Chinese Top In Tests, But Still Have Lots To Learn is a very interesting piece from NPR.

Here’s an excerpt of a conversation with a Shanghai principal:

“Developed countries like the U.S. shouldn’t be too surprised by these results. They’re just one index, one measure that shows off the good points of Shanghai’s and China’s education system. But the results can’t cover up our problems,” he says. Liu is very frank about those problems ā€” the continuing reliance on rote learning, the lack of analysis or critical thinking ā€” and he says the system is in dire need of reform. “Why don’t Chinese students dare to think? Because we insist on telling them everything. We’re not getting our kids to go and find things out for themselves,” he says.
As well as the limitations of the Chinese education system, Liu says, it was only students in Shanghai who took the PISA tests, and Shanghai has some of the best schools in China
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I’m adding it to The Best Sites For Getting Some Perspective On International Test Comparison Demagoguery.