Buddhist Religious Leaders’ Participation in Promoting Informal Education in Thailand

Abstract

     The purposes of this documentary research were to identify and analyze the states of Buddhist religious leaders’ participation in promoting informal education in Thailand from 1946 to 2011. The research data were obtained from primary and secondary documentary sources. There were 84 documents comprising 21 primary documents and 63 secondary documents available at libraries and work agencies and on electronic databases. The research instruments comprised a document quality evaluation form and a data recording form. The methods of data collection involved: searching published, unpublished paper and electronically stored documents; document selection; and document evaluation. The data were analyzed using content analysis. The research findings concluded that Buddhist religious leaders participated in three aspects of informal education promotion in Thailand—namely: 1) establishment of learning resource centers by establishing sub-district public training units, educational parks and public libraries; 2) teaching and learning support by the propagation of Buddhism, organizing activities for moral and ethical development, and cultural-traditional transmission, and 3) educational media and technology by establishing television and radio broadcasting stations and by developing internet media and print media.