人民日报评论：英国会向中国的教育方式“取经”吗？

导语：中国的数学课本也“漂洋过海，出现在英国学校的课堂上。中国人开始反省中式教育，英国人为何却想要模仿？

 

It was recently reported that Chinese math textbooks have been introduced to the United Kingdom. As a matter of fact, the UK’s Department for Education announced back in July 2016 that it would carry out educational reform targeting math. Half of all elementary schools in England are encouraged to adopt traditional Asian methods for teaching math and 41 million pounds was allocated to schools for new textbooks and to fund teacher training.

 

据报道，中国的数学教材最近走进了英国课堂。其实早在2016年7月，英国教育部就宣布要在数学领域进行教育改革。英格兰半数小学将采用亚洲国家的数学教育模式，政府共拨出4100万英镑用于购买新教材和教师培训。

 

Over the past century, Asians have been learning from the Western education system. Education that promotes the “interest and happiness” of Britain was once the nation’s pride. However, in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) of 2009 and 2012, Chinese middle school students from Shanghai scored much higher in math, science, and reading compared to their British counterparts. The result pushed British educators to rethink their educational style: Perhaps relatively strict Chinese teaching is more effective in the development of students’ learning abilities.

 

在过去的一个世纪，亚洲国家一直在学习西方国家的教育体系。以“兴趣和快乐”为主旨的教育思想曾经是英国的骄傲。但是在2009年和2012年的国际学生评估项目中，来自中国上海的中学生在数学、科学和阅读三个领域的测试成绩远远高于英国的中学生。这一结果使英国的教育家们开始重新思考他们的教育方式：也许中国相对严格的教育方式能够更有效地提高学生们的学习能力。

 

In 2015, the BBC documentary “Are Our Kids Tough Enough? Chinese School” conducted an experiment in which fifty British teenagers in year nine spent four weeks in classes run by Chinese teachers. It was an exchange between Chinese and Western educational philosophy, with China’s “mastery after repeated practice” education program being imported to the UK.

 

2015年，BBC纪录片《我们的孩子足够坚强吗？中国式教学》启动了一个研究项目：由中国老师给50名九年级的英国学生上4周的课。这一项目将中国“熟能生巧”的教育观点引入英国，是中国与西方国家教育理念的相互交换。

 

Apart from the UK, the United Arab Emirates, Kenya, Malaysia, and many other countries have shown great interest in the Chinese style of teaching, which welcomes further tests in the international education market. Speaking of education, there is no definite right or wrong, what is in line with the actual demand is the key to successful education. At the same time the UK wishes their future to experience stricter teaching, China is working hard on alleviating the pressure from exam-oriented education.

 

除了英国，阿拉伯联合酋长国、肯尼亚、马来西亚等多个国家也对中国的教育模式表现出浓厚的兴趣，中国也欢迎来自国际教育市场的进一步检验。说到教育，没有所谓的正确与错误之分，符合实际需求是成功教育的关键。英国希望未来能够实施更加严格的教学，中国同时也在致力于缓解应试教育的压力。