The training, a cooperation between the military and the Election Commission, aims to turn around 300,000 mostly high school students nationwide into “qualified” youths and good citizens.

In each year of their training, students will study politics, the importance of the constitution, being good and democratic citizens, democracy and transparency.

The Election Commission will educate military trainers who will then train students, said Election Commissioner Prawit Rattanapian at the opening ceremony of the training on Monday.

This year, classroom and activity training will account for 40 per cent of the entire training with the rest field training, said Lt-General Weerachai Inthusophon, commander of homeland security, at the ceremony.

“Around 100,000 students will finish the training this year. Afterwards, some will become reserve officers and some will do other jobs,” Weerachai said. “That’s why we have to build good citizens of the future. Apart from lectures, the students will also be encouraged to join awareness-raising activities prior to elections.”

Last year, reserve officer-training students were briefed on the content of the charter and relayed the information to local people before last August’s charter referendum.

On voting day, they manned polling booths.