Teacher’s Day, Instructor Biographies, and Royal Speeches: Building Professional Educator Identities in Thailand from, 1957 to 1977

Abstract

This article examines the process through which a conservative identity was constructed for Thai teachers between 1957 and 1977. At the time, the Thai state transitioned toward a political consensus that positioned the monarchy as the national moral authority and arbiter. Teachers were mobilized as a core social base to support this transformation by adopting a conservative, monarchist identity and ideology. This process is analysed in the context of Teachers’ Day ceremonies and published instructor biographies (pravati kru) promoting exemplary teachers as moral models, as well as through royal speeches by King Bhumibol Adulyadej to senior educators award ceremonies. These practices were cultural power instruments, enabling the state to ideologically control the teaching profession over two decades.