Scholastic English School (here in China)
Posted: Wed Jun 20, 2012 4:25 pm
Yesterday, I went for an interview with Scholastic English School in Shanghai. Having looked at their curriculum, I told the director they've got the most ambitious children's afterschool English program on the market. But I wondered whether it could work with Chinese children. The director admitted parents did express some dissatisfaction with an inordinate amount of time on what to Chinese parents is too much Americana (culture, history).
As with (Pearson-) Longman Schools, rather than writing or adapting publications specifically for this market, they've simply combined existing resources used in American schools into an entire curriculum. What I'm questioning is how well that might work in addressing the needs of Chinese ELLs with limited exposure to Englihs. I don't know, does Scholastic publish readers for ELLs?
Last summer, after only a few months, I resigned from Pearson-owned Longman School, Beijing. I was shocked to see such an appalling lack of pedagogical and other standards from the world leader in educational publishing.
Given the fact that the few LinkedIN Scholastic 'recommended' colleagues of the (former?) Shanghai Scholastic recruiter seem to have been merely single contract 'backpackers' with professional interests outside of education doesn't make the school look that appealing. Furthermore, not one employee of the dozen or so centers in Beijing, Shanghai or Shenzhen has posted here.
How do those of you who've spent time with ELLs and Scholastic literature view this approach? I was asked to give a practice lesson on time. You'll need to look at their curriculum:
http://www.scholastic.com.cn/en/class02.asp
As with (Pearson-) Longman Schools, rather than writing or adapting publications specifically for this market, they've simply combined existing resources used in American schools into an entire curriculum. What I'm questioning is how well that might work in addressing the needs of Chinese ELLs with limited exposure to Englihs. I don't know, does Scholastic publish readers for ELLs?
Last summer, after only a few months, I resigned from Pearson-owned Longman School, Beijing. I was shocked to see such an appalling lack of pedagogical and other standards from the world leader in educational publishing.
Given the fact that the few LinkedIN Scholastic 'recommended' colleagues of the (former?) Shanghai Scholastic recruiter seem to have been merely single contract 'backpackers' with professional interests outside of education doesn't make the school look that appealing. Furthermore, not one employee of the dozen or so centers in Beijing, Shanghai or Shenzhen has posted here.
How do those of you who've spent time with ELLs and Scholastic literature view this approach? I was asked to give a practice lesson on time. You'll need to look at their curriculum:
http://www.scholastic.com.cn/en/class02.asp