Asian education surpasses Western standards study shows

Newscast Media HOUSTON, Texas — An Australian study shows Asian schoolchildren lead their western counterparts by up to three years. Some attribute the "success in Asian education" to rote learning and social pressure.

The education systems in Hong Kong, South Korea, Shanghai and Singapore are among the best in the world, according to a study by the Grattan Institute, an independent think-tank.

Based on the data of PISA, a standard tool for assessing international standards in education, students in South Korea are one year ahead of those in the US and the European Union in reading. Grattan's school education program director Ben Jensen said that the mathematics level of a 15-year-old student in Shanghai is two to three years more advanced than his or her counterpart in Australia, the US and Europe.

Candy Mak moved to the US when she was 16. "What we learn in Hong Kong high school (16-17 years old) is almost the same as a US college freshman or sophomore, especially in mathematics and the natural sciences. But there is more time for extracurricular activities in a US high school than in Hong Kong," she said.

Compared to Hong Kong, Mak does not think that the US education system is examination-oriented: "Besides examinations, class participation, group projects and homework also count for the final grades. Therefore, if you fail the exam, you still have a chance to pass the course."

Despite better academic performance in East Asia than in the West, it does not mean that the education system is more advanced, argues Sammy Hui, associate head of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction with the Hong Kong Institute of Education.

"Tutorial centers are flourishing in Hong Kong. After an 8-hour school day, students attend private tutorial classes at night or weekends in order to achieve high scores in examinations," said Hui. "Sadly, they are just trained how to excel in examinations but not how to be creative, logical or critical in their thinking, which is more important for all-round development."

Although Asian young people may acquire more complex knowledge at a younger age, "life-long learning is indispensable in a knowledge-based fast-changing world," said Hui. Here is a sample study in the area of Mathematics (pop-up)

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