* Tug that plant ! Make it grow !

The Farmer from Sung

You must work at [rightness] and never let it out of your mind. At the same time, while you must never let it out of your mind, you must not forcibly help it grow either. You must not be like the man from Sung. There was a man from Sung who pulled at his rice plants because he was worried about their failure to grow. Having done so, he went on his way home, not realizing what he had done.  "I am worn out today," said he to his family. "I have been helping the rice plants to grow." His son rushed out to take a look and there the plants were, all shrivelled up. There are few in the world who can resist the urge to help their rice plants grow. There are some who leave the plants unattended, thinking that nothing they can do will be of any use. They are the people who do not even bother to weed. There are others who help the plants grow. They are the people who pull at them. Not only do they fail to help them but they do the plants positive harm.[xlv]

* Sealing Our Children's Fate

 See: The Bill and Melinda Gradgrind Foundation

OP-ED COLUMNIST

China’s Winning Schools?

By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF

Published: January 15, 2011

BEIJING

 . . . But this is the paradox: Chinese themselves are far less impressed by their school system. Almost every time I try to interview a Chinese about the system here, I hear grousing rather than praise. Many Chinese complain scathingly that their system kills independent thought and creativity, and they envy the American system for nurturing self-reliance — and for trying to make learning exciting and not just a chore.

In Xian, I visited Gaoxin Yizhong, perhaps the city’s best high school, and the students and teachers spoke wistfully of the American emphasis on clubs, arts and independent thought. “We need to encourage more creativity,” explained Hua Guohong, a chemistry teacher. “We should learn from American schools.”

One friend in Guangdong Province says he will send his children to the United States to study because the local schools are a “creativity-killer.” Another sent his son to an international school to escape what he likens to “programs for trained seals.” Private schools are sprouting everywhere, and many boast of a focus on creativity.

For my part, I think the self-criticisms are exactly right, but I also deeply admire the passion for education and the commitment to making the system better. And while William Butler Yeats was right that “education is not filling a bucket but lighting a fire,” it’s also true that it’s easier to ignite a bonfire if there’s fuel in the bucket . . .

* Author of "Why Chinese Mothers are Superior" Nominated for BAM

Ms. Amy Chua, Yale Law School professor and author of Why Chinese Mothers are Superior, has been nominated by The Anti-Yale for this year's BAM Award by the Gradgrind Foundation.

The BAM Award (Bill and Melinda Award) is given annually by the Bill and Melinda Gradgrind Foundation to that individual or entity whose contribution to educational reform most fully dehumanizes students, teachers, and administrators while using terms such as "metric," "accountability," and "transparency."

Nate Zelinsky, a staff writer for the Yale Daily News,  was previously nominated for this year's BAM.

Last year's BAM Award went to Shanghai.

The Bill and Melinda Gradgrind Foundation is a missionary organization "dedicated to grinding teachers, students, and curricula into standardized perfection ... " 

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Note:

The Foundation takes its name from Thomas Gradgrind, the inspirational utilitarian teacher in Charles Dickens's Hard Times.

* Yale Daily News Staffer Nominated for Gradgrind BAM Award

Zelinsky BAM Nominee

The Anti-Yale has nominated Nate Zelinsky, staff writer for the Yale Daily News, for this year's BAM Award.

The BAM Award (Bill and Melinda Award) is given annually by the Bill and Melinda Gradgrind Foundation to that individual or entity whose contribution to educational reform most fully dehumanizes students, teachers, and administrators while using terms such as "metric," "accountability," and "transparency."

Last year's BAM Award went to Shanghai.

The Bill and Melinda Gradgrind Foundation is a missionary organization "dedicated to grinding teachers, students, and curricula into standardized perfection ... " 




_______________________
Note:
The Foundation takes its name from Thomas Gradgrind, the inspirational utilitarian teacher in Charles Dickens's Hard Times.