Higher education management in Thailand: insights from directors of Language Institutes

Harald Kraus

Authors

Harald Kraus International College, Dhurakij Pundit University, Laksi, Bangkok 10210, Thailand

Keywords:

higher education management, management styles, English language teaching, language institutes

Abstract

Thailand has made English instruction compulsory at all levels of the education system, including the tertiary level. In order to manage the logistics of teaching sometimes thousands of students from a variety of faculties, many Thai universities establish organizations, commonly termed ‘language institutes’ or ‘language centers’. Despite the prevalence and size of these organizations, little research has been done into their management, and their managers. This research thus investigates the management experiences, styles and opinions of 11 language institute directors throughout Thailand as part of a preliminary study. The findings indicate that directors share similar attitudes and experiences, including some forms of resistance, awareness of cultural norms regarding age and status acceptance of the temporariness of the job, high levels of administrative work, and acknowledgement of co-dependency in their team.

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