Are Our Kids Tough Enough?

The Chinese education system – with its long school days and tough discipline - tops global league tables. But how did British pupils cope when five Chinese teachers took over part of their Hampshire school?

For the BBC documentary Are Our Kids Tough Enough? An experiment was carried out at the Bohunt School in Liphook. Fifty children in year nine had to live under a completely different regime – one run by Chinese teachers.

For four weeks, they wore a special uniform and started the school day at 07:00. Once a week there was a pledge to the flag. Lessons were focused on note-taking and repetition. Group exercise was undertaken. The pupils had to clean their own classrooms. There were two meal breaks in a 12-hour day

Neil Strowger, headteacher, Bohunt School. In Shanghai last year, I had seen the incredible commitment of the students, enormous class sizes and immaculate behaviour. I had also witnessed PE lessons where the students stood in groups chatting, as PE was considered neither important nor a respite from the interminable monotony of the Chinese classroom.

In early spring, parts of my school were taken over by Chinese teachers. The Chinese flag was flying proudly over the sports field. But as early as the second day reports were coming in that the pupils were behaving badly – disengaged with the lessons, chatting and not listening to their teachers. Chinese teaching methods were on a collision course with teenage British culture and values. Our pupils are used to being able to ask questions to the teacher.

Perhaps, as a result of the amount of time spent together, teacher-pupil relationships got better and some pupils began to express a preference for the Chinese style. They liked having to copy "stuff" from the board as they thought this would help them remember it. Some more able pupils also liked the lecture style of the Chinese classroom.

What have I learned from the experiment? I believe that a longer school day would have value for our pupils and that teachers should not on occasion be afraid of delivering monologues in the classroom. It is, however, clear to me that Chinese parents, culture and values are the real reasons that Shanghai Province tops the oft-cited Pisa tables rather than superior teaching practice.

No educational approach or policy is going to turn back the British cultural clock to the 1950s. Nor should it seek to.

                                          www.bbc.com/news/magazine-33735517

Question 1: [2 POINTS] Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.

a. During the experiment students had to learn many things by heart and copy what the teachers said

b. Physical Education is very important for Shangay students

c. According to Neil Strowger it is not the teaching practice but Shangay culture and values what make Shangay students get the best results in survey education tables

d. British authorities are considering some changes in educational laws having in mind past policies.

Question 2: [2 POINTS] Answer the following questions in your own words.

a- What did the experiment at Bohunt School consist of?

b- Did students like the experiment?

Question 3: [1,5 POINTS] Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words and definitions given.

a – deal (paragraph 1)

b- responsibility (paragraph 4)

c- chronicle (paragraph 5)

d- ties (paragraph 6)

e- speeches (paragraph 7)

Key

Question 1

a- True     Lessons were focused on note-taking and repetition. 

b- False     PE was considered neither important nor a respite from the interminable monotony of the Chinese classroom.

c- True   It is, however, clear to me that Chinese parents, culture and values are the real reasons that Shanghai Province tops the oft-cited Pisa tables rather than superior teaching practice.

d- False No educational approach or policy is going to turn back the British cultural clock to the 1950s

Question 2

a- It consisted of spending four weeks developing different activities. 50 students had to follow instructions according to Chinese schools methodology, they even had to wear a special uniform and spend more hours at school. They had to take notes and memorise all the things the teacher said.

b- At first it was really hard for them, they misbehaved because they were not able to cope with so much work and discipline. After some time together, some students started to develop a taste for that kind of activities as they realised that they were learning things better.

            Question 3

a- Cope

b- Commitment

c- Reports

d- Relationships

e- Monologues