Post-election British Politics Megathread

[Martinus]

Wow, this is probably the first time ever Tamas, Mono and I agreed on something. I guess we must be right then.

[Richard Hakluyt]

I hear a lot of people in HK say that the western curriculum is crap and that Chinese education is a lot tougher.  I think tougher does not necessarily mean better.  The bottom line is, tons of HKers and Chinese send their children to receive a western education.  Graduates of western universities are sought after by Chinese employers.  The reverse however is not true.  Westerners almost never send their children to China to receive an education.  Maybe they go for short-term exchanges or language courses but they don't go to China to get 4-year degrees.  Why?  Because everybody knows that a western education is better.  In boosting confidence, nurturing critical thinking and problem solving skills.  These are the things that matter, not memorising more stuff than the next person.

Well said 

There is something of a fashion here in the UK to marvel at (eg.) the problems that China's 11-year-olds solve. Problems that, imo, are merely complex rather than difficult. I hope that fashion does not influence educational policy and lead to our young people wasting their time on a pointlessly "tough" curriculum.

[Josquius]

On bbc 3 at the moment is a crappy reality show dealing with how much better the chinese education system and all that. Theybe brought over chinese teachers to teach one class the chinese way then seeing .how they compare to a class taught the regular british way.
It isnt being done very scientifically so is useless but the issue is getting attention.

Interesting though to hear the British system being spoken of in good terms for not being about information cramming. The British system has way too much of that imo.

[Norgy]

I heard about that on the radio (yes, I listen to radio rather than watch TV mostly).

The Chinese lecturer they interviewed that worked in the UK was sure the Chinese way was the best. A British lecturer that worked in the PRC was pleasantly surprised that his students appreciated his feedback on their papers, and that they hadn't expected him to actually grade them. 

Some stuff is worth memorising, and our school system apparently has thought otherwise. I once tried teaching. I wanted to strangle all my pupils for being such stupid effing twats. Mostly because school hadn't even taught them simple deduction or to even ask a critical question. These were 15-16 year olds. The curriculum was rather boring, granted. Even I fell asleep when writing notes.

[Monoriu]

If the Chinese education system is really that good, they won't be sending their kids overseas in droves. 

[Norgy]

Well, I think the main point was the Chinese students still had some respect for academical authority while a majority of Western students and pupils just view school, college, university and whatnot as a place to make friends, study a little to get a job and get some. I know I did.

[Tamas]

Ok can somebody give me the short version on who this guy is and why he is so destructive? Just some insignificant MP getting hype because he says outrageous populist things?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-33772024

OMG he is horrible 

[Valmy]

Well needless to say this guy would be disastrous for United States interests.

Strange he insists we are not talking to both parties or political solutions. Did we not just work out a deal with Iran? Who does he think is not being talked to?

[viper37]

Well that would certainly explain East Euro students pwning the natives, as I have read several accounts of elementary/high school students from Hungary switching to British high schools and finding the complexity of the subjects much dumbed down.

This is what I could never get. Eastern European and Russian exchange students to the US always comment on how much easier it is over here yet their countries are so stupid. Why hasn't this academic brilliance prevented them from supporting people like Orban and Putin?

I suppose exchange students aren't representative of the general population.  I figure that if you get accepted for university transfer and scholarship fund by the government (or wichever authority funds the difference in costs) it means you have very good grades in your current university.

And maybe only 10% of the university students registered in 1st year ever graduate.

I found university to be really tough in 1993.  When I came back to it in 2003, it was really easy.  Hadn't it been for so many personal problems I would have kept my score higher in the last year.  In Sherbrooke, about 1/3 of the students are expected to graduate.  a Finance exam with a 50% score average is considered too easy, teachers aim for 35% average at most.  In accounting and fiscality, we had to remember every rule and justify our answers with the articles of law or proper accounting rule.  Failure to do so, even if you had the good answer, meant a 0.

So, even if university is easier in the US than in Eastern Europe for some students, it doesn't make them smarter overall.  And even if they were, that's not 90% of the population that's like that.