Ivy League Hysteria

Everyone has heard of China's legendary focus on education as a measure of success. Educational stereotypes in China abound. In my own experience, the most common ones regard Jews, Americans, and left-handed people.

"Ah, you use your left hand. You must be very smart!"
"You are JEWISH? Oh, the Jews are so smart. You must be very, very smart. I like Jews!"
"Oh you are American? Americans are so smart. America is very developed, the economy is so good."

When they find out I'm a left-handed American Jew, most people don't really know what to say. I try to explain that I know plenty of "not smart" Americans, Jewish people, and left-handed people, but no one ever seems to believe me.

With all the educational stereotypes floating around, I became curious to learn more. So when I got the opportunity to visit a class of Chinese students, I decided to check out whether the Chinese education hysteria is exaggerated or real.

It is so real.

I visited an English-teaching night school for Chinese students. In addition to regular school Monday through Friday, the children go to night school five nights a week, as well as class all day on the weekends. The program is so popular that despite its 300- student enrollment, there is a waiting list of more than 1,200 children.

The Goal: Get the children into Ivy League schools.
The Kicker: The children are as young as four years old.

Personally, I think it's a bit ridiculous to send four-year old children to night school so they can get into ivy league schools fifteen years in the future (the school estimates a 10% success rate). I also think it's silly to send your four-year old to night school at all. These kids spend more time in classrooms than outside them.

When I arrived at the school for a visit, the program director greeted me warmly and gave me a quick tour. When he discovered that I had just graduated from Penn, he shrieked, waved his hands frantically, and said, "Oh! Oh! This is amazing! Incredible! You must meet the children!" He grabbed my hand and swept me into a classroom of six-year old children, whose parents sat observing from the back. He announced my name and university pedigree, and I was ushered to the front of the room to the sound of applause. A seat was set up for me front and center facing the children, and the teacher, beaming, told the children to ask me questions.

It happened so fast I wasn't quite sure how I ended up in the front of the classroom face-to-face with twenty Chinese children, but the barrage of questions started and didn't stop.

Where are you from?
What is your favorite fruit?
Do you have a Chinese name?
How old are you?
My favorite question of the night: I called on a tiny girl with pigtails, who wore a pink coat that drowned her in fabric. She stood, looked up at me, and said, "Why are you so white?" I couldn't help it, I started cracking up laughing.

As much as I'd like to make fun of the program, my evening there made me realize that it is founded on solid educational principles and values. The program is a non-profit, designed more to increase educational opportunities in Yunnan than to feed off of ludicrous parental ambitions. In addition to teaching English, the program also emphasizes the Western teaching style. That is, rather than the rigid, authoritative atmosphere commonly seen in Chinese schools, this program encourages creativity, thinking outside the box, and offers a relatively informal atmosphere. The classroom I visited was full of smiling enthusiastic parents, laughter, and a sense of community. The children, who have only been studying English for one year, had absolutely astounding English skills. They could talk about almost any subject, and they clearly understood a slew of English grammar rules. More impressive than their English, however, were their attitudes. The children wanted to learn English, and were obviously excited about being at English school. Their enthusiasm was contagious, and I left the program wishing them the best in their educational endeavors.

---

---