Education Minister Permpoon Chidchob has asked all schools to suspend student field trips in the wake of Tuesday's horrific bus fire, amid growing social media debate over children's safety.
The temporary ban follows the tragic incident on Vibhavadi Rangsit road, near the Zeer Rangsit shopping centre in Lam Luk Ka district in Pathum Thani on Tuesday.
The minister said all school trips should be suspended for now. They could not be cancelled permanently because students benefit from such trips. He did not say how long the suspension should last.
Schools must ensure the safety of the vehicles used on trips by working with the Department of Land Transport, he said.
Students must also be divided into age groups. Small children should be accompanied by their parents since teachers might not be able to take care of all of them, and students should be drilled on what to do in an emergency.
Permpoon emphasised the importance of study trips, saying they allowed children to learn outside the classroom. However, field trips should be within the province and near the schools if possible, he said.
Tuesday's horrific accident, which killed 22 students and three teachers, sparked debate on social media over the safety of children taking study trips.
Some netizens argued schools should cancel all outside activities, to ensure such a thing never happens again. Others felt that students need such experiences outside the classroom to help their learning, and said poor transport safety was to blame for the deaths and injuries.
