expect to encounter.
http://www.projectbritain.com/americanbritish.html
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Working Harder and Longer
By jamesstaley | August 24, 2010
In the series of ‘Student Writers’, our next guest author is Thongchai Matthapan. We thank him for letting us publish his work.
People must work to get money. They have to work hard in a different way in order to acquire a different thing. Some people work harder to earn a lot of money and to be a rich people. Some people expect to get respect highly from other people in a social of materialism.
They are brain-washed by the attitude about money is God. Money allows us to acquire everything we need so they work harder all times to achieve a goal. Moreover, people pay more attention to an image than mind; as a result, people working harder and longer to be except from social and felling of self-worth. However, working harder and longer can be harm to your life.
Working harder and longer can be bad for health. People are working longer without a break. Sometimes they forget to watch a clock until a boss tells them it’s time to go home. To comeback home late and go to bed late can cause insomnia. It is time to sleep but you can’t close your eyes; as a result you go to work without freshness. Sometimes work can’t be done on time because it’s a hard work. To spend more energy to work without a break may cause a stress. The stress can cause a headache; you will suffer from the pain that run through you your head. Furthermore, working long hour can cause a stomachache. To forget to eat on time because you just working and working. I remember, last summer I was working longer and didn’t eat on time so it was caused my stomachache. Working harder and longer can not only make stress but also link to other health problems such as, backache, dry eyes and fatigue.
Working harder and longer destroying your leisure time. Leisure time is a time for people to do anything they like. They have no longer to worry about the works. To take care of family is important, it’s impossible to spend more time with family if you work harder and longer. You don’t forget to go to work but forget to buy medicines for your mother, its show that you addicted to work. You may cancel to go to your friend’s birthday or wedding day because you tied up with work; as a result, the relationship will be break. You are planning to travel on vocation but you may cancel your trip that you have been waiting for too long. Working harder and longer can disturb the bedtime. To sleep is the best way to rest, you don’t have a time to sleep and you have to stay up all night to work. Furthermore, to forget to take care yourself is cause by working harder and longer. To forget to wear pants, cut fingernails, shape off your beard and take a shower.
Some people say they have to work harder and longer to increase the family income. They also work harder in order to acquire other needs such as, images, social acceptable and felling of self-worth. I understand their needs. However, they have to realize about the bad impacts of working harder and longer. The disorder daily life, lose of social relationships and unhealthy, working harder and longer is caused. Not only physical problem but also mental problem will occur if you still addicted to work. To take a rest by give yourself a special time to travel, to relax and to be free to do anything you want is needed. To release yourself from work, to be yourself and realize that people can’t work all times, we have to take a break because we are human not machines.
I think that people should be realized the impacts of working harder and longer trying to work less and have more leisure time. Working harder and longer destroying leisure time and caused health problems. It also disturbs daily life and break social relationships. If we are still working harder and longer, we will lose our beautiful life.
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America and its Wars at History Central
By jamesstaley | August 20, 2010
No doubt that culture affects the decisions leading to, during, and after wars. In the same line, nothing can affect ones culture as quickly and thoroughly as a war. Look at the Norman Invasion of England which brought a new king, new ruling class, new language, but also new ideas to Old England. Here is a webpage dedicated to history of the United States, including the wars fought. This page is full of historical events, persons, and documents. This is not an attempt to glorify war; quite the opposite. We should all try to learn from history in order to improve our future.
http://www.historycentral.com/
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Job Training: Making Profits for Work in the Future
By jamesstaley | August 17, 2010
After a brief pause, we are proud to welcome back Benjarat Saisuwan, who writes about the job training program.
After we studied many academic subjects throughout our time at the university, we must be trained the job in companies or agencies in the last semester to make profits for our work in the future. The job training program is very important for all of students. However, most students agree that the job training program can make more skills and more experiences.
First, the job training program can increase skills and helps you to develop skills that are still defective. The skill gets from the job training to be useful because it can take to use with the real work. Most training often practices skills in the administration and management of working within organizations such as the airline company, we must use computer skills for selling the ticket online or checking in and out. These skills are not in books or knowledge which we learned in the class. Although we studied the information or content of good operation skill from our professors completely, it is not enough to use in the real work and might not use those information that learned in the class. If you participate in the job training, you will get useful skills for your job in the future. It is one of the best things that will help you to prepare the aptness for moving to the world of real work.
Of course, the job training also creates valuable experiences in operation and social work. In the operation, you will know management systems in agencies or companies, and you must do the actual operation. You can try to do everything that you may use for your work in the future. Moreover, the work experience which you have from the job training program will help you in application because employers might consider to be the special case. It is a part of the decision to accept staffs to start work. In the social work, you need to work with others, so you should qualify yourselves in order to socialize and can work as a team with colleagues for working out well. The work experience helps us see our flaw and make us learn to improve it. In addition, it is the good chance to search what branch appropriates with us. It makes we know what we like or not and we should choose the job that suits with our attention and desire.
Most students think that the job training program has more benefits than studying in the class while some students think that it wastes time. Because they can take other knowledge or skills which they can study in the class or study by themselves to reward the job training. Furthermore, some students might not be trained the job practically because the trainer of company who must take care and coach to trainee has a few people. Therefore, the trainer has not enough time to give information and train the job seriously. However, most students, including myself, agree that we should be trained the job in the last semester. We feel that if we only learn the content of books and academic subjects in the class, we will not know how the real work is. Moreover, we must start to learn all new information in managements of our work. It may make we step behind other people who have ever been trained the job.
In conclusion, I believe that the job training program has benefits to our real work in the future. It makes us learn new knowledge to help increasing more skills. It also gives more experiences in both the operation and the social work. If we select the company where we go to be trained the job well and join in the job training, we will see that we really get many useful things.
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Language barrier a ‘risk’ for Latinos in schools
By jamesstaley | August 13, 2010
[This interesting article about teaching in English or Spanish recently appeared in The USA Today online paper. If you find it interesting, follow the link at the end of the text for the full story.]
By Hope Yen and Christine Armario, The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — English only?
With Hispanic enrollment surging in schools, many Spanish-speaking parents are having trouble helping their children with homework or communicating with U.S. teachers as English-immersion classes proliferate in K-12.
An Associated Press-Univision poll highlights the language and cultural obstacles for the nation’s Latinos, who lag behind others when it comes to graduating from high school.
MISMATCH: 87% of Hispanics value higher education, 13% have college degree
The findings also raise questions about whether English-immersion does more to assimilate or isolate — a heated debate that has divided states, academics and even the U.S. Supreme Court. Arizona recently ordered its schools to remove teachers with heavy foreign accents from English-language instruction, while the Obama administration is seeking to push more multilingual teaching in K-12 classrooms.
“The language barrier is still a serious risk factor for Hispanics,” said Michael Kirst, a Stanford University professor emeritus of education who helped analyze the survey. Even with many schools replacing Spanish with English in classrooms, for a student evaluated as learning English, “the odds of completing high school, and particularly college, significantly drops.”
The nationwide poll, also sponsored by The Nielsen Company and Stanford University, found the vast majority of Hispanics — 78% — had children enrolled in K-12 classes that were taught mostly in English, compared with 3% in Spanish.
Just 20% of mainly Spanish-speaking parents say they were able to communicate “extremely well” with their child’s school, compared with 35% of Hispanics who speak English fluently.
About 42% of the Spanish speakers said it was easy for them to help with their children’s schoolwork, compared with 59% of the Hispanics who speak English well.
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Immigration in America, Then and Now
By jamesstaley | August 11, 2010
Immigration to America hasn’t been a recent phenomenon; in fact, it has been going on since America was ‘discovered’ by Christopher Columbus back in 1492. Wave after wave of Europeans came to America, followed by Afro American slaves, Asians, and the most recent groups of Latin Americans.
Here is a satirical cartoon clip comparing the first group of English settlers in New England, the Pilgrims, to ‘illegal’ immigrants from Mexico and Latin America today. I don’t always like the fact that my students like to read and watch cartoons so much; however, sometimes a little humor can help to understand a problem better.
Topics: Culture UK/US | No Comments »
Welcome Back to Study
By jamesstaley | August 9, 2010
Hello all students and teachers. Welcome back to the second half of semester 1/2553. I hope you were not too stressed with mid-term exams. If you did well, congratulations! If you scores weren’t too good, well, you have time to improve. Use your time wisely and ask your friends and teachers for specific help. However, the responsibility lies squarely on you. Take responsibility and hit the books! Good luck. –Aj James
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Daily Horoscope
By jamesstaley | August 7, 2010
Well, no one really believes it, do they? However, I bet that many of you still read your horoscope every time you pick up a newspaper. Here is an example from astrology online:
ARIES
(Mar. 21- April 20)
You can enjoy the company of others and come in contact with an ideal mate, if you get out and mingle. Uncertain get rich quick schemes will not be as lucrative as you anticipate. You may cause a fuss if you come on too strongly in public.
TAURUS
(Apr. 21- may 21)
You can accomplish a lot if you put some effort into household duties or redecorating plans. Be cautious who you deal with financially. Do not ruffle feathers if possible.
GEMINI
(May 22-June 21)
Be confident in your endeavors and others will believe in your efforts. People you live with will not be terribly happy with you regardless of what you do today. You can make rewarding connections through the organized groups you associate with.
CANCER
(June 22-July 22)
New emotional connections can be made through business contacts. Be aware that joint financial ventures could fall apart. If you put your mind to it, you could entertain or host a multitude of social events.
LEO
(July 23-Aug 22)
Someone you least expect could be trying to make you look bad. Financial investments that deal with joint money can be extremely prosperous. You should be raising your self esteem and confidence in order to promote your work.
VIRGO
(Aug. 23 -Sept. 23)
Others may want to steal your thunder when they realize your ideas are pretty solid. Someone you live with may cause drastic alterations in your usual routine. Avoid too much discourse with colleagues today.
LIBRA
(Sept. 24 -Oct. 23)
It’s time to reevaluate your motives. Consider starting a small business on the side. Look for a marketable gimmick. Get out and about.
SCORPIO
(Oct. 24 – Nov. 22)
You can win if you’re open and up front with your boss. You are best not to confront situations that deal with in-laws or relatives. Property investments will payoff.
SAGITTARIUS
(Nov. 23 -Dec. 21)
You need a change of pace. Self-improvement projects will payoff in more ways than one. You may need to make a few alterations to your living arrangements.
CAPRICORN
(Dec 22.- Jan. 20)
Talk to superiors about problems that you feel are getting out of hand. Take a look at investment opportunities. A passionate encounter with your mate should help alleviate that pent-up energy.
AQUARIUS
(Jan. 21 -Feb. 19)
Make sure that you take time to remember those you love. They will jump at the chance to do something without you if it sounds like more fun. Risks will not be profitable.
PISCES
(Feb. 20-Mar. 20)
Promote your ideas now. Your ability to visualize will help you convince others of the possibilities. After all, they may have valuable information to pass on.
Visit this website at: http://www.astrology-online.com/daily.htm
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Ethnic Diversity in the USA
By jamesstaley | August 5, 2010
An excellent article from the Washington Post about ethnic diversity, immigration, and integration in the United States can be found at the link below. Here is an excerpt of the text:
By William Booth
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, February 22, 1998; Page A1
At the beginning of this century, as steamers poured into American ports, their steerages filled with European immigrants, a Jew from England named Israel Zangwill penned a play whose story line has long been forgotten, but whose central theme has not. His production was entitled “The Melting Pot” and its message still holds a tremendous power on the national imagination – the promise that all immigrants can be transformed into Americans, a new alloy forged in a crucible of democracy, freedom and civic responsibility.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/meltingpot/melt0222.htm
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Learning Vocabulary with Grammar Exercises
By jamesstaley | August 2, 2010
A third site for learning English vocabulary and the correct usage of prepositions, modal verbs, and all types of vocabulary exercises can be found at non-stop English :
http://www.nonstopenglish.com/
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Visit Aj Kanjana Siriwat-Minson’s Blogsite
By jamesstaley | August 1, 2010
I have added a link on the left under ‘Interesting Websites’ for Aj. Kanjana’s webblog. It is really interesting to see what she experiences in the UK and how she deals with it. You can click the link at the left or here below. YOO ANGRIT.
Yoo Angrit is a journal about life in England from a point of view of a Thai. It includes mum’s journals, anecdotes, as well as English learning tips. Some of the articles are unfortunately not available in an English version due to the nature of the story which involves Thai humour and word play.
อยู่อังกฤษ (Yoo Angrit) เป็นบันทึกจากประสบการณ์การใช้ชีวิตในประเทศอังกฤษหลากหลายมุม ไม่ว่าจะเป็นบันทึกนินทาลูกน้อยแสนรัก เรื่องสนุกๆของชีวิตคนไทยในต่างแดนรวมไปถึงเกร็ดภาษาอังกฤษที่ใช้จริงเห็น จริงในชีวิตประจำวัน
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Learn English Vocabulary with Idioms
By jamesstaley | July 30, 2010
So, now you have had enough of playing games and want to get back into some real practice drills with idioms and descriptive language. I would recommend that you take a look at:
http://www.english-at-home.com/vocabulary/
You might find something both informational and useful at the same time.
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Teacher’s Day should Pay Respect to Teachers
By jamesstaley | July 29, 2010
Another good process analysis paper is from Jintahra Thammaraksa. Thank you for letting us publish this paper.
Teacher’s Day is a special day that Thai students will show to respect to their teachers. This day is usually celebrated on Thursday, 16th January. Teacher is idol of many people who is gives knowledge and moral to their students. So, we should be thinking back to kindness of teachers. We have a Teacher’s Day for Thai students can apologize and say thank you to teacher at the past time. When this day comes around we should be to do special thing to celebrate to our teachers.
Before Teacher’s Day we should preparation to give good something to our teachers. First, go to buy a beautiful garland or do it with yourself for teacher who is we admire. Next, buy anything to preparation to make a flower’s tray and prepare for make a card. When Teacher’s Day coming most of students will setting a board about course and development of Teacher’s Day. For, present about course and development of teachers.
On Teacher’s Day, there are a lot of activities. Thai students are joining to make a flower’s tray for give to their teachers. In the past, they usually use the important thing to make a flower’s tray. It’s consist of incense, candle, dauk-khem, dauk-makhur and ya prak. Moreover, they have a flower’s tray contest for getting a little prize. After that, if you aren’t bold to tell to your teacher but you can create to make a card or you can write it by poem of your own idea.
Finally, students celebrated by give you’re a flower’s tray and card to their teachers. Then, they will pay obeisance to their teachers. So, they tell to apologize about everything that their wrong with teacher. In addition, saying thank you about everything that teacher teaching and giving the knowledge to be good person. Especially, most of teacher forgive and give a blessing to successful to students about our education, our job and our life.
Teacher’s Day is traditional that down to the present day for students should pay respect to teachers. Because teacher likes a second mother who teach us to go to the good way in our life. Teachers have gratefulness to students. Therefore, people in Thailand have a Teacher’s Day for celebration to their teachers. In order to, Thai students will commemorate and require an obligation to teachers. This day is a special day between Thai students and Thai teachers.
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Diyapon Wisamitanan Interview for Fulbright
By admin | July 29, 2010
Aj. Diyapon Wisamitanan, Nok, will be in Bangkok on Friday, the 30th July 2010, for an interview for a prestigous Fulbright Scholarship. We at TSU WESTERN join in and wish her the best of luck. More information about the Fulbright Program can be found here:
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Bangkok Post Video News
By jamesstaley | July 29, 2010
Aj. Nuantip Mahamongkon recommends that English students, but other interested participants as well, should watch the English news from the Bangkok Post Multimedia website. It is a good way to keep abreast of the news and to practice English at the same time.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/multimedia/vdo
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