Developing Thai Society and Culture Learning Innovation to Enhance Global Literacy of Cross–Cultural Families Students in the Global Society

Abstract

This research aimed to 1) study the context of Thainess within cross-cultural families in the global society; 2) develop a Thai society and culture learning process to enhance global literacy of cross-cultural families students in the global society; and 3) evaluate the Thai society and culture learning innovation to enhance global literacy of cross-cultural families students in the global society. This study employed a participatory action research (PAR) approach. The research instruments included document analysis, unstructured interviews, learning innovation quality assessment forms, global awareness assessment forms, and focus group discussion records. Qualitative data were analyzed using data reduction techniques, followed by data extraction to obtain information suitable for content analysis. Findings were presented descriptively. Quantitative data were analyzed using statistical software to calculate the mean and standard deviation. The results of the study the context of Thainess within cross-cultural families in the global society. The findings reveal that Thainess, as reflected in these families, is a significant indicator of the processes involved in constructing and preserving Thai identity within a globalized context. This Thainess is comprised of five key aspects: 1) Thai multicultural way of life 2) Thai etiquette 3) Thai food wisdom 4) Thai family ethics and values and 5) Thai arts and culture. This study investigated the development of a Thai society and culture learning process to enhance global literacy of cross-cultural family’s students in the global society. The researcher synthesized a learning process called the "ABCD Thai Society and Culture Learning Approach," comprising four steps: 1) Achievement motivation, 2) Brainstorming, 3) Creative thinking, and 4) Discussion.  Based on this approach, four lesson plans were designed, totaling 12 learning hours, incorporating digital media with content on Thai society and culture. The content covered three areas: 1) Basic knowledge, 2) Thai ways and traditions, and 3) Thai food culture. The developed lesson plans were evaluated and deemed to be of the highest quality for implementation in an educational setting. And an evaluation of the Thai society and culture learning innovation to enhance global literacy of cross-cultural family’s students in the global society revealed that students who engaged in this learning process demonstrated a very high level of global literacy.