在中国教数学 (Teaching math in China)

在中国教数学

Talking to any math teacher on an educational level makes one realize just how much it takes to become a teacher. Likewise, if you’ve ever wanted to become a math teacher and have looked into the college courses they have to take, you may see classes that likely make you start doubting your decision just by reading their titles. You probably looked for these jobs in America which has been slowly declining in the mathematical department for many years. If you move this occupation over to China, the challenges in becoming a math teacher are exponentially increased.

I originally chose the topic of teaching in China because my penpal aspires to take part in the profession; however she did not tell me what kind of teacher she wanted to be. I then decided to narrow it down to teaching math in China because this was a topic I most wanted to explore as far as teaching professions go. I knew that China had many different ways in which they teach math and that the Chinese students score much higher on their math exams than most of the rest of the world.

I knew that the competition between the United States and China in math was very rigorous but I didn’t know that Canada felt the same way. By looking for my second secondary source, I found that the Canadian Embassy is also very concerned with falling behind in math to China. They have gone so far as to hire Chinese instructors from Shanghai to teacher their more advanced students.

I am just as concerned as the US and Canada governments on how far ahead China is becoming in math. Thinking about how much math affects the world and how slowly Americans are learning how to use these types of math is quite a nerve-racking thing to think about. I'm not the only one that is afraid of this as Britain's Education Minister Elizabeth Truss states,

A Chinese teacher
teaching math to her 4th grade class

              “it’s skyscrapers, and its ambitions, are all built on maths,”.

I would like to see more American institutes being on the same page as one another but that’s not to say that this page should be easy. The course needs to be much harder than it currently is and the teachers must make sure that every student understands the material completely before they are sent into the next class. This will make the instructional time faster and the teacher won’t have to explain old concepts.

       

Crawley, Philip. What Shanghai Can Teach Us About Teaching Math. The Globe and Mail, 17 Feb. 2012. Web. 11 Nov. 2014. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/education/what-shanghai-can-teach-us-about-teaching-math/article17835021/?page=all.

Wei, Kan. What Makes Chinese Math Lessons So Good?. The Globe and Mail, 9 June 2013. Web. 11 Nov. 2014. http://theconversation.com/explainer-what-makes-chinese-maths-lessons-so-good-24380.

Face To Face

         Listening to the testimonies from the victims of the backlash of 9/11 and Pearl Harbor opened my eyes about what they had to go through. Many of them felt like they had lost their citizenship overnight and that they had to redeem themselves even though they hadn't done anything. I believe that the experience with Pearl Harbor was worse for those affected because it was the first large scale attack on America and the government was in on the propaganda alongside citizens by arresting Japanese Americans and placing them in concentration camps. When 9/11 happened, although there was a large about of racism toward Muslims, the government didn't go to the lengths that they did with Pearl Harbor.

         With both groups being effected in such a negative way, it would seem to be easy for them to hate being in America and what it no longer has to offer them because of something that they didn't do, however, the opposite is true. Many of the interviewees were optimistic about the future and what it has in store for them. They were excited for the opportunities that they had been given after the fact to regain their citizenship. For myself, having this outlook on life after being harasses by the government and normal people on the street would be extremely difficult and I can't help but think that the entire experience would leave a bitter taste in my mouth.