Learning English in Thailand

From the Bangkok Post:

Education Minister Chaturon Chaisaeng has set a one-month deadline to revamp English language teaching nationwide by switching from learning by rote and grammar to English language for communication, after tests revealed that Thais have the second-worst English language skills in Southeast Asia.

On Tuesday, the Higher Education Commission's English proficiency development centre revealed Thais came eighth and fourth in the nine and six Southeast Asian countries rated by TOEFL (Test of English as Foreign Language) and TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication), scoring on average only 201 on a cumulative scale of 300 and 524 of the full 990 score respectively.

This has promoted the drafting of a special English-language curriculum for workers in six major industries.

Also, with China becoming an economic powerhouse, the Thais have started teaching Mandarin, now important in trade and investment negotiations.

It's interesting that SE Asians are placing paramount importance on learning English at the same time that at least one group in the U.S. is trying to delete the subject as a requirement for graduation from American schools.