Rant about China's college entrance examination, or gaokao

[Kenny同志]

Those government guys really should watch this video, which I think has some truth in it.

[imron]

That guy is really too angry. The video raises some valid points, but to rant about it like that, with accompanying dramatic music, and I have to wonder what is the point except to stir up people's anger and emotion. That's not a good way to resolve any problem, and personally I think the government guys (and everyone else) would be better off getting the same advice from people who talk about it in a rational and clear manner. Contrast that program for example with a recent 锵锵三人行 episode about the gaokao.

[skylee]

Re #1,the host's way of presentation is quite unpleasant (he might think that it is persuasive). I had to stop myself from turning off the video.

Having said that, the script was very well-written (lots of styling techniques used), and there are some truths in it. Some of them have been discussed on these forums, such as the different exam papers used in different cities, the different grades required of students from different places to get into the same degree programmes, the ranking of universities and the people's republic of cheating.

[anonymoose]

Having said that, the script was very well-written (lots of styling techniques used)

Please could you explain what you mean, perhaps with a couple of examples.

[skylee]

See the script here -> http://www.tianya.cn...1/2590006.shtml

For example, 2nd paragraph, the repeated use of 我不知道一个考试有多么重要 (and also 甚至). Then compare 1st paragraph with 2nd paragraph, in which the writer questions each case quoted (except one) in para. 1.

Examples of 排比 used - "什么热门就开什么课程，什么赚钱就开什么课程", "决定一所大学优劣的主要不是历史，不是生源，不是资金投入，不是地理位置，甚至主要也不是什么大师！" and "花费了高昂的学习成本，浪费了宝贵的年华，经历了高三阶段非人的摧残".

PS - also the use of questions.

[anonymoose]

OK, I know了. Thank you.

[Kenny同志]

That's not a good way to resolve any problem, and personally I think the government guys (and everyone else) would be better off getting the same advice from people who talk about it in a rational and clear manner.

Imron, it’s not that people don’t want to solve problems in a nicer way. The points presented by the host had been raised in a much more constructive manner over the years but those government guys never listened. They changed this and that trying to placate people by giving the false impression that they were doing a bit of reform, yet in actuality they did nothing except perpetuating their absurdity.

To be honest, I would doubt very much you can keep calm like you are now when you have walked a few miles in the shoes of the Chinese people.

PS:

After watching that episode of 鏘鏘三人行, I believe the government would be even less likely to take the advice presented in 鏘鏘三人行's manner. They talked about the issue as if it was great fun throughout the programme though the points raised are valid.

[imron]

I'm not saying they're likely to take the advice in 鏘鏘三人行 either, but I could at least watch the entire episode. I stopped watching off the other video after several minutes. It just felt horribly manipulative and blatantly designed to play on viewers' emotions, which I find to be intellectually sloppy.

I would doubt very much you can keep calm like you are now when you have walked a few miles of the Chinese people.

Perhaps, perhaps not, but I firmly believe that there are better ways to solve problems than frothing at the mouth.

[Kenny同志]

Perhaps, perhaps not, but I firmly believe that there are better ways to solve problems than frothing at the mouth.

For example?

[gato]

You'd probably be interested in article. It is local protectionism.

http://www.nfcmag.com/articles/2122

北京教育：实现公平有多难？

作者：文_本刊记者 田 磊 发自北京 来源：南风窗 日期：2010-06-04

初三时的劝退行为，是各个初中针对外地孩子一项普遍的做法，一旦这些孩子在北京参加了中考，并大量涌入高中后，挤占优质学位、降低北京的高考录取率仅仅是一个小问题，更严重的是，在3年之后，当整个城市出现数以万计的高中生无法参加考试的局面时，将会成为教育部门一个难以回避的尴尬局面。

事实上，根据教育部门的统计，现在在北京的流动人口适龄入学子女有40万左右，这才是最大的威胁。一旦把所有限制都取消了，这样一大批学生将会迅速占据大量学位，老北京人在高考体制下享受了数十年的高录取率将不复存在。

所以，近几年，随着北京户籍学生人数的减少，北京市教育系统宁可合并、减少中学数量，从而保证北京市高考的高入学率，也不愿意招收外地学生。

可以说，就北京教育而言，不合理的高考制度是阻挠教育迈向公平最根本的原因。但改革高考显然还没有被提上日程，也许只有当它酿成重大社会危机时，才会被迫改变。

但开放高考，则意味着从根本上动摇了北京在教育领域享受特权的基础，在绝大多数北京市民以及官方眼里，这显然是一个不可想象的恶果。

作为北京市政协教文卫体委员会的特邀委员，一直在各种场合疾呼教育公平的王晋堂也认为，高考是万万不能放开的，“那样，外地人就会蜂拥而至，北京的教育优 势将不复存在，教育资源也会严重不足。”

[Kenny同志]

死 水

闻一多

这是一沟绝望的死水，

清风吹不起半点漪沦。

不如多扔些破铜烂铁，

爽性泼你的剩菜残羹。

也许铜的要绿成翡翠，

铁罐上锈出几瓣桃花；

再让油腻织一层罗绮，

霉菌给他蒸出些云霞。

让死水酵成一沟绿酒，

漂满了珍珠似的白沫；

小珠们笑声变成大珠，

又被偷酒的花蚊咬破。

那么一沟绝望的死水，

也就夸得上几分鲜明。

如果青蛙耐不住寂寞，

又算死水叫出了歌声。

这是一沟绝望的死水，

这里断不是美的所在，

不如让给丑恶来开垦，

看他造出个什么世界。

Gato, thanks for the article but seriously I fear I might develop some kind of mental disorder if I continue to read such articles or news. For this reason, I have decided, from now on, to stay away from any negative or frustrating information as possible as I can.

From the poem above you can see how frustrated I am with this country.

[imron]

From the poem above you can see how frustrated I am with this country.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. It amazed me when reading other material published around the same time frame as the above poem that there were so many similarities with modern day China.

[Kenny同志]

It amazed me when reading other material published around the same time frame as the above poem that there were so many similarities with modern day China.

Saddening, but true.

[skylee]

That is a very good poem. Thanks for posting it.

[frankwall]

Frustrating is right. But there are terribly frustrating situations, no matter what country you live it...

[xiaocai]

A few of my younger cousins have chosen their schools not so long ago. Some are happy with what they have got. but more are not really. I can still remember me going through exactly the same things more than 10 years ago. The minimum requirements are not the most astringent in Sichuan, but the stress has not been getting less through the past decade or so, if not becoming more intense. Kenny, I think as someone who has been through the whole process I share your sentiment towards the system, and also what the presenter tried to express in the video. But you see, those people stting up there to whom you really want to show the video to, they know exactly what have been done and what have not, but they also know that their career paths will not very likely to be affected regardless whether they do everything we demand or nothing at all. You can not just fix a small mechanism and hope the machine work if whole thing was wrong from the moment it was designed. And even it is perfected engineered, it will yield nothing if the operator does not take any responsibilty to its products.

[skylee]

Re #16, one thing comes to mind - "If it is not broken, don't fix it." This is one of the golden rules for bureaucrats.

So I think unless something very dramatic happens, (or a change of the hearts of the bureaucrats up there, which should qualify as something dramatic I guess), things probably won't change much.

Actually I am not in a position to comment on this as I have not gone through or experienced in any way the education system on the mainland.

[xiaocai]

If there was one thing that we never lack in Chinese education system (or any other system if you would like, or even the sovereign body of the nation) it would be bureaucracy.

[skylee]

Indeed, which is why unless it is proved beyond doubt that the system is so broken that it needs fixing, the bureaucrats will do nothing.

[gato]

The bureaucrats are useless. You have to go to the bureaucrats' boss(es).