Teacher Ma, Grade 3 Kor. (2022)

An heartwarming teacher-student drama that’s full of positive messages.

'Khru Ma' is a hidden gem, an underrated drama. The premise of a new, fun, eccentric teacher from the city is not new, but this drama delivers the idea in a way that goes beyond the new teacher storyline. It has several themes, such as education, teacher-student relationships, friendships, and local community life. All these themes are conveyed in well-written plots and characters.

Wichai is a strong believer that knowledge is not fixed in textbooks and that education should benefit the students, not the teacher. As quoted by Wichai; “Students scoring higher marks in every subject is more of the teachers’ success measurement than the students.” Although the drama focused on his unconventional teaching style, it also objectively touched on the pros and cons of the common teaching methodology.

The time setting that takes place during the dispute between the Khmer and Vietnamese communist parties makes the conflict in this drama not only focused on the school but also revolves around the town, which is located at the Thai-Cambodian border, where the people are of diverse ethnicities and different backgrounds. It also touched on how the conflict has led to prejudice against other races within the community. However, the issue is skillfully conveyed without displaying bias.

One major thing that I like about this drama is the characters. Each character has its own significance - the teachers, the students, the headmaster, the parents, and even the small roles of the café owner and the librarian. If Wichai is the head of this drama, the students are the limbs. They carry out the plots effortlessly, making every episode enjoyable to watch. Although the issues created by the opposing characters seem repetitive, they’re just enough to create tension.

This drama does come with a few flaws, especially the repetitive displeasure among teachers about Wichai's teaching style, but overall, it does a good job at creating a balance between drama, comedy, romance, tension, family, and friendship without losing its main focus.

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1975. In the tense times of war in the neighbouring countries, and the worries about a similar communist insurgence, a young teacher arrives in a provincial border town.
His progressive ideas about teaching don't find easy acceptance among parents and teachers, who think strict upbringing, including corporal punishment, and learning by rote is the path to success for their children.
We follow teaching, parenting and learning adventures of Kru "Ma" Wichai and his third graders in this 12 episode drama.

I admit, I can't often withstand the temptation of a good drama about teaching -- and this one delivered. I loved its message about good teaching methods (even if sometimes I thought Wichai could have found a middle ground in teaching, for peace's sake) and how it showed how school and parenting was done in the 1970s in Thailand.
Also, I learned that I know next to nothing about the history of south-east Asia -- I mean I had heard of Pol Pot, and of course, the VietCong but I did not know anything about the greater picture in the area, let alone that life in Thailand's border territory was that dangerous.
So, a great learning experience not only for the characters but also for me.

The acting was great all around -- and especially for the children! These young actors, five of whom had rather large roles, impressed me.
The story, i.e. the characters and the setting had hooked me from the very first minutes -- and it did not let me go until the last second. The conflicts were at times solved too easily or too quickly, that is to be expected though; this series is made to be a feel-good drama, with a positive outlook.
Most of the series is either optimistic or funny, the last episode had me in tears three times (for entirely different reasons each time).

There's maybe a bit of romantic interest (a few minutes in the later episodes), but it's up to the viewer to decide if they get together as a couple or if they remain good colleagues -- I choose the latter ;) The teacher-student relationship and the friendships between the children are definitely at the centre of the drama, as it should be.

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