Thai troops clash with armed drug traffickers, seize 200,000 meth pills

13 Sept 06:14 Key points summarised by AI

Thai army troops engaged in a brief gun battle with armed drug traffickers during a routine patrol in Mae Ai district, Chiang Mai, near the Thai-Myanmar border.
Following the five-minute firefight, the suspects fled, abandoning backpacks containing 200,000 methamphetamine tablets which were subsequently seized by the troops.

Examining Thailand’s four-part education revolution

Today 14:22 Key points summarised by AI

Thailand's Education Ministry is implementing a four-pronged strategy to address its students' below-average performance in PISA 2025 and tackle significant educational inequality.
The plan prioritizes closing performance gaps by increasing funding for small and low-income schools, overhauling the curriculum to foster critical thinking, and adopting a data-driven management system to reduce teacher workload.
Key initiatives include enhancing school safety, combating cyberbullying, and expanding mental health support through peer-to-peer networks, recognizing the severe impact of distress on academic performance.
An education expert advises verifying if PISA improvements stem from structural changes, advocating for a revived STEM curriculum with practical 'learn by doing' methods, and urging bureaucratic reform to link teacher evaluations to student development.