บทบาทของตัวละครพ่อและแม่ในวรรณกรรมแบบเรียนภาษาไทยชั้นประถมศึกษาปีที่ 1-3

Abstract

The objective of this research was to examine the roles of father and mother characters in the Language for Life, Pasa Patee Series of the Prathomsuksa 1-3 Thai Literary Textbooks. The research’s scope was on the roles of the father and mother characters in 40 stories narrated in the textbooks provided by the Office of the Basic Education Commission (OBEC), the Ministry of Education. Documentary research was employed, and the data were represented in the form of descriptive analysis. According to the results, the textbooks present parental roles through the father and mother characters in three areas: 1) the family area in which the father and mother characters are role models for young people to be good Thai citizens, that is, to help society and act following democratic principles; 2) the society area in which the father and mother characters are role models for young people to choose a good occupation; 3) the father and mother characters as role models for young people to be good family members. The father character, in particular, is depicted as the family leader, whereas the mother character takes care of the family. Additionally, the father and mother characters act as educators of their family, and their roles are undoubtedly consistent with society’s desirable characteristics. Not only do the textbooks reveal the fascinating parental roles through the father and mother characters, but they also incorporate interesting presentation strategies of the content, which is in form of Thai poetry and idioms to arouse Prathomsuksa 1-3 students’ interest, and of some ideological subsets. Regarding the ideological subsets, the Philosophy of Sufficiency Economy is incorporated into the textbooks for students to apply to daily living, whereas the knowledge of love and unity is linked to the desirable characteristics discovered by the researcher. Moreover, the textbooks instill a set of ideas of respect and love for the monarchy, which is the heart of the Thai people, in the Prathomsuksa 1-3 students so that they love, respect, and adopt a democratic regime of government with the King as Head of State. The benefits of this research indeed reflect society’s expectations of the desirable characteristics of the father and mother characters as role models for young learners. As part of the government’s aim, the textbooks pass on significant ideologies and a guideline to encourage the Prathomsuksa 1-3 students to apply them in the authentic context of living appropriately in Thai society.