[00:05.09]reflects on a visit to china and gives his thoughts on different approaches to learning in china and the West.
[00:14.08]LEARNING,CHINESE-STYLE by Howard Gardner
[00:20.64]For a month in the spring of 1987,my wife Ellen and I lived in the bustling eastern Chinese city of Nanjing
[00:30.59]with our 18-month-old son Benjamin while studying arts education in Chinese kindergartens and elementary schools.
[00:40.57]But one of the most telling lessons Ellen and I got in the difference between Chinese and American ideas of education
[00:49.32]came not in the classroom but in the lobby of the Jinling Hotel where we stayed in Nanjing.
[00:56.82]The key to our room was attached to a large plastic block with the room number on it.
[01:03.63]When leaving the hotel,a guest was encouraged to turn in the key,
[01:09.22]either by handing it to an attendant or by dropping it through a slot into a box.
[01:16.09]Because the key slot was narrow,the key had to be positioned carefully to fit into it.
[01:23.75]Benjamin loved to carry the key around,shaking it vigorously.He also liked to try to place it into the slot.
[01:34.35]Because of his tender age and incomplete understanding of the need to position the key just so,he would usually fail.
[01:44.78]Benjamin was not bothered in the least.He probably got as much pleasure out of the sounds the key made
[01:53.03]as he did those few times when the key actually found its way into the slot.
[01:59.85]Now both Ellen and I were perfectly happy to allow Benjamin to bang the key near the key slot.
[02:07.50]His exploratory behavior seemed harmless enough. But I soon observed an interesting phenomenon.
[02:16.41]Any Chinese staff member nearby would come over to watch Benjamin and, noting his lack of initial success,
[02:25.58]attempt to assist. He or she would hold onto Benjamin's hand and,gently but firmly,guide it directly toward the slot,
[02:36.84]reposition it as necessary,and help him to insert it. The "teacher" would then smile some what expectantly at Ellen or me,
[02:47.47]as if awaiting a thank you-and on occasion would frown slightly,as if considering us to be neglecting our parental duties.
[02:58.02]I soon realized that this incident was directly relevant to our assigned tasks in China:
[03:05.78]to investigate the ways of early childhood education (especially in the arts),
[03:12.73]and to throw light on Chinese attitudes toward creativity.
[03:18.45]And so before long I began to introduce the key-slot anecdote into my discussions with Chinese educators.
[03:27.88]TWO DIFFERENT WAYS TO LEARN
[03:30.96]With a few exceptions my Chinese colleagues displayed the same attitude as the staff at the Jinling Hotel.
[03:39.72]Since adults know how to place the key in the key slot, which is the ultimate purpose of approaching the slot,
[03:47.89]and since the child is neither old enough nor clever enough to realize the desired action on his own,
[03:56.56]what possible gain is achieved by having him struggle?He may well get frustrated and angry-
[04:04.45]certainly not a desirable outcome.Why not show him what to do? He will be happy,
[04:11.92]he will learn how to accomplish the task sooner,and then he can proceed to more com- plex activities,
[04:19.66]like opening the door or asking for the key-
[04:24.36]both of which accomplishments can(and should)in due course be modeled for him as well.
[04:31.41]We listened to such explanations sympathetically and explained that,first of all,
[04:38.99]we did not much care whether Benjamin succeeded in inserting the key into the slot.
[04:45.36]He was having a good time and was exploring, two activities that did matter to us. But the critical point was that,in the process,
[04:56.07]we were trying to teach Benjamin that one can solve a problem effectively by oneself.
[05:03.65]Such self-reliance is a principal value of child rearing in middle-class America.So long as the child is shown exactly
[05:14.44]how to do something whether it be placing a key in a key slot,drawing a hen or making up for a misdeed-
[05:23.58]he is less likely to figure out himself how to accomplish such a task. And,more generally,
[05:31.76]he is less likely to view life-as Americans do as a series of situations in which one has to learn to think for oneself,
[05:42.07]to solve problems on one's own and even to discover new problems for which creative solutions are wanted.
[05:51.09]TEACHING BY HOLDING HIS HAND
[05:54.48]In retrospect, it became clear to me that this incident was indeed key and key in more than one sense.
[06:03.76]It pointed to important differences in the educational and artistic practices in our two countries.
[06:12.30]When our well-intentioned Chinese observers came to Benjamin's rescue,
[06:18.38]they did not simply push his hand down clumsily or uncertainly,as I might have done.
[06:25.41]Instead, they guided him with extreme facility and gentleness in precisely the desired direction.
[06:34.58]I came to realize that these Chinese were not just molding and shaping Benjamin's performance in any old manner:
[06:44.30]In the best Chinese tradition,they were ba zhe shoujiao-"teaching by holding his hand"-
[06:53.36]so much so that he would happily come back for more.
[06:58.53]The idea that learning should take place by continual careful shaping and molding applies equally to the arts.
[07:08.30]Watching children at work in a classroom setting,we were astonished by their facility.
[07:14.78]Children as young as 5 or6 were painting flowers,fish and animals with the skill and confidence of an adult;
[07:24.63]calligraphers 9 and 10 years old were producing works that could have been displayed in a museum.
[07:32.88]In a visit to the homes of two of the young artists,
[07:37.56]we learned from their parents that they worked on perfecting their craft for several hours a day.
[07:45.27]CREATIVITY FIRST?
[07:48.06]In terms of attitudes to creativity there seems to be a reversal of priorities:
[07:55.59]young Westerners making their boldest departures first and then gradually mastering the tradition;
[08:04.31]and young Chinese being almost inseparable from the tradition,but,overtime, possibly evolving to apoint equally original.
[08:15.33]One way of summarizing the American position
[08:19.57]is to state that we value originality and independence more than the Chinese do.
[08:26.93]The contrast between our two cultures can also be seen in terms of the fears we both harbor.
[08:35.00]Chinese teachers are fearful that if skills are not acquired early, they may never be acquired;there is,
[08:45.04]on the other hand, no comparable hurry to promote creativity.American educators fear that
[08:54.78]unless creativity has been acquired early, it may never emerge;on the other hand, skills can be picked up later.
[09:05.02]However, I do not want to overstate my case.There is enormous creativity to be found in Chinese scientific,
[09:13.98]technological and artistic innovations past and present.
[09:19.60]And there is a danger of exaggerating creative breakthroughs in the West.When any innovation is examined closely,
[09:28.79]its reliance on previous achievements is all too apparent(the"standing on the shoulders of giants"phenomenon).
[09:37.93]But assuming that the contrast I have developed is valid,
[09:42.61]and that the fostering of skills and creativity are both worthwhile goals,the important question becomes this:
[09:51.96]Can we gather,from the Chinese and American extremes,a superior way to approach education,
[09:59.61]perhaps striking a better balance between the poles of creativity and basic skills?
[10:06.93]Language Sense Enhancement
[10:10.69]Read aloud the following poem Working Class by Tanua Dlinn
[10:14.66]What a mess said Miss Mawgan One cold and rainy day So I said we’d work together As we can’t go out to play
[10:26.91]So I tidied up the books shelf While Jack sorted out the pens Charmain’s drawer was very messy But not as bad as Ben’s
[10:39.40]Shaun tidied up the cardboard Sophie sorted out the paper Mr Goodhall put our pictures up Using his big stapler
[10:50.32]And when we all had finished And the class looked very clean We all were given merits For working as a team
[11:01.03]Read the following quotation.Learn them by heart if you can.You might need to look up new words in a dictionary.
[11:12.50]What one knows is,in youth,of little moment;they know enough who know how to learn Henry Adams
[11:22.63]Be curious always!For knowledge will not acquire you;you must acquire it. Sudle Back
[11:34.36]The universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper Eden Phillpotts
[11:46.48]The whole art of teaching is only the art of awakening
[11:53.74]the natural curiosity of young minds for the purpose of satisfying it afterwards. Anatole France
[12:05.52]Read the following humorous story for fun.You might need to look up new words in a dictionary.
[12:14.48]While visiting my brother and sister-in-law,I was surprised to find Lee,my young nephew,helping them bake cupcakes.
[12:25.09]After they were done,my sister-in-law alowed him to put the icing on.When he had finished
[12:34.23]He brought them to the table for our approval. “The cupacakes look beautiful,Lee”
