The Role of Higher Education in Relation to Peasants’ Social Mobility in Thai Society

Abstract

This research explores the impact higher education has on Thai farmers’ social mobility. This study utilizes qualitative method (Grounded Theory) to explore the lived experiences of local farmers and their experiences with higher education. This research has three primary objectives: 1) to explore the current socio-economic condition of Thai famers 2) to explore ways in which higher education has facilitated social mobility for this population and 3) to analyze the current condition of Thai peasants in relation to higher education through Bourdieu's theory of social capital and Foucault's approach to genealogy. Research procedure starts with an overview of the role of Thai higher education under the policy guidance of the National Economic and Social Development Plans in creating greater regional accessibility for Thais. It then proceeds to collect qualitative data based on interviews with four groups: 76 local farmers in 19 provinces in the north and the north eastern regions, six children of farmers currently in higher education, six children of farmers who have completed tertiary education and eight academic scholars/notable farmers. Research findings show that when it comes to farmers’ current status the themes show 1) changes through modernization 2) limited access to resources, 3) increased expense on farming, 4) poor returns on investment, and 5) increased living expense. In answering the question of the impact of higher education on social mobility of farmers, 1) higher education facilitates vertical mobility through employment other than rice farming 2) Thai educational system provides limited access for farmers’ children due to finance, admission process, quality of education in rural schools and distance that remains an obstacle. It is interesting to note the place community culture is still operating among Thai farmers especially the older generation and their corresponding discursive practices. The findings show that while higher education helps to facilitate social mobility, it happens through changing careers and finding employment within the industrial sector. For most farmers, higher education has not positively impacted the lives of local farmers and their livelihood. Mobility takes place via employment. Relative economic mobility takes place for only one participant who inherited a large piece of rice field. Second, even though higher education helps to facilitate social mobility, access to higher education is not readily accessible for farmers and their children in comparison to those middle class and higher in the urban areas. To explain these two factors, the analysis of the qualitative data utilizes two conceptual approaches: Bourdieu’s symbolic violence and Foucault’s genealogy. Bourdieu’s symbolic violence explains the limited access to higher education Thai farmers experience since education plays a significant role in the reproduction of social class. Foucault’s genealogy points to the reason higher education has not been able to meaningfully address the needs of local farmers by showing the lack of awareness of the genealogical root of knowledge for the agrarian community. The concept of social mobility itself is rooted in modernity emphasizing science, positivism, global economy and productivity. Agrarian knowledge is based on the relationship between farmers and their land through the lens of nature geographically located. The principle of subsistence is fundamental among farmers, which is contrary to the economics of modernity and globalization. Foucault’s genealogy helps explains the gap in education since knowledge as promoted by higher education is rooted in modernity and thus social mobility as its natural outcome. The gap therefore is the lack of awareness of two operating genealogies and two competing discourses. However the discourse of capitalism with its power to control food production has slowly taken away the space and legitimacy of farmers’ local wisdom. Still the resistance as rooted in community culture remains in various communities and seeks a return through King Bumibhol Adulyadej’s integrated farming and the principle of sufficient economy, the principle that calls for a return to the process of re-peasantization. It is also an invitation for higher education to deconstruct modernity in order to make room for alternative approaches to knowledge that can enhance the life of local farmers and thus facilitate social mobility within the context of agrarian philosophy.