Kids today

Today I interviewed 10 young Thais. Not for a job. They were the finalists of a Young Journalists competition run by TV network True Visions and BBC World with some support from British Council (that’s me). The prize is a month’s internship at BBC HQ in London. ‘All’ they had to do was send in an essay about why they should be chosen, with these whittled down to 30 who attended a 3-day series of workshops & tests, whittled down again to the 10 who sat in front of me today. I say me; I was joined by five others, including Alastair Leithhead, BBC’s Asia Correspondent.

These were Mass Communication undergrads, all undergoing a grilling in English, and expected to answer questions like: You have been asked to produce a half hour programme on a news story in Thailand that would appeal to an international audience – what would it be and how would you put it together? I’d find this difficult enough as a native English-speaker with 30 years more life experience to call upon. But they gave it their best as they proposed balanced documentaries on Thailand’s polarized politics or the GT200 bomb detector bought from Britain. Impressive.

Of course these youngsters (nine female, only one male) are offspring of the Thai elite: rich, highly educated, pushy parents who pay for the extra tuition that will get their kids into the best universities. Often they’ll have an exchange year in a US or Australian school along the way. I want the best for my children of course, but do I want them studying every hour available? Should I be taking their education more seriously than I think I am?