The development of higher education in Thailand : influences and effects : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

Abstract

This research investigated the way in which Thailand has changed access to and the provision of higher education since 1932. It offers a historically grounded analysis of higher education reforms in Thailand in relation to different forms of internal and external forces in higher education. The factors that influenced those changes and the effects of those changes were identified. In addition, it presented a critical analysis of how Western models of higher education have influenced the development of higher education in Thailand.

The historical approach was taken in this research. The data relevant to the social phenomenon of higher education in past until now were drawn from historical record and oral accounts. The notion of policy borrowing and concepts from Foucault’s theory of social practice were employed to explain Thailand’s higher education development.

An analysis of the changes and the drivers of those changes as well as the effects of those changes revealed how the past informed the present. It also provided an explanation for contemporary problems experienced within the higher education sector and suggested ways forward.