Area-Based Action Curriculum: Innovation in Education for Sustainable Development of Tai Lue Cultural Community, Thailand

Abstract

The objectives of this researchare to; (1) present educational innovation in the process of establishing the true potential of the Tai Lue community in Chiang Kham and (2) study the process of creating capacity through the use of Area-Based Action Curriculum of the Tai Lue community in Chiang Kham. This research study utilizes a mixed-method research approach with an integration of Participatory Action Research-PAR, qualitative research, and quantitative research. The number of subjects included in this study, which uses the area-based action curriculum of the Tai Lue Chiang Kham community, is comprised of 20 external people and 45 students who studied in the community's educational institutions. As a result, the procedures and processes of this approach were implemented by people embedded within the community.
The findings indicated that the use of the Area-Based Action Curriculum helps in developing the expanded potential of the Tai Lue Chiang Kham ethnic community and the participants were interested in curricular activities, especially those associated with active-learning practices. Consequently, community members hold the potential of creating their own cultural curriculum. Furthermore, the study of the Area-Based Action Curriculum of the Tai Lue Chiang Kham community of Phayao province in Thailand, involved the process of enhancing the community’s potential in order to further develop aspects of cultural tourism. Ultimately, the process employed in this study would allow the community to serve as a model that has embraced sustainable forms of eco-cultural tourism.