On April 7, 2010, I will leave for a an 18 day trip to China to study China's education system as part of the China Exchange Initiative. I have created this blog to document that trip for the Licking Valley School District community and my family. I invite you to join me on my journey to this incredible country and culture.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Mr. Zhu's Advocate picture taken in my home office
Mr. Zhu is the Principal (Head Master as they are called in China) of Middle School #29 in Whuan, Hubei China. Wuhan is a city of 8 million people with 4 million communting into work their each day, which brings the population to 12 million people on any given day. Middle SChool #29 has approximately 3,000 students in grades 7-12 (China doesn't have high schools, only 7-12 buildings called middle schools) and 300 employees. For all intents and purposes, Mr. Zhu's position is more like that of an American high school principal/superintendent.
China has a different school structure than the US. For example, they are not organized into districts; each school operates independently and they compete for students based on the quality of their school progam, which is determined by their ability to prepare students for success on their national exams. The first exam is taken in 9th grade and a student must pass the test to go on to remain in the academic program. Students who fail to pass this 9th grade exam must go to a techincal school. Each student only gets one opportunity to pass this test and only about half pass it. The next exam is given in the spring of the senior year. It is called the Gaokao. Students must pass this test to be admitted to college, and only 30-40% pass this test. Again, students who fail the Gaokao must go to a technical school if they want to further their education.
Mr. Zhu is the Principal (Head Master as they are called in China) of Middle School #29 in Whuan, Hubei China. Wuhan is a city of 8 million people with 4 million communting into work their each day, which brings the population to 12 million people on any given day. Middle SChool #29 has approximately 3,000 students in grades 7-12 (China doesn't have high schools, only 7-12 buildings called middle schools) and 300 employees. For all intents and purposes, Mr. Zhu's position is more like that of an American high school principal/superintendent.
ReplyDeleteChina has a different school structure than the US. For example, they are not organized into districts; each school operates independently and they compete for students based on the quality of their school progam, which is determined by their ability to prepare students for success on their national exams. The first exam is taken in 9th grade and a student must pass the test to go on to remain in the academic program. Students who fail to pass this 9th grade exam must go to a techincal school. Each student only gets one opportunity to pass this test and only about half pass it. The next exam is given in the spring of the senior year. It is called the Gaokao. Students must pass this test to be admitted to college, and only 30-40% pass this test. Again, students who fail the Gaokao must go to a technical school if they want to further their education.