Dai Tian Temple in Thailand was built by the Taiwanese community in Samut Prakan in 1992 and its governing body, Thamma Katanyu Foundation, was established to operate the temple, and to promote religious and educational understanding between Taiwan and Thailand, and related exchange activities.

The Education Division of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Thailand has been working together with schools in Samut Prakan for five years to have Mandarin Chinese teachers selected by the Ministry of Education in Taiwan teach Mandarin Chinese to Thai students in elementary and secondary schools there. Last November, TECO in Thailand organized a Mandarin Chinese and Taiwanese Cultural Study Camp, and approximately 200 Thai students, selected from 10 schools in Samut Prakan and Samutsakhon attended. The students had already learned some basic communication skills in Mandarin Chinese from their Taiwanese teachers before they attended the camp.

Dai Tian Temple was touched by the students’ efforts and good performance and decided to award scholarships to the best 30 students from among those in the Mandarin Chinese classes and the study camp. The students were recommended by their Taiwanese Mandarin Chinese teachers in Samut Prakan for showing great interest and potential.

The scholarship award ceremony was held in the morning of April 1, in Dai Tian Temple, presided over by Mr. Zhuang Ren-Gui, president of the Thamma Katanyu Foundation, and attended by directors, teachers, parents and students from seven elementary, middle schools, and vocational schools in Samut Prakan. Mr. Zhuang encouraged the students to continue studying hard and expressed his wish that all the students would make good contributions to society when they grew up.

A girl in six-grade at Sunsermwit School spoke on behalf of the 30 award-winners in fluent Mandarin Chinese and expressed their appreciation to Dai Tian Temple for the generous scholarships, and realization of the importance of education. She said that she started learning Mandarin Chinese when the Taiwanese teachers began teaching her class and she has made great progress since then.

These generous scholarships will no doubt, lead to an upsurge in enthusiasm among the students in Samut Prakan for learning Mandarin Chinese and learning about Taiwanese culture. Dai Tian Temple is definitely helping to bring the teachers and students in Thai schools and the students’ parents closer to Taiwanese religions and communities in Samut Prakan, Thailand.

Photo: Mr. Zhuang Ren-Gui, president of the Thamma Katanyu Foundation at Dai Tian Temple, with the award winners, and teachers at the scholarship award ceremony.