| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
vikdk
Joined: 25 Jun 2003
Posts: 1676
|
 Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2006 3:12 am Post subject: |
 |
|
| Quote: |
| and the only concept of education for any parent is the concept of giving the child a chance that the parent never had... |
CJ I think you'd better start thinking about the concept of extended family - and how the extended family commonly views the potential economic benefits (that they may well view as an essential product of education), as something that should be shared family-wise. After all even in the "new society" of modernised urban China old-age and serious illness devoid of economic support from the family can still lead to a pretty bleak existence 
By the way a point I never made in earlier posts is the element of eletism when choosing a school - many parents already when their kids are kindergarten age, are thinking about what type of shoulders their kids will be rubbing up against - toddler guanxi. Laugh not - many parents want their kids already at a young age to cultivate relationships that may one day lead to potential benefit!!! Choosing for pedagogical principle - no choosing the most expensive we can afford is a common practice - since even if those high admission fees may not gaurantee academic result - they do give more chance for their dear little trogs to befriend a rich kid with influential parents. Of course the older the kid gets, the more this get 'em in a school where they can develop good guanxi principle applies  |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
cj750
Joined: 27 Apr 2004
Posts: 3081
Location: Beijing
|
| Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2006 11:28 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Quote: |
| By the way a point I never made in earlier posts is the element of elitism when choosing a school - many parents already when their kids are kindergarten age, are thinking about what type of shoulders their kids will be rubbing up against - toddler guanxi. Laugh not - many parents want their kids already at a young age to cultivate relationships that may one day lead to potential benefit!!! |
But would not this aspect only deal with Chinese schools...and Chinese parents...cause there is no alternative to the Chinese public school system that is stellar in providing education, even with the so called experimental schools, so after kindergarten..the Chinese kids go to Chinese schools..no where near the prep school social climbing activity as I imagine from your description. Now in international schools, parents usually hang with other parents of the same nation and the kids follow suit..I am not twisting your tail but just curious as to your ideas of social climbing toddlers.. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
vikdk
Joined: 25 Jun 2003
Posts: 1676
|
| Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2006 12:08 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Its the parents that contrive all those plans with regard to social ascendency and the possibilty of developing useful guanxi - since normal small kids - including the Chinese variety - much prefer playgrounds for their climbing activities. But beleive me certain families do choose kindies with regard to what class of fellow-parent (and kids) they attract!!! And the kindy market here, with all its vicious competition with regard to attracting new kids, certainly plays on this weakness - with many kindies going to far greater lengths to advertise themselves as class establishments with regard to percieved levels of social ranking (you know shouting out -"we're a rich persons school") rather than the excellence of their perticular brand of pedagogical method. Shizer - what better than give your kindy a touch of class by calling it Montessori - its expensive this method and rich parents send their kids to these kind of places - but for gods sake don't try and explain too much what Montessori actually means
By the way small kids dont give a flying f#%* about the class or creed of the kids they associate with - many mummies and daddies - especially here - could learn a lot from 'em |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
vikdk
Joined: 25 Jun 2003
Posts: 1676
|
| Posted: Fri Sep 01, 2006 4:03 am Post subject: |
|
|
Back to the main point - what is Montessori - with special reference - to what it is in China.
Interesting to note that the misuse of the Montessori name may not be just a mainland China phenomena - very recently in the Taiwan pages this statement appeared -
| Quote: |
| Montessori is an established name even if the local version is Brandbanding and has little to do with the NA version. |
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/job/viewtopic.php?t=42328&sid=2524e7bd476e46d2d7723e8cccfb73db
So even if this method has many pluses - especially over local brands of teaching method - (by the way many western educationalists think it has some very serious cons when compaired on theoretical basis to mainstream western educational thinking - but no need to go into that) - any assumptions that Montessori class will be much different than that, which usually goes on in the Chinese classroom, maybe a flawed judgement - since certain cases of Montessori Chinese style, in my experience, seems to be more focused on profit margins than any achievement of pedagogical excellence
of course needless to say Certain cases of Montessori in China must also lead to exellence and are beacons of achievement for the rest of the sorry chinese educational industry. More power to them - and good luck to those who can find work in these institutions, because in such places you can be really equiped to assist the positive all-round development of those our profession has a principle duty to serve - our students  |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
thepreferrednomenclature
Joined: 13 Jul 2005
Posts: 80
Location: Beijing, Chaoyang
|
| Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2006 6:13 am Post subject: |
|
|
| You can get certified at 北师大 (Beijing Normal University) in an intensive three-week course (no weekends off!). Costs about 1600 RMB excluding books. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
hesterprynne
Joined: 16 Sep 2003
Posts: 386
|
| Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2006 10:56 am Post subject: infant class |
|
|
| My one-year-old son goes to a class which supposedly uses Montessori methods. I do not know enough about Montessori methods to know if this is real Montessori, but my son enjoys it and benefits from it. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
vikdk
Joined: 25 Jun 2003
Posts: 1676
|
| Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2006 11:01 am Post subject: |
|
|
| hesterprynne - the acid test of any education - something far more valuable than title |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
cj750
Joined: 27 Apr 2004
Posts: 3081
Location: Beijing
|
| Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2006 11:04 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Quote: |
but my son enjoys it and benefits from it.
|
quite right vikdk-o |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
