Pin Malakul

Infobox Officeholder
honorific-prefix =Mom Luang
name =Pin Malakul
honorific-suffix =


imagesize =190px
small

caption =
order =
office =Thai Minister of Education
term_start =1957
term_end =1969
predecessor =Munee Mahasantana
successor =Sukij Nimmanahaeminda
order2 =
office2 =Thai Minister of Culture
term_start2 =21 September 1957
term_end2 =20 October 1958
predecessor2 =Prayun Yutthasatkoson
successor2 =(Post terminated)
order3 =
office3 =Member of the Executive Board of UNESCO
term_start3 =1952
term_end3 =1955
predecessor3 =
successor3 =
birth_date =24 October 1903
birth_place =Bangkok, Thailand
death_date =5 October 1995
death_place =
restingplace =
restingplacecoordinates =
birthname =
nationality =Thai
party =
otherparty =
spouse =Thanpuying Dushdi Malakul Na Ayutthaya
relations =
children =None
residence =
alma_mater =School of Oriental and African Studies
University of Oxford
occupation =
profession =
net worth =
cabinet =
committees =
portfolio =
religion =


website =
footnotes =
blank1 =Awards
data1 =National Artist in Literature, (1987)
blank2 =
data2 =
blank3 =
data3 =
blank4 =
data4 =
blank5 =
data5 =

Mom Luang Pin Malakul ( _th. หม่อมหลวงปิ่น มาลากุล, 24 October 1903 – 5 October 1995) was a Thai educator and writer. His contributions to education in Thailand include the establishment of various institutions of higher education, introduction of fixed class schedules and implementation of teacher-training programmes. In his career he served as Director-General of the Department of General Education, later becoming Permanent Secretary, and Minister, of Education. He was also a member of the Executive Board of UNESCO. His writings earned him the title of National Artist in 1987, and the 100th anniversary of his birth was celebrated by the UNESCO in 2003 as recognition of his contribution to the advancement of education in Thailand and Southeast Asia.

Early life

Mom Luang Pin Malakul was born on 24 October 1903 to the Chao Phraya Phrasadej Surendradhibodi (Mom Rajawongse Pia Malakul th icon) and Than Phuying Sa-ngiam Phrasadej Surendradhibodi (maiden name Vasantasingh). [Watcharaphon, pp.253–254.] He was the sixth of thirteen children. His father, a nobleman and great-grandson of King Buddha Loetla Nabhalai, was a high-ranking government official whose posts included Ambassador to the United Kingdom. M.R. Pia's work was instrumental in the establishment of higher education in Thailand and he later became the third Minister of Education under King Vajiravudh.

Education

M.L. Pin was educated at Suankularb Wittayalai School, and before turning twelve years old, was accepted into the Royal Pages School (now Vajiravudh College), under the blessing of King Vajiravudh. Within the same year, he had completed Mathayom 5 (grade 11).

At the age of eighteen, he was awarded a government scholarship to study Sanskrit in the United Kingdom. He received a diploma in Sanskrit from the University of London School of Oriental and African Studies, and in 1928 obtained BA with honours in the same field from the University of Oxford. He received a master's degree from Oxford in 1931.Saengpassa, p.111.]

M.L. Pin was talented and had great interest in mathematics, such that early in his stay in London the University offered him a scholarship for mathematical studies. This, however, did not suit the requirements of the Thai Government, and so M.L. Pin did not continue his mathematics education. [Intasang, p.5.] Nevertheless, his interest in the field did not waver, and he continued to produce works on the subject. Among these are his creation in 1927 of a formula which he called the "million year calendar", upon which he later based the development of a set of slide rules which could be used to calculate the day of week for any given date,ONCE 2003.] and his publication of "Miscellaneous Problems", a collection of various mathematical problems he had worked on.

Work

After returning from the United Kingdom, M.L. Pin was accepted as a government official under Krom Vichakan (now the Office of Vocational Education Commission). In 1932 he became an instructor in Mathematics, Thai and English at Chulalongkorn University, and later became the head of the university's teacher-preparation programme and the Headmaster of Horwang Secondary School of Chulalongkorn University, which served as the country's first demonstration (teacher training) school. Under this post, he was assigned the duty of overseeing the establishment of Triam Udom Suksa School in 1938, and became the school's first director. During his terms as director, he developed and implemented a fixed class schedule system, along with a mechanical timetable used to assign teaching periods. [Janehutthakarnkij et al., pp.63–64.]

In 1942, M.L. Pin was appointed Director-general of the Department of General Education, which under his direction was able to provide every province with at least one upper-secondary school. Teachers were guaranteed a 12 baht salary despite budget limitations, thanks to greatly efficient budget management. He became Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education in 1946, during the post of which he oversaw the founding of the Higher Teacher Training School, later to become Srinakharinwirot University, and the drafting of the first national education plan.

M.L. Pin also pioneered the field of distance education via the "Educational Radio" broadcasting station, which was set up at Thung Maha Mek Technical College in 1954. Despite obstacles and limited support, the programme proved successful and continually developed, and is now under the authority of the Centre for Educational Technology. Another project of his was the construction of the Bangkok Planetarium, which opened in 1964. [Watcharaphon, pp.256–261.]

M.L. Pin served as Minister of Education from 1957 to 1969, during which time he founded Chiang Mai University and the Sanamchandra Palace Campus of Silpakorn University, the latter of which he also was President from 1965 to 1971. He held the position of Minister of Culture for a short time during 1957 to 1958 before the post was terminated, and also served as member of the Senate in 1969 and of the National Legislation Assembly in 1972.

Internationally, M.L. Pin represented Thailand leading to its acceptance as the fifty-fifth member state of the UNESCO in 1949. He was elected to two terms on the UNESCO Executive Board from 1952 to 1955, during which he supported and helped advance UNESCO's programmes for promotion of universal compulsory education in Asian countries. He facilitated the establishment of UNESCO's regional office in Bangkok, which opened in 1961, and was among the founders of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization. [Ordoñez, p.1.]

Personal life

M.L. Pin was married to Thanpuying Dushdi Malakul Na Ayutthaya (maiden name Kraireuk), but had no children. He passed away on 5 October 1995, at the age of ninety-one.

Literary works

During his years as Royal Page Student, M.L. Pin closely served King Vajiravudh and became learned in Thai literature. He was a prolific writer and produced a great number of literary works, including 25 works of poetry, 57 works on education, 58 plays, 8 travel writings, and 56 other works. [Watcharaphon, pp.247–253.] Among these are the following works in English:
*Writings on education:*"Seminar on Rural Adult Education":*"Education during the Time when H.H. Prince Dhani Was Minister of Public Instruction"
*Plays:*"School in the Village":*"Somsak in Trouble"
*Others:*"Miscellaneous Problems" (1960):*"Miscellaneous Problems or An Autobiography of a Would-be Mathematician" (1972):*"The New Republic":*"Dramatic Achievement of King Rama VI":*"King Vajiravudh: Thailand's Prolific Writer"

Awards and recognition

M.L. Pin was most notably awarded the title of National Artist in Literature by the National Culture Commission in 1987 for his diverse contributions to the domain of Thai literature. The UNESCO celebrated the centenary of his birth in 2003, recognizing the value and impact of his contributions to the development of education in Thailand and Southeast Asia, and to the literary arts and the safeguarding and conservation of historical monuments and sites. [UNESCO 2002a, pp.83–84.] Other awards and honours he received include: [ONCC 1987, p.14.]
*The Boy Scout Citation Medal
*The Red Cross Commendation Medal
*The Elder Teacher's Pin, the Teacher's Council of Thailand
*The Dushdi Mala Medal
*The Royal Cypher Medal, 2nd class
*Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold (1964)
*Honorary degrees:*Doctor of Education, Chulalongkorn University:*Doctor of Education, Srinakharinwirot University:*Doctor of Arts, Chiang Mai University:*Doctor of Philosophy in history and Thai literature, Silpakorn University:*Doctor of Philosophy in Thai language, Ramkhamhaeng University:*Doctor of Laws, Indiana University (1964)

Notes

References

*citation|last=Intasang|first=Surat|title=นักคณิตศาสตร์ไทยที่ไม่ธรรมดานาม "ประดิสมิด"|journal=IPST Magazine|date=April–June 2001|publisher=IPST|place=Bangkok|issue=113|pages=3–5|accessdate=2008-09-21|url=http://www.ipst.ac.th/magazine/mag113/113_3.pdf. th icon
*Citation |last= Janehutthakarnkij |first= Jongchai |last2=Ratchaneekorn |first2=Songsri |last3=Siriwong |first3=Komkrit |last4=Trisonthi |first4=Pattama |last5=Poethong |first5=Arunee |last6=Getbenlittikul |first6=Pranee |title=70 ปี เตรียมอุดมศึกษา |place=Bangkok |publisher= Triam Udom Suksa School|year=2007 |isbn= . th icon
*citation|last=Office of the National Culture Commission|title=ศิลปินแห่งชาติ พ.ศ. 2530|publisher=Office of the National Culture Commission|year=1987|place=Bangkok|pages=11–16. th icon
*citation|last=Office of the National Culture Commission|title=24 ตุลาคม 2546 ครบรอบ 100 ปี​เกิด หม่อมหลวงปิ่น มาลากุล บุรุษ 5 ​แผ่นดิน |date=10 October 2003|year=2004|url=http://www.ryt9.com/news/2003-10-10/12541395/|publisher=Office of the National Culture Commission|accessdate=2008-09-21. th icon
*citation|last=Ordoñez|first=Victor|title=A Tribute to the Memory of Mom Luang Pin Malakul|date=16 October 1995|year=1995|publisher=UNESCO|url=http://www.unesco.org/education/pdf/ORDONEZ.PDF|accessdate=2008-09-16.
*Citation | last =Saengpassa | first =Chularat | year =2006 | date =July 2006 | contribution =ML Pin Malakul: Teacher with Vision | contribution-url =http://www.nationmultimedia.com/specials/35persons/images/110pin_1.pdf | editor-last = | editor-first = | title =35 Most Influential Thais | place =Bangkok | publisher =The Nation | pages =110–111 | isbn = | url =http://www.nationmultimedia.com/specials/35persons/ |accessdate=2008-09-21.
*citation|last=UNESCO|title=Records of the General Conference, 31st Session, Paris, 15 October to 3 November 2001|volume=Resolutions|publisher=UNESCO|place=Paris|year=2002|url=http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001246/124687e.pdf|accessdate=2008-09-16.
*citation|last=UNESCO|title=Address by Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), on the occasion of the re-dedication of the Mom Luang Pin Malakul Centenary Building|date=27 December 2002|year=2002|url=http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001291/129160e.pdf|publisher=UNESCO|accessdate=2008-09-16.
*citation|last=Watcharaphon |first=Prakat |title=คนไทย ดีเด่น ระดับโลก|publisher=Dokya|place=Bangkok|year=2002| isbn=974943207X|pages=243–263. th icon