Mahidol Wittayanusorn School

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Location
Mahidol Wittayanusorn School

Paññāya parisujjhati (By wisdom, one is purified.)
Salaya, Phutthamonthon Nakhon Pathom, 73170, THA
Coordinates	13°48′2″N 100°19′8″E / 13.80056, 100.31889Coordinates: 13°48′2″N 100°19′8″E / 13.80056, 100.31889
Information
School board	Mahidol Wittayanusorn School Board
Oversight	Minister of Education
Affiliation(s)	Mahidol University
Director	Dr Thongchai Chewprecha
Staff	51
Enrollment	707 (2005 academic year)
Faculty	100
O-NET Average	376.91 (2005 academic year)
Average class size	24
Gender	Coeducational
School type	Public (as an autonomous public organisation), boarding science school
School fees	full scholarship awarded to all students
Age range	15 - 18
Grades	10–12 (Mathayom 4–6)
Campus	Salaya
Campus	Suburban
Campus size	4 ha
School Colour(s)	Blue & yellow
Established	28 August 1990, original school 25 August 2000, present form
Homepage	http://www.mwit.ac.th/

Mahidol Wittayanusorn School (Thai: โรงเรียนมหิดลวิทยานุสรณ์), also known colloquially as Mahidol Wit, Mahidol Witt or M-wit, is a secondary school in Thailand. Situated on the Salaya Campus of Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom Province, it enrols Mathayom 4–6 students (grades 10–12), and is the first specialised science school in the country, designed to provide education for the full development of exceptionally gifted and talented students in science and mathematics. The school is unique among Thai schools in that it functions as an autonomous public organisation, and receives direct funding from the government of up to ฿100,000 per student, which means that all students are awarded a full scholarship including accommodation in the space of three years at Mahidol Wittayanusorn. Since its conception in 2000, the school has rapidly become one of the most prominent schools in Thailand, with extremely intense competition for enrolment. (17,539 students sat the school's entrance examination in 2006, while the school enrols 240 students annually.)^[1]

1 History
2 Campus and facilities
3 Vision
4 Curriculum
5 Academics
6 Identities and uniqueness
- 6.1 March Mahidol
- 6.2 Colour
7 References
8 External links

[edit] History

Mahidol Wittayanusorn School was founded with the purpose of promoting science and mathematics education in the Thai school system, due to concerns regarding Thailand's lack of human resources specialised in science and technology. The school was established on 28 August 1990 with cooperation between Mahidol University, which was already recognised for its science studies and would provide academic support, and the Department of General Education of the Ministry of Education, which would be the school's governing authority.

The school opened on 3 June 1991. Initially, classes were temporarily held at Wat Rai Khing in Sam Phran District until the school finally settled at its current location on the Salaya Campus of Mahidol University in 1995. This initial arrangement, however, had many limitations, mostly due to the teaching system, which still depended on the national curriculum, and inflexibility due to organisation structure as a governmental agency, and the school saw relatively little growth during the first ten years.

In 1999, government policy pushed for the development of science-specific schools to accommodate students talented in the scientific and mathematic fields. Mahidol Wittayanusorn School was accordingly remodeled as an autonomous public organisation under the supervision of the Minister of Education on 25 August 2000, and was designated the country's first specialised science school.

Under this new structure, the school came under direct authority of the Mahidol Wittayanusorn School Board, and enjoyed more flexibility as well as greater financial support from the government. The school developed its own curriculum and teaching systems, and began admitting students under this new phase in the 2001 academic year. The school then rapidly grew in fame, attracting some of the brightest students from all over the country, not least for its abundance of resources. The number of students competing for admission increased from 8,501 in 2001 to 17,539 in 2006.

[edit] Campus and facilities

The school occupies 4 hectares on the northeastern section of Mahidol University's Salaya Campus. School facilities include the academic resource centre, astronomy virtual reality theatre, science, language, electronics and computer laboratories, industrial drawing, mechanics and ceramics workshops, and a 4-storey sports centre. The school also has a computer network system featuring 400 computer terminals, and the entire school campus is equipped with wireless network access.

Since the school focuses primarily on natural sciences, its laboratories possess sufficient equipment, some of which are rare to other high schools or even some universities. The school library, officially called the academic resource centre, stores a huge number of books. Together with an unlimited internet supply, adequate quality computers and available lap-tops for all to borrow, the school allows students to enhance their knowledge both theoretically and experimentally, including their detailed projects required for graduation. Teachers are encouraged to be functionally literate at technology such as computer and smartboard. The school also provides most classrooms with a computer and a projector ready for use.

The newly-built sport centre involves 4 badminton courts, table-tennis, squash rooms, dance floor, a fitness centre and a basketball pitch. Recently the swimming pool has been built and ready for use. The school also has another cement basketball pitch and a green standard football field, the peripheral of which is a quality running track. The school also has a first aid centre, a shop, or colloquially called the minimart, and a canteen.

[edit] Vision

Mahidol Wittayanusorn School endeavors to provide world class education at the upper secondary level (Grade 10 – 12) for exceptionally gifted students in mathematics, science, and technology, so that they will have the essential qualities to become active lifetime learners, researchers and innovators. It is also the purpose of the school to induce in each student good health as well as the inspiration of good moral and ethical values. Being proud of their Thai identity, the students will be dedicated to national development and environmental protection while at the same time having positive attitudes towards others both in Thailand and the world at large.

^[2]

[edit] Curriculum

Mahidol Wittayanusorn School develops its own curriculum based on the requirements of the national Curriculum of Basic Education, and conducts revisions triennially. As of the 2005 curriculum, students are offered a customised curriculum including 113 courses, 13 of which are advanced placement courses affiliated with Mahidol University. As a boarding school, learning activities are extended to outside the classroom. Extra-class activities, including one student project, are specified as requirements of graduation. Although the school provides many necessary equipment, many students often request for more advanced tools or professional advice; therefore, they are given opportunities to work in universities under the supervision of professors. A certain number of social service hours, exercise hours, recommended books, lectures given weekly by guest speakers, hours of educational trips and camps attended are also necessary for graduation.

During the time when Dr. Thongchai was the principal, another criterion used to be informally added - every student must perform a Thai traditional dance in front of him in order to show their cultural awareness, affection for and pride of being a citizen of the kingdom. Students normally gather in an evening and dance happily as a whole.

[edit] Academics

Under the new school structure, Mahidol Wittayanusorn graduates have had a university entry rate of 100 percent. Mathayom 6 students averaged 376.91 points in the first O-NET examinations in the 2005 academic year, the country's highest. Additionally, a significant amount of graduates (9.2% in the 2004 academic year) have been awarded scholarships to continue their education abroad. Students here are very well prepared for university life, provided that many students have scored the highest in Advanced Placement Programmes amongst other freshmen in Mahidol University.

Mahidol Wittayanusorn students have also gained international prominence in the International Science Olympiads. Many students are selected to be national representatives after a long period of excellent academic performance evaluated by IPST, a national governmental organisation. In 2007, four of the twenty-two national contestants were from the school.

In 2005, the school hosted the First Thailand International Science Fair in which youth from all over the world came to present their science projects. Currently, the school has made many contacts with other schools in foreign countries, and it has succeeded in establishing partnership between some other science schools. This collaboration will hopefully help it become more internationally recognised as a world-class educational institution.

[edit] Identities and uniqueness

[edit] March Mahidol

March Mahidol is the school song. ^[3]

พวกเรามหิดลวิทยานุสรณ์ บุคลากรผู้มีความสามารถ
นำเทคโนโลยีมาพัฒนาชนในชาติ เป็นนักวิทยาศาสตร์เพียบพร้อมคุณธรรม
ใต้ร่มธงน้ำเงินเหลืองเฟื่องศักดิ์ศรี ความสามัคคีน้ำใจไมตรีดีงาม
ดอกศรีตรังนั้นบานสะพรั่งทั่วเขตคาม งามสมนามมหิดลวิทยานุสรณ์

The English version of the song does not exist, but it can be directly translated as follows:

We, Mahidol Wittayanusorn
Enhanced with ability and skills
Bring technology to develop the kingdom.
Scientists, we thrive in moral wisdom.

Under the yellow and blue dignity
Together we are tied with unity.
Elegantly blooms the Sri trang every morn.
And so blooms Mahidol Wittayanusorn.

[edit] Colour

The colours of the school are blue and yellow. Blue symbolises the king as used in the national flag. It is also referred to as strength, stability and discipline. Yellow symbolises scientists, rational imagination, sincerity, impartiality and morality. Therefore, the juxtaposition of blue and yellow indicates the rational and disciplined people who always enhance their knowledge and imagination, especially in science and technology, without losing moral values. These devoted students will become the citizens who benefit their society, the country, and the world in the future.^[4]

[edit] References

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