Phuket and NZ discuss education personnel exchange

The New Zealand Ambassador in Phuket Jonathan King paid a courtesy visit to meet with Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew on Friday where discussions centred around the possibility of an exchange of education personnel.

Gov Narong emphasised his objective of wanting every child in Phuket able to speak English proficiently and therefore the language skills of children in schools across the island needed to improve considerably. Learning English language to a high standard would, he explained, enhance the career prospects of children in later life, especially with Phuket’s exposure to and reliance on the tourism industry.

Mr King agreed the opportunity could well be there for students from his homeland to visit Phuket and undertake internships in schools to help with the standards of teaching English as a foreign language to both pupils and teachers alike, particularly in schools that lack sufficient teacher personnel.

Following the fruitful initial discussions, Gov Narong confirmed that further talks would be held with the necessary local educational agencies such as the Phuket Private Education Association, whose President would become engaged with talks in due course.