Contributions to Kindergarten Education by Khunying Benja Sangmali: A Legendary Expert in Early Childhood Education from Suan Dusit University

Abstract

This article presents a biography of Khunying Benja Sangmali, a legendary expert in Thai kindergarten education; her important concepts regarding kindergarten management; and her valuable methods of instructing kindergarten trainee teachers in the past. Khunying Benja strongly believed in the theory that a trainee kindergarten teacher should have all of the following: knowledge of early childhood education, morals, ethics, and a good personality. Based upon her belief in the student-centered concept, kindergarten teacher trainees are able to learn well through practicums in real situations. Her concepts resulted in the establishment of the 2017 Bachelor of Education in Early Childhood Education (five-year program) at Suan Dusit University. Khunying Benja Sangmali also modernized many early-childhood education concepts, enhanced the identity of Suan Dusit University, and improved foreign language proficiency and technological skills for retrieving information. Her valuable concepts have enabled students following the curriculum of early childhood education to become 21st century learners.