To make the decision less perplexing, parents should stay focused on the child's development. Also, it's important that both parents discuss and agree on the general elements that are important to them as a family, as preschool is a critical developmental stage and a time for acquiring many new skills.

It is vital that parents don't make the mistake of thinking of a preschool as a nursery, a day care or institutional babysitter. Such traditional carers simply "warehouse" or "keep" children during the day while parents work, receiving the child in the early morning and returning the child near dusk, having nourished only the stomachs, but not their minds or personalities.

A good preschool should be much more than a safe haven, it should be a repository of knowledge, active participation, new skills, social manners and interactive social play from which every child should be encouraged to partake copiously. It is from this vantage point that parents should start their selection of a preschool.

"Choosing the right preschool is vital because if children are impressed by their school, they would most likely want to study for their primary years and so forth," says Dr Weerasak Chonchaiya, a developmental pediatrician at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital.

Starting point

Parents with preschool children, usually ages two-and-a-half to five years, are advised to find adequate background information about the preschools, which can be done by simply talking to friends about their children's schools.

They can also browse through preschool directories sold in local bookstores, select a few schools close to home and accomodate time to visit these schools, says Dr Kaewta Nopmaneejumruslers, a developmental pediatrician at the National Institute For Child and Family Development.

A school visit will give parents a realistic picture of how the classes are run, its general environment and the interaction between teachers and students, many of which might be exaggerated in school advertisements.

Dr Kaewta also suggests parents consider enrolling their child for summer school so they can get a "hands-on preview" of what the school and staff have to offer their child.

Safe and sound

When visiting the school, observe its general environment, talk to other parents to get feedback about the school and talk to the school administrator to know its educational, operational and developmental policies, and to explore the school's philosophy.

The school should be a safe environment for your child. For example, dangerous objects should be kept away from prying and curious children, and furniture and play equipment must be in good condition. The school should have paid security and fencing to keep little ones from wandering off the premises.

Preschoolers are expected to release their stored energy by being physically active. Therefore, the school should be equipped with emergency measures in case of accidents, be familiar with and known by nearby clinics and hospitals, and have staff who are properly trained in basic first aids, says Edward Roy Krishnan, PhD, a lecturer of Psychology at Mission College in Saraburi province and a visiting lecturer at the Graduate School of Psychology, Assumption University.

Stimulating learning

Children play out their feelings.

During your visit, ask permission to observe a classroom to see how a class is managed and see if the classrooms are designed to stimulate learning, says Arwenun Klipbua, director of Rasami International School. Observe if students are happy, allowed to interact with each other and generally move around. Check that there is discipline in the classrooms and that the teachers present professional skills suitable for teaching young children. Patience is a critical component of teachers charged with handling very young children.

Director Klipbua says class materials, such as books, toys and learning aid should be physically attractive to the children, as most three-year-old children cannot read.

In your 20-minute stay in a classroom, observe if the teaching method is child-centered or teacher-centered. In child-centered learning, teachers are not the focus of the learning activity. Instead, teachers serve merely as facilitators, allowing students much control of their own learning, interaction and finding solutions to learning problems as they arise.

"Teachers provide enriching learning environments for children to explore and discover and make sense of knowledge by themselves," says Dr Krishnan.

Caring environment

He advises parents to observe if there is positive interaction between the children and teachers, and whether teachers are dedicated and passionate about their work.

Overall, the general atmosphere of the school's staff should be compassionate, understanding and empathic in all circumstances. The staff should ensure that the children's needs are met without compromise, says Dr Krishnan.

When talking to the school's principal, ask about the school's vision to find out if the school is focusing on the child's interest, rather than promoting its image for commercial purposes, says Dr Kaewta.

Additionally, if the school is active in making improvements, as well as developing their teachers' professionalism, parents can be assured that the school is also interested in maximizing their child's development.

Essential developments

Children in their preschool years make great strides in neuro-muscular control, especially of their hands and fingers. Activities that encourage tactile and small muscle developments, as well as hand and eye coordination, include playing with modeling clay, and activities using crayons, finger paint, and building blocks.

Many outdoor activities, such as running, jumping and catching balls help develop their larger muscles.

Emotionally, children express intense feelings of joy, fear, anger and love. Adults should help children to play-act their emotions and encourage them to talk about their feelings.

During the preschool ages, children also display greater independence. This is a time for them to socialize and develop friendships. Teachers, should therefore, allow time and freedom for them to play with each other, only intervening to settle disputes, says Dr. Kaewta.

Preschool children display curiosity, begin to notice similarities and differences and should be encouraged to experiment and to do hands-on activities. Moreover, a child's brain is constantly trying to assign meaning to everything around him or her, says Dr Krishnan.

Dr Weerasak says that the child's language ability is a good indicator of the process of their mental development. A total stranger should be able to understand 75 percent of what a three-year-old child says, as this is the age when he or she begins to use simple sentences with a subject, verb and object.

As their vocabulary expands and their conversations become more complicated, children should be given opportunities to interact verbally with their classmates on a regular basis at school. Activities that encourage language development include story telling, role-play and puppetry.

Travel distance

Living close to school can save your children from feeling too exhausted to learn after a long journey to school and will allow them to keep their friendships with classmates who live close by. Sometimes, parents compromise these factors and opt for an excellent school located far from the home.

Other parents prefer preschools near their work place, which also allows them to spend quality time with their children during the early morning and late afternoon commutes. A school close by work also allows a parent greater opportunities to participate in their child's school events.

Costs

Parents should also consider the tuition fees of the preschool they choose and prepare an additional budget in case daily meals, school materials, uniforms and even transportation costs are excluded. Usually, tuition fees for preschools in Thailand, including Thai, bilingual or international program, range from 12,000 baht to 180,000 baht per semester, with schools offering 2 or 3 semesters per school year.

Parents' choices

With the wide availability of choices for preschools in Thailand, parents are often confused about which choice to make. Many schools offer academic excellence.

Dr Kaewta urges parents not to be persuaded to choose a school merely because of the academic emphasis and activities that the school offers, without considering the happiness of the child. What is most important is that the school should motivate them to self-learn, not spoon-feed information to them.

Dr Weerasak recommends that parents, after a complete investigation, re-focus on the child and restrict the key decision points to simply whether the school is suitable to their child's character, personality and development.