Professor Sumalee, adult education, collaboration, and a traffic jam

Yesterday we met with a graduate student seminar on adult education. Many of the students worked with centers for Non-Traditional education. We were hosted by Dr. Sumalee Sungsri who we had met on Wednesday. The students had many questions about our ITS degree, how it was organized and the variety of students that it served. There were many questions about community colleges and how TVC worked. We talked about how to meet the variety of skill levels of adult students. We talked about curriculum and advising. We also talked about experiences and practices in teaching adult students. The students also talked with Jit for a long time about life in Alaska. It was a valuable meeting.

After our discussion with the students we stayed for two student presentations. One of the presentations was about providing training to people in the military and the other presentation was about providing local content to English students in Samut Prakan. The proposal was to increase the students actual use of English. Both presenters used Powerpoint. The use of Powerpoint in Thailand is a very common way of presenting information. We stayed until after 5:00 so we got caught in a traffic jam on the way home.

As we were leaving STOU there was load music. As we rounded the corner to the STOU square there was a group of people doing aerobics. Last year in Ayutthaya, when were riding a canal boat, I looked up and saw the same thing. Aerobics seems to be popular in Thailand. Right now it is 6:45 in the morning and there are many people circulating in the park and riding bikes. I think that exercise is popular in Thailand.

We were encouraged to visit the south of Thailand by a student who taught there. I gave him my email address for further communication. It was a little frightening to contemplate because of the violence in the south, but if it works out, I will go.

There was also some interest in the students to visit Alaska and UAF on a study trip. I said, and I think it would be true, that UAF would be excited about an opportunity to share. A study trip would focus on the College of Rural and Community Development and Tanana Valley Campus. I hope it happens and would love to help create such a collaboration.

Dr. Summalee also talked with me about research collaboration. I would love to work with her on such a project. The College of Rural and Community Development has many similar challenges to Thailand. Exploring the similarities and differences in our methods of meeting our challenges would be valuable for all of us. I would say yes in a second to such an opportunity.

There was an afternoon thunderstorm while we were in the seminar, I was watching the lightening and counting the seconds to the thunder, some of the lightening was very close. I have been noticing many lightening rods. I do not hear of any deaths or damage from all the lightening we have experienced. I do not know why, but maybe it is because of having so many lightening rods to attract the lightening strikes. I know in Minnesota, where we visit some summers, that we hear of lightening caused tragedy often.

I delivered the Access database to Nednapa yesterday. We will meet to decide the next step on Monday.

Going home there was a big traffic jam, the taxi driver was an expert at weaving through the lanes of traffic and making lanes where they did not exist. He was very competent, it was stressful, but he seemed very competent.

When we were stuck in traffic I noticed some writing on a few cars. There was a small red car with Kremlin and Fox written on the side, and Vampire written in large letters across the windshield. Another early 90's Mitsubishi had "Anything may possibly happen" written on a side window with a Playboy Bunny logo. The windows were heavily mirrored. Hmmm.....?

We crossed the river in the dark and rain with lightening in the near distance. We rode home on a motorbike in light rain. It is great to be home, and it was an excellent experience at the seminar.

Last night on the TV news they showed a dead person at Samut Prakan. He had drowned at the ferry boat landing. There was no covering of the corpse. They showed the mouth to mouth respiration. In the United States we would never see a dead person on local news, we might see it on international news or war coverage, Also on the news were a couple stories of people with disabilities. There was no shirking from showing the full extent of the disabilities. I wonder if the frank, even blunt, display of death and disability is related to Buddhism?

Today people are coming to work on the house, I will also pick up my film. Sunday will be the community meeting. I will, if invited, take pictures.