Alice: So, why is it that Asian students are outscoring you lot, regardless of where they are (either in the USA or in actual Asian countries)?
Fact of the matter is, people are stupid. And I don’t mean that in a bad way. I’m stupid when it comes to picking up girls – absolutely clueless, and you could beat the techniques into me a thousand times and I’ll never get it. I’m also stupid when it comes to certain aspects of time management. And oh boy, am I a completely and utterly stupid carpenter, should I ever try that.
By and large, people are stupid about certain things; including what we consider to be a ‘well-rounded education’ – which in the 17th century would include Latin and rhetoric. Hence, it is not all about the ‘love’ of learning. Education serves a purpose, and is not just a simply defined term.
So, what is education, and what is it for? Can you inculcate the love of learning into someone who’s just not into learning? Others just plain hate reading, and no amount of exciting storylines is going to change that – so can you make them love reading? No, but you can force them to gain certain skillsets, and sink some underlying structures into their heads.
The Asian mindset prizes education above everything else. Our early lives are wrapped around it. Not only are test results examined against the objective standard (Credit, Distinction, High D, etc etc etc), they are also measured against subjective standards (“How come your friend managed to score 85 and you only got 83?”) Believe me, I once scored straight A’s and my mother asked me, “Only 7 A’s?” (of course, she didn’t know there were only 7 subjects).
You must understand that tests and examinations work best when nobody knows what will be included, forcing you to go through everything that has been taught. Yes, some people cannot have that kind of memory, and are best in the trades. In Australia, for instance, a bricklayer can get paid $1.25 to lay one brick, so over the year, you can earn some substantial amount of money. And there is no doubt that this kind of high-pressure environment is bad – some Japs and S’poreans kill themselves when they fail critical exams. The Japs even call these people ‘ronin’, which gives you an idea of how migh-pressure the environment is there.
So. I’m not saying that the examination system is the be-all, end-all and cure-all. At the same time, I submit to you that it is crucial to have such systems in place nonetheless. Moderation in all things, to be sure.
And believe me, even I can see the need for firefighters, police officers or G.I.s to pass certain tests before they start serving in their roles.
