Differences between Chinese and Western education systems
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Not to be racist, but I tend to notice(at least in my area) that asian students tend to do better overall in Schools. However, few people know about the education system of countries in Asia. Here I will try to explain the key differences between education systems of Asia and West by comparing two major countries in each area, China and USA.
The key differences, in my view, are:
a) emphasis
b) structure
c) tests and competition
d) extracurriculars
Emphasis-
In China, the education is the most important goal of the parent and the child. Parents actively intervene in an attempt to improve the grades of the child. In fact, there is a general consensus(which most children here would find disagreeable) that if the child is not studying, he/she is "wasting" his/her time. Parents will spend whatever it takes to get their kids to University; even borrowing money. Rarely are any student loans made in China.
The teacher and school system shares this emphasis. Teachers regularly contact parents to report the situation of their child.
The typical Chinese school day begins at 6:30 or 7:00 a.m. and ends at 5:30 p.m. There is no recess or lunch break. Homework is assigned liberally by teachers(usually 3 pages per subject; there is regularly 8-12 subjects). Bullying, as well as any time spent "not studying" is dealt with harshly. Also, most students, due to the workload, do not have time to engage in other activities.
Structure-
The Chinese education system is structured much more differently than here. Competition for entry into schools does not begin in HS; it begins in Kindergarden.
There is heavy competition. One saying goes "In order to get into the good university, you must get into the good high school. In order to get into the good high school, you must get into the good junior high school. In order to get into the good junior high school, you must get into the good elementary...