位于利普胡克的博航特中學(xué)擁有1600名學(xué)生,是英國頂尖的綜合學(xué)校之一,坐落于地段繁華人來人往的村莊,該中學(xué)啟動了一項(xiàng)大膽又激進(jìn)的實(shí)驗(yàn):邀請了五位來自中國重點(diǎn)學(xué)校的老師來教50名13-14歲的九年級學(xué)生,為期四周。
Why? Simple. British students lag three years behind their Asian counterparts in academic achievement. In maths, they trail behind most of Europe, too。
為什么要這樣做?原因很簡單。英國學(xué)生在學(xué)業(yè)成績上和亞洲學(xué)生相比已經(jīng)落后三年了,在數(shù)學(xué)上,他們也落后于歐洲大部分國家。
Keenly aware of this, and conscious that its pupils will be competing with the Chinese for jobs in a global market, the school set out to test how its students would fare under the rigour, long hours and rigid discipline of the Chinese education system。
他們不僅強(qiáng)烈意識到這一點(diǎn),還意識到他們的學(xué)生將來要和中國學(xué)生在國際市場上競爭工作,于是這所學(xué)校打算測試一下它的學(xué)生會如何面對中國教育方法長時間的嚴(yán)格學(xué)習(xí),及對紀(jì)律的嚴(yán)格要求。
The answer, it seems, is abysmally。
答案似乎不太妙。
The pupils subjected to the rigour of the Chinese system swiftly show signs of rebellion。
開始中國式教育之后,學(xué)生們很快就有了反抗跡象。
Compelled to adjust to 7 am starts, a 12-hour day, a remorseless homework schedule and all-ability classes with 50 pupils (the British system recommends no more than 30), plus a return to traditional teaching methods, their reaction is, by and large, to revolt。
50名學(xué)生(英國教育體制建議一個班不超過30人)被迫要從早上7點(diǎn)開始學(xué)習(xí),每天學(xué)習(xí)12小時,面對著大量的家庭作業(yè)和全面學(xué)習(xí),再加上傳統(tǒng)的中國式教學(xué)法,他們大部分都表示抗拒。
The Chinese ethos — in which respect for authority and ruthless competition are key — could not be more remote from the child-centred learning in British schools, where pupils are encouraged to question and discuss, and the emphasis is on ‘self-discovery’. In Hampshire, Miss Yang has to control her class before she can teach them. In Asia, pupils accord her a reverential silence as she lectures them。
在中國民族精神中,尊師重道、殘酷競爭是主流,和英國學(xué)校奉行的以孩子為中心的教學(xué)方法大相庭徑,英國學(xué)校鼓勵學(xué)生們問問題、互相討論,強(qiáng)調(diào)要“發(fā)現(xiàn)自我”。在漢普郡,楊老師要在開始教學(xué)前先維持課堂秩序,而在亞洲,當(dāng)她開始上課的時候?qū)W生們都會尊重她,保持課堂安靜。
‘In China, teachers receive the respect of the children and they do as they’re told,’ she says. ‘Chinese students don’t waste other people’s time. In China, we don’t need classroom management skills because everyone is disciplined by nature, by families, by society. Here it is the most challenging part of teaching.’
“在中國,孩子們都很尊敬老師,老師怎么說,他們就怎么做,”她表示,“中國學(xué)生不會浪費(fèi)別人的時間。在中國,我們沒必要想辦法管理班級,因?yàn)槊總€人都被自己、家庭以及社會要求守紀(jì)律。這點(diǎn)是教學(xué)中最具挑戰(zhàn)性的部分。”
She is bemused when a girl leaves the classroom in tears after learning that singer Zayn Malik has left the boy band One Direction. ‘I find it difficult to understand such emotional behaviour over a pop band,’ she says, incredulous。
當(dāng)一個女孩子為了澤恩·馬利克離開單向樂隊(duì)這件事哭著離開教室時,楊老師表示無法理解。“我很難理解為了一個流行樂隊(duì)就如此激動的行為。”她覺得難以置信。
One of the teachers has a theory about poor behaviour in British schools: Wei Zhoa blames the ‘feather-bedding’ of our welfare state for promoting pupils’ lack of ambition and lax discipline. ‘Even if they (young adults) don’t work, they can get money, so they don’t worry about it,’ she tells me。
其中一位老師對英國學(xué)校里的糟糕表現(xiàn)進(jìn)行推測:魏兆(音譯)指責(zé)英國的福利制度創(chuàng)造了太過舒適的環(huán)境,使得學(xué)生們失去干勁,紀(jì)律松懈。“就算他們(學(xué)生們)不工作,他們也能拿到錢,所以他們根本就不在乎。”
‘But in China they can’t get these things, so they know: “I need to study hard, I need to work hard, to get money to support my family。” ’
“但是在中國,學(xué)生們沒有這樣的福利制度,所以他們知道:‘我得好好學(xué)習(xí),努力工作,賺錢養(yǎng)家。’”
He says: ‘In China, it’s really difficult to get help if you lose your job, so you think really hard about making a living. You need to keep your job to get money. That’s the way of life。
他表示:“在中國,如果你失業(yè)了,你很難得到救助,所以你必須努力謀生。你必須要有工作,不然就沒有錢,這就是在中國的生活方式。”
‘If the British Government really cut benefits down to force people to go to work, they might see things in a different way。
“如果英國政府削減福利,迫使人們?nèi)スぷ?,他們可能就不會這樣看待學(xué)習(xí)了。”