Development of Local Curriculum on Assam tea In Sakad, Sakadpattana School Nan Province through Participatory Action Research

Abstract

Assam tea is a native tea plant in Sakad, Nan, Thailand. Local curriculum development of Assam tea was developed for teaching Sakadpattana School’s students. The aims of this research are (1) learning and gathering information about Assam tea, (2) developing the local curriculum on the Assam tea at Sakadpattana School. The study was conducted by using Participation action research (PAR) which was based on reflection, data collection, and action to improve the student’s knowledge of the tea. There are 33 participants, consisting of school director, teachers, community leaders, parents, local people and Prathomsuksa 4 students at Sakad School. The research instruments were questionnaires, an interview, an achievement test, a skilled assessment, and a desirable feature evaluation. The statistics used for data analysis were percentage, means, and standard deviation. The qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis. The results of this study show that: 1) The knowledge of Assam tea in Sakad consisted of (1) there are three breeds of Assam tea, (2) The products from Assam tea in Sakad are fermented tea leaf and dried tea flower and leaf. 2) The local curriculum on Assam tea in Sakad was developed by Sakadpattana School. The curriculum structure consists of 5 learning units: 1. About Assam Tea ; 2. Assam Tea's Benefits;  3. Sakad's  Topography; 4. Assam Tea's Puzzle (the integration between Mathematics and calculation of profits from the tea products); and 5. Speaking at Sakad (talking about Assam tea in English). After implementing the curriculum in the classroom, the results of each learning units were evaluated and analyzed by the researcher. The results revealed that this curriculum was effective accordingly to its principles and objectives. Using the focus group, it was found that all participants were satisfied with the course trial. The content on “Miang” is accurate and suitable for learners and the components of the local curriculum are complete in terms of course structure. The learning units and the learning management plan gained during the process is important and useful to learners. There should be an action to prepare and develop a local curriculum on Miang at Sakad subdistrict of Sakad Pattana School, Nan Province to be a learning center that creates a body of knowledge for students and the public, so that the local wisdom will remain forever.