The Present and Future of Xinjiang is a post from: Laowaiblog

Xinjiang, the gigantic most north-western province of China, holds a unique place in Chinese culture and society. A blog post by Taylor McNaboe aims to address some of the concerns and opportunities in the region

There are several reasons why I chose to tackle the region of Xinjiang this week. The previously Uyghur majority region’s situation is integral to China’s development, and it is indispensable that China keep it in order to have rapid development in energy. Sinopec, a state-owned petrol company, recently invested 70 billion RMB into Xinjiang’s economy. In addition, although the situation affects more people and has caused more ethnic violence and civil unrest in China, Xinjiang’s situation has been overshadowed by the complicated situation in Tibet, which has a lot more international recognition, reasons for why this has occured will be discussed later in the post.

Xinjiang, taking up 1/6 of China’s territory in the sparsely-populated desert region of the nation’s northwest, is hosting one of China’s prevalent inter-ethnic struggles. Although the region is already recognised by the Chinese government as one of the country’s five autonomous regions due to its large Uyghur population, there have been various (yet fragmented) struggles for independence – some propose a nation called East Turkestan. Historically, Xinjiang has been in and out of China’s grasp, most recently recaptured in 1949 from local authorities and the KMT (国民党) by the CPC (中国共产党).

Various factors contribute to ethnic unrest in Xinjiang, including the lack of government implementation and realisation of affirmative action of Uyghur people in education and income, the general feeling of governmental neglect of development of China’s West despite a recent government design of contributing more SOE investment into Xinjiang in addition to Tibet and Yunnan, and the ethnic minority population feeling religiously and culturally repressed by Communist authorities.

Recent development in international politics only brings more ambiguity to policy and classification towards Uyghur separatist movements. In the aftermath of the September 11th attacks, China’s policy towards separatist groups as terrorist organisations was seen with more international understanding, especially in light of Bush’s ‘War on Terror’. Furthermore, Beijing claims that Al-Qaeda operatives, chiefly in Pakistan and Afghanistan, have been training many members of the separatist groups and therefore should be classified as a terrorist organisation internationally.

The international reaction to these claims have been inconsistent; Amnesty International claims that China are infringing on the rights of the Uyghur population, while American policy has the United States simultaneously deploring terrorist acts by Uyghurs in China and indirectly funding endeavours by Rebiya Kadeer, one of the wealthiest women from the Xinjiang region and carries a role that politically parallels the Dalai Lama.

Tension between Uyghurs and Han people in Xinjiang have only worsened. After a series of ethnic riots in 2009 that took place in Urumqi (乌鲁木齐), the province’s capital, the Chinese government has implemented harsher restrictions to the Uyghur people, including land seizures, house searches, and an increase in arrests. To make matters even more complicated between the Uyghur population and the Han Chinese, the government recently promised to reinstitute investment for the Uyghur people by promoting a resurgence in SOE presence and government employment of Uyghurs in addition to a modernisation of the cultural capital, Kashgar, which unlike Urumqi hsd been relatively untouched and has a large Uyghur population by percentage.

Although consideration of Kashgar as one of the five “special economic zones”, a title previously held by contemporary economic powerhouses Pudong District (Shanghai) and Shenzhen, many are concerned about the preservation of Uyghur culture in Kashgar. Moreover, there is a looming fear among Uyghurs of sharing a similar fate to those in Urumqi who can no longer to afford to live in the city of their ancestors due to the growing income gap between Uyghur and Han people.

Xinjiang has an uneasy present, filled with city lockdowns, ethnic tensions, and development concerns. The programmes to bring Xinjiang through a dark tunnel do not have a clear future. Since the 2009 riots, former President Hu Jintao stated that “harmonious society” in Xinjiang could only be realised through economic development. Only time will tell whether Uyghurs will fully benefit from and integrate into the development projects and more importantly Chinese society, as China recognises the necessity of holding Xinjiang in order to support itself as a growing industrial power.

Understanding Traditional Chinese Food is a post from: Laowaiblog

Hey guys!

Last time I was here I showed you some photos of beautiful Chengde. Well, I haven’t been doing much traveling lately and the ‘Landscape and Scenery’ category in my archives has grown very little. The category ‘Food and Beverages’ on the other hand, has demonstrated the most impressive growth rate lately.

You see, recently I have had the privilege of working on a very delicious project called FOODragon which is an app for Chinese food. A big part of this project was to take photos of Chinese dishes, beverages, restaurants and even Chinese characters.

Food photos are a celebration of shape and color and though it’s true for food anywhere, it’s especially true for the Chinese cuisine. Luckily, you can find dishes from all around China without setting a foot out of Beijing, otherwise this project would have been much more expensive.

Here are some of the photos I took for this project.

The first one is a dish called 平锅茄子 (flat pan eggplants). I really didn’t like eggplants before I came to China but the way they cook them here has really turned it around for me, and now I even enjoy eggplants back home. The best advice I can give to people who have just arrived here is to try the things you usually don’t like, because Chinese cooking is all about change and transformation.

The second photo is a very close look of fried rice with smoked meat (similar to bacon). Many people don’t know it, but China, and Sichuan Province in particular, has a long tradition of meat smoking. It is the perfect dish for those of you who want to try something Chinese which also tastes a little bit like home.

Unlike common believes (and what that bald kid from The Matrix says) there actually are spoons, and they are an integral part of the Chinese dining set.

Winter is coming and it’s about to get really cold in Beijing. A good way to fight that cold when you are outside is the 麻辣烫 stands found in many street corners. Like many other Chinese delicacies this spicy treat is also from Sichuan, but can now be found almost anywhere in China.

Shanxi and Shaanxi are not only two neighboring provinces which sound almost the same. They are also partners in the crime of creating this deadly delicious dish. It is the combination of Shanxi famous knife cut noodles (刀削面) and the less famous Shaanxi oil splash (油泼) technique.

Let me sign off with a photo of a single Chinese character. If you have taken beginners’ Chinese you should be able to recognize it, though in this case the font is somewhat misleading. Do you know which one it is?

The Art of Meeting in China is a post from: Laowaiblog

Having a business meeting in China is different from having one in the West. If in the West it is common to meet in an office, a cafe, or a restaurant to talk business, meeting in China entails a completely different experience. Benjamin Stecher portraits one of his experiences

On a warm day in early March I arrived at a golf course in Suzhou to apply for the position of Operations Manager. I was chauffeured in a brand new Mercedes from the high-speed train station to the club where a procession of security staff, maintenance crew and caddies had been waiting patiently for my arrival to tip their heads to the white face who may soon be overseeing their every move. It wasn’t long before I was seated down in front of the Junior HR Director for my first in a long series of interviews that day.

What makes any meeting in China unique is the pageantry and over-the-top zeal many Chinese (particularly those outside of Beijing and Shanghai) put on display for any foreigner who comes to either join their ranks, check out their products, or negotiate a deal. There are thousands of foreign importers and exporters working in the country who spend their time bouncing between factories and meetings to sit down with bosses or clients. Countless tales have been told in this land of the lavish banquets and gifts that have been doled out on these occasions. To think of all the countless millions that have been wasted on expensive looking dinners, vintage wines, rented luxury cars, etc.; all in a desperate attempt to get the foreign face to sign on the dotted line.

The meeting in China show was on full display for me as I entered the gates of the newly minted country club/yacht club/real estate enterprise/vacation destination of the group that owned the golf course. The fresh faced Junior HR Director began by apologizing profusely for her lack of English and then robotically read off a list of questions she had been given to ask. Ostensibly, she was polite and professional, never wavering from the task that had been given her, methodically checking off every box on her answer sheet while making sure the conversation didn’t veer into any topic she was not comfortable with, basically anything to do with the game of golf itself.

Next up was the Assistant to the Executive Director. A well travelled woman in her late twenties who spoke fluent English and who was a recent graduate of Fudan University, which she proudly claimed to be a member of the ‘Chinese Ivy League’. We toured the driving range, five star hotel, yacht club, and condos, all property of the club as she read off the prices of membership fees, vacation packages, hotel rooms, spa services, and a laundry list of other ‘high end’ offerings. We ended up on the first tee where she introduced me to a dozen caddies and then in front of all of them turned to me and announced in Chinese (so the caddies could understand) “if you ever see any of them doing anything wrong tell me”, before leaving me with one of them for a detailed look at all 18 holes.

The caddie, Vanessa, was a painfully shy woman who could not even speak standard mandarin properly. Along the way she belched out the distance from tee to green of each hole we passed while trying to teach me the names of all the different trees. Not only did the petite woman know all there was to know about the course, she could also name the winners of every major PGA tour event of the last five years. The caddies live together in a factory-like compound adjacent to the club where they are also given ‘golf education classes’. They come from distant parts of the country to chauffeur clients around and memorize every detail imaginable about the course and the game of golf. Despite these oddities, they were the only people I met all day that looked genuinely content with their work; fresh air, good conditions, and steady pay are a rarity for many migrant workers in China.

Next up was lunch with the HR Director, the only other fluent English speaker at the club. Over a feast of twenty different local dishes she gave me a run-down of the clients at their club: C.E.O.s of this or that manufacturer, president of this or that exporter, board member at this or that bank or telecom company, etc. She stressed that each paid 200,000rmb a year for membership and that only this exclusive list of members were allowed on the club… “well, except for government officials, they can come and go as they please.” She was refreshingly direct regarding what my role would be, ‘we need a foreign face to show to our members and the foreign partners we are trying to attract from around the world.’

Finally came time to sit with the man who ultimately made the decisions around the club, the Executive Director. I was lead up to the ‘18000rmb per night executive suite’ of the on-site hotel. There I sat for twenty minutes staring out the bay windows, on all sides of me was the golf course with a lake to one side and rolling green hills in the distance on the other. With champagne and caviar in tow the portly smiling man finally stepped out of the elevator and made his way over. He proudly introduced himself as a local product who had overseen the construction of all that I now see. After a few formal pleasantries, and half a bottle of champagne, he stood me up and guided me into the frame of one of the bay windows that overlooked the golf course and boasted ‘see this, this, I want you to take care of all this for me’.

With that last gesture the show ended, and I was whisked back to the train station. A few days later an offer came by email to ‘help become part growing tradition and building network’. As appealing as that sounded, and despite the perks that living in that kind of world offer, in the end I turned it down.

For those foreigners who enjoy this kind of show, you’ll have to get over here quick because it’s all slowly coming to an end. Already in Shanghai and Beijing most business professionals have adopted a more nuanced approach to how they treat their clients, customers and partners. Like all newly rich, with every day that passes the Chinese feel less and less like they have to show off. That said, today at least meeting in China is still quite a show, and it is eagerly awaiting anyone who still appreciates style over substance.

Learning Chinese Language is a post from: Laowaiblog

The Chinese language is one of the most difficult languages in the world, and learning the Chinese language is an excruciating process. Benjamin Stecher, a foreigner in China, shares his struggles and joys through his studies of the Chinese language

I have been engulfed in learning the Chinese language since the moment I arrived in China nearly a year and a half ago. The Chinese language continues to be a painful ride with no end in sight. It is agonizing to think that if I had devoted the same amount of time to almost any European language, I would have already been done. Yet along the way there are enough delights to keep one duly entertained until that fateful day when it will all come to an end. God I hope there is an end.

Much has been said of the dreaded tones and how a simple mistake in, for example, the sound ‘ma’ leaves you cursing the heavens or talking about a horse rather than referring to your mother. However, for those of you just setting out on your own journey through learning the Chinese language, fear not, tones are only important when pronouncing individual words. When stringing together sentences, context usually supersedes any tonal ambiguity that may cause misunderstandings.

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When I first began learning the Chinese language it seemed to me as though the Chinese speak to each other as children would. The confines of their language often leave them forming sentences in seemingly the simplest way conceivable. From 认识你很高兴 (pronounced – ren shi ni hen gao xing; transliterated – know you very happy; translated – it is nice to meet you) to the oft borrowed 好久不见 (hao jiu bu jian; long time no see) .

Yet, before I come off sounding too disparaging of one of the oldest languages in the world, I must point out the intricacies that make learning the Chinese language such a fascinating journey for so many. There is a certain beauty in being able to encapsulate entire ideas in sentences only a few syllables long. The Chinese language has been in use by an immense population for nearly five thousand years, and so many of the words in Chinese trace their etymologies back hundreds, sometimes thousands of years; These facts have left the language with phrases, idioms, and proverbs – all its own.

A few Chinese language phrases:

刀子嘴，豆腐心 – pronounced – dao zi zui, dou fu xin; transliterated – knife mouth, tofu heart; translated – have a mouth as sharp as a dagger but a heart as soft as tofu.

杀鸡给猴看 - sha ji gei hou kan; kill chicken give monkey see; to kill a chicken before a monkey – to incite fear in the monkey, originating from the warring states period when deterrents were in wide use.

国家利益高于一切 - guo jia li yi gao yu yi qie; country interest then all else; put public interests before everything else – often used by party spokesmen, usually also meaning that all citizens must put the interests of your country before those of your family.

骑虎难下 - qi hu nan xia; ride tiger difficult off; once on a tiger’s back it is difficult to get off.

马无夜草不肥，人无横财不富 – ma wu ye cao bu fei, ren wu heng cai bu fu; A horse cannot get fat without being fed at night, nor can a man become rich without earnings apart from his regular salary.

What Makes Learning the Chinese Language So Interesting?

The characters and words that make up the Chinese language often contain meanings rooted deep in the history of the Chinese people. The word 马上(ma shang, at once/immediate), is comprised of the character for horse, 马(ma), and the preposition, on, 上 (shang). Together they make up a word that is a living testament to the history of a place where horseback was the quickest means of conveying messages, travelling, and transporting goods, as well as a score of other duties that generations relied upon when something needed to be done at once.

Another example is 矛盾(mao dun, conflict/contradict). The word is comprised of the symbol for a spear, 矛, and that of a shield, 盾. Now if you stare at the characters long enough you might be able to convince yourself that they resemble the objects they describe, but keep in mind that the modern Chinese script bears little resemblance to its original form (for more, click here). What is apparent is the meaning derived when two opposing forces, such as a spear and a shield, meet – a contradiction.

A few more words and phrases in Chinese:

安(an, peace) – the character is comprised of the symbol for a women under the symbol for roof. Taken to mean either a woman sitting peacefully at home or a man can only be at peace if there is one woman in the house.

男(nan, man) – the character for strength under the character for field.

自闭症(zi bi zheng, autism) – characters: self close disease.

However, because of the symbolism inherent in Chinese characters, one often struggles to imagine where some of these terms originate. For example, the Chinese word for a toilet is often translated as 马桶(ma tong), the symbols for a horse and a bucket, leaving one to shudder wondering where its origins may lie.

10 Incredible Yuan Yang Rice Terraces Photos is a post from: Laowaiblog

Southern China is known for its wild and adventures landscapes, specifically famous are the Rice Terraces in Yunnan and Guangxi provinces. One location in Yunnan in particular, Yuan Yang, offers an incredible insight into China’s many ethnicities and landscapes. In this host-post by renowned photographer Brian Wytcherley, Laowaiblog readers gain an intimate look into the people, the Rice Terraces and the unique social fabric of Southern Yunnan province in China

Twice in the past year I’ve had the chance to visit some of the small villages outside of Yuan yang, in China’s Yunnan province. During my time there, I met several local ethnic groups (MinZu), including groups such as the Hani, Yao, Yi, and Miao. The first time I passed through, In January of last year, the areas famous for rice terraces were already frequented by many tourists. Upon coming back just one year later however, I felt that everything had changed. Dozens of new hotels had opened up, fences around scenic areas grew taller, and prices had doubled. Gates and ticket offices made the area feel like a big amusement park. One local farmer told me that outsiders had driven prices up so much that he couldn’t afford a ride home from the rice terraces anymore. I felt things were changing, and changing fast. Outside Yuan Yang, many ethnic girls still wear traditional clothes. However, most of them now buy their clothes from outlets that obtain them from factories far away. Boys are often dressed in suits and other forms of western clothing, like their fathers. Influence from tourists and local government is changing the people in the villages around Yuan Yang and around the magnificent rice terraces in the area. While influence from the outside is inevitable and even potentially positive in some ways, it is important to look at who is being affected and how this influence will shape the future of the cultures who have existed there for so long. The photos I’m including here are only part of a much larger story: I’m sharing with you a few of the local faces I met while wandering the hillsides and rice terraces outside Yuan Yang region in Yunnan province.

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A Miao girl and her new pet turtle.

Two Miao children. The difference between boys and girls. Laomeng, Yunnan.

A Hani woman with her grandchild in a village outside of Yuan Yang.

Walking home along the Rice Terraces of DuoYiShu, Yunnan.

An ethnic Hani farmer works his Rice Terrace plot in DuoYiShu, Yunnan.

A hair-dresser in his shop beside a country road. XinJie, Yunnan.

Selling vegetables on a country road, XinJie, Yunnan.

Hani farmer bringing flowers back for his pigs, outside YuanYang, Yunnan.

A man walking home from the market place in LaoMeng, Yunnan.

A Hani girl being dressed by her grandmother. Near DuoYiShu, Yunnan.

For more of this work in progress, you can visit Brian Wytcherley’s website at http://www.iwontgiveup.com

Got interesting photos of China? E-mail us here or at photos@laowaiblog.com

These amazing photos of Southern China’s rice terraces and Yuan Yang region were taken by Brian Wytcherley: Brian is a freelance photojournalist based in Chengdu, China. He focuses on documenting social and cultural issues. His passion comes from the people he meets and from the adventures that unfold when he takes his camera out into the world. Brian truly loves what he does and hopes to make a positive impact. He has experience shooting in a range of conditions for magazine, newspaper, book and print exhibitions, and he is available for assignment.

Innovation in China in the Digital Age is a post from: Laowaiblog

Innovation has become an important concept in modern China. Beijing has reached a point in which it wants to stop being the manufacturer hub of the world and become a powerful innovator, creator and designer of new products and services. In the twelfth five year plan, China has emphasized the need to convert its economy from a manufacturing based economy to a more consumer based one, and innovation is key to achieve success.

Innovation is a general concept that relates mostly to the creation and design of ideas that will lead to new technological discoveries and advancements; those, hopefully, will be used globally. Laowaiblog decided to explore whether digital innovation in China exists and, if so, to what extent. We met with Philip Beck, a China internet, media and monitoring guru, who is the Chairman of three Beijing start-ups: SmartTots, DianYue, and Dubeta Pty Ltd. We caught up with Mr. Beck to find out his feelings about China’s (or more specifically Beijing’s) bustling entrepreneurial scene, and how it effects China’s desire to leverage innovation as its growth base for the twelfth five year plan.

Watch: Philip Beck -- Innovation in China

www.youtube.com/watch?v=egFjDwpZw4w

The entrepreneurial scene in Beijing is truly becoming the melting pot of the start up industry and helps with innovation in China. In your opinion, Is this statement true?

“Yes, absolutely. I think that when you’ve got a market that’s already 10 times the size of all the other markets around the world put together and within five years time will be thirty times the size, there’s a lot of eyes here in Beijing looking at what is happening overseas, how can they copy that here, how can they evolve what’s done overseas here. So there’s a real hot bed of entrepreneurialism in Beijing, I think much more than Silicon Valley.”

Do you see many foreigners coming to Beijing to start start-ups ?

“Not so many foreginers coming to Beijing to start start-ups, but a lot of foreign investors are coming to Beijing to look at young Chinese entrepreneurs who want to start their own business and help develop innovation in China, particularly when most foreigners, like me, accept the fact that the success rate of foreign led internet businesses in China is close to zero. Some might point out that Qunar (a successful travel website in China) has been successful, but Fritz Demopoulos (Qunar founder) also had two Chinese co-founders, and Cici zhang has just recently stepped in as the CEO of Qunar. So most foreigners recognize that the success rate of internationally led internet websites in China is zero, and thus they are looking for strong, local talent who they believe can implement their ideas effectively.”

And how does one find that talent? If I were a foreign investor, how would I find the right talent in China?

“The best hot bed is at Wudaokou, around Zhongguancun, Haidian area in Beijing. There are lots of universities there that are full of young people who have ideas and want to make a lot of money. I think the Chinese government has been very successful in promoting some local heroes such as Jack Ma from Alibaba and Robin Li from Baidu, and many young people want to be like them. This phenomenon helps contribute to local innovation in the Chinese market.”

Jack Ma and Robin Li have both gone through foreign education systems. Do you see a correlation between the level or type of education they received to their success in innovation in China?

“I would say that at the moment probably 90% of the successful companies in China has been created by local Chinese who have gone abroad to study. These are returning Chinese -- they grew up here, did their university education in the U.S or elsewhere and then came back to China. The other thing which is interesting for me is that a lot of the successful guys come from Stanford University. It is an incredibly strong group of entrepreneurialism, banking and finance. So there’s this tight network of people from Stanford who support one another, though this network is slowly breaking down, and more universities are added in the mix.”

What rule do local or central governments play in entrepreneurialism and innovation in China?

“The government very clearly wants to promote local Chinese and ensure local Chinese are successful. It wants strong, local companies that can then start broadening their business offshore. So many people are talking about the great firewall of China. My opinion is that the government is keeping the wall up until it feels that local Chinese companies are strong enough to take on global competitors and start exporting their local products offshore. When it feels the timing is right, I believe the government will start to bring down some of the restrictions in the great firewall. Secondly, the foreigners who are successful here are those who have spent some time learning the language and getting to know the market. They build up credibility to find local people they can trust -- that is the key issue.”

Digital media is very restricted in China. How do these restrictions affect you as an app developer and as an innovator?

“I actually feel I have a lot more freedom operating in China. Comparing to Asia, China has its rules, but the freedom that I feel is probably five times more than the freedom I would feel in Hong Kong, Australia or New Zealand, in which there is so much regulation. Such regulation makes it difficult for small businesses to develop and inhibits innovation.”

How so? How does this freedom express itself and helps alleviate innovation in China?

“First of all, most businesses I am involved with rely on people, and the hiring and firing of people in China is easier than in any other market. Finding people is also easier here -- there’s the same challenge of finding good people as there is anywhere, but there are many more people to choose from. In one of my businesses, we don’t just focus on Beijing but look for talent from other areas. For example, we have one business where we developed a whole operation system in Chongqing, a second tier city, that is much cheaper, and its people have better attitude. A lot of ideas happen in Beijing, but there are a lot of places where one can establish operations.”

“In terms of censorship, yes there are restrictions, but for me there is a very simple framework within which the government asks you to work, and if you step outside of that then you make your life difficult. Some of my Australian friends might accuse me of being a communist, but if one wants to succeed in China, then one should not say anything that upsets the government, that disturbs family values or that questions the authority of “Mom and Dad”. There are some principals which I really like and which help make for a better society. Yes, there is the downside of not being able to comment on political issues, but when I look at other markets, I can’t say that the American, U.K or any other market is a model of success. There are pros and cons for each. So, while there are some downsides to innovation here, there are also massive upsides.”

“Overall, I feel much more freedom here, and I am much more comfortable doing business here. Plus I can get a lot more value for the dollar here -- in terms of development or labor costs. That is why if one has an idea, it is much easier to develop it and get it off the ground in China than it is in many other markets.”

What kind of people would you say bring the majority of ideas? Is it the Chinese crowd or the foreign crowd who delivers the ideas?

“At the moment most of the ideas are coming from returning Chinese. They learned, while being overseas, how to be much more creative and innovative in their thinking and problem solving processes. Many local Chinese, because of the education system, are still very linear in their thinking, so if something blocks them from getting from A to B they stop. Western (foreign) thinking encourages people to ask questions and to actively look at how can I solve this problem. If a road block arises then people question how to get around/over it. The great thing about the foreign education system is that it teaches Chinese people how to get over such obstacles and thus enhances the growth of innovation in China.”

“Even though the innovation gap between Chinese people and foreigners remains, the Chinese are progressing very quickly. In the twelfth five year plan, the government in Beijing recognized that innovation in China is a problem and that China needs to change its learning education system. If China wants its economy to become more innovative, it knows it has to develop creative thinking. At the moment, therefore, most of the ideas are coming from returning Chinese or local Chinese looking at what’s happening overseas and trying to make it here.”

“Some people say copyright doesn’t exist in China, I call it “Copy it Right”. This part is slowly changing -- copying a product in order to make it more innovative. Just by looking at companies such as Baidu V.S Google or QQ V.S MSN, one can see that the amount of innovation that Baidu brings to the market each year, compared with the amount of innovation that Google brings each year, is at least ten times more. Therefore, having copied a concept, the Chinese are much more innovative in bringing new ideas to the market.”

“Lastly, I also keep in the back of my mind that there are 1.3 billion eyes looking at something in China V.S 300 million eyes in the U.S or elsewhere. These eyes all want to make money and to be successful.”

Educating the Dragon – Part Two is a post from: Laowaiblog

The Education System in China is considered one of the main caterpillars for China’s economic growth. In Part Two of “Educating the Dragon: The Education System in China“, Benjamin Stecher examines whether China can really outperform the rest of the world by using its education system? Can disciplined, educated youth really lead China in the 21^st century?

“We are shut up in schools and college recitation rooms for ten or fifteen years, and come out at last with a bellyful of words and do not know a thing.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

My years spent teachings in East Asia have proved to me that the stereotypes we in the west have of East-Asian education in general, and of the education system in China in particular, are mostly true. Most students, as soon as they are mature enough, spend the vast majority of their lives at a desk with a pencil in hand and a list of facts, sentences, words or equations to memorize and apply again and again. They are over-stressed and over-worked, yet this is the reality of the education system they live in. The vast majority are never able to live up to the expectations thrust upon them by the incessant jeering from their parents, teachers, and even peers.

While writing this article, I am in the middle of a two week, long and intensive SAT prep class for 10^th graders; a class taking place during the Chinese New Year. The parents of these students have no problem with their children spending the entirety of the most solemn holiday on the Chinese calendar, and the only vacation many of them have, stuck in a classroom for 8 hours a day preparing for a test they will not have to take for another two years.

What might be most striking to their western counterparts is the students’ compliance, their complete and utter willingness to go along with this program. They firmly believe this test to be the means by which they will be propelled up the rungs of society. They see the hours spent memorizing new vocabulary and developing their reading ability as a liberating force that will ensure them a good life.

The highly competitive nature of the education systems in China and in Asia produces some extraordinary minds. I dissected excerpts from Thomas Friedman and Booker T. Washington with a seven year old girl, for whom English was her fourth language. I worked with a 14 year old high school student, who was preparing for entry into the starry-eyed world of the ivy league and who was routinely scoring over 2300 on his mock SAT tests. There is definitely something to admire about an education system that actually succeeds at getting everyone to buy into the value of education.

The Cost of the Education System in China Is Too Heavy for Chinese Youth

Despite such success, however, the education system currently in place in China is creating kids who are great test takers but have no social skills and are unable to apply what they are learning beyond the classroom. They enter the workforce primed to pass the resume test but unable to get through a single interview. I have spoken with a number of recruiters here, all seem to have the same complaint. They are handed with impressive CVs but end up sitting down with a sweaty nervous wreck who spits out memorized answers to every question.

There is another impediment to the education system in China that has yet to be thoroughly examined. The rote learning required in the early years of education to attain literacy in Chinese seems to affect the way Chinese students approach learning and studying for the remainder of their formal education. The only way to become proficient in reading and writing Chinese is to sit down for hours a day with a list of characters and copy them again and again until they are imprinted in the mind. These years of learning seem to have cut lines ostensibly into the students brains. A branch of neuroscience, while still years away from producing anything conclusive, has begun demonstrating that the early years of education, particularly those spent in remedial language learning, are when the synapses and neural pathways first get locked in place. These connections make up the graphing upon which messages in the brain will henceforth be sent. Spending years at a desk copying and memorizing seems to create minds ideal for learning systems but with a hindered ability to ever create a system of their own.

Nevertheless, we must remember that the education system in China is still in its infancy. Only forty years ago teachers and professors across the country were still being branded as ‘elitists’ and were forced to relocate to the country side for re-education programs. These teachers and professors have done an admirable job implementing standardized education for 1.3 billion people. But there is still a lot of work to be done if the education system in China is going to give birth to the type of minds that will continue propelling this country, along with its corporations and institutions, through the generations to come.

Educating the Dragon: Education System in China is a post from: Laowaiblog

The Education System in China is considered one of the main caterpillars for China’s economic growth. Advancements in technology as well as the rise in quality of life around the world are mostly attributed to liberal education systems in the West. The fruits of the reforms in the education system in China have yet to be fully appreciated, yet these are surely to propel China in the 21st century

Western dominance of the globe did not come about because of advancements in technology, or the pillaging of natural resources, or the enslavement of others, or even world war. It came about because of revolutions in education. Throughout modern history the introduction of compulsory liberal education has been the catalyst that sparked the development of nations. As soon as information begins trickling down beyond the hands of the elite, the common man has always found the means by which to empower her or himself, thereby unleashing the full potential of their country. Now this same progress is underway in the world’s most heavily populated nation. This, more than any other factor, is tipping the scales of power back to where they have been for the majority of the past two millennia, China.

Watch: Education System in China Reforms

www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAPJ_JkwbtE

Examples of the impact had by education systems on the advancement of nations can be seen throughout history:

England: The Church of England began enforcing attendance at grammar schools while the government began instituting apprenticeship programs towards the end of the 17^th century. A century later the nation boasted artisans in every field along with a throng of well educated, able-bodied men who could be sent to every corner of the globe to fuel the empire upon which the sun never set.

Japan: The public education system set up in Japan under the Meiji Restoration galvanized a people who only a few decades later shocked the world by defeating the Russians and conquering Manchuria and the Korean peninsula. They would go on to play a leading role in the world throughout the 20^th century.

United-States: America began instituting compulsory education in the 1870’s; a generation later it rivaled the entrenched European powers as the centre of world economic prosperity.

South Korea: In South Korea the willingness of individuals and the government to invest in education ever since the Korean War pushed industrialization onto the peninsula at a speed the world had never seen before. The country has since gone from a third world backwater on par with North Korea in the 50’s, to the 12^th largest economy in the world today. Subsequently adult literacy in the country has risen from 22% in 1945 to presently being the highest in the world.

The list goes on and on.

Reforms in the education system in China, implemented under the guise of Deng Xiaoping in the 80’s, are only now beginning to bear fruit. There is a top of layer of society that is incredibly well educated and who has been able to take advantage of the opening up of the country over the last three decades. What will happen when soon a much larger portion of the population has those same tools needed to take advantage of all that the country’s new found wealth has to offer?

The transformation in the education system in China is under way. In a generation China has gone from fiddling with abacuses to competing with some of the best education systems in the world. I have worked as an educator in Asia for much of the last five years and have seen the results. Everything is changing; the institutions are evolving, the teaching methods are improving, and the schools are progressing. These reforms in the education system in China were first implemented in the big cities and have already had a startling impact.

A study done by the OECD ranked Shanghai high schools students first in the world in terms of reading, science, and math. The methods practiced in Shanghai are being filtered down to every county and township across China. It is only a matter of time before its 1.3 billion citizens are able to reap the same rewards.

Education inevitably brings with it demands by those who are educated. No longer are educated persons content with the opportunities presented to them by their immediate surroundings; they broaden their scope and are able to take in the full range of possibilities available to them.

“A man who has never gone to school may steal from a freight car; but if he has a university education he may steal the whole railroad.” -- Theodore Roosevelt

Continue reading about the education system in China in part two

Water or Wood: Social Behavior in China is a post from: Laowaiblog

Social behavior in China is fascinating. Home to more than 1.3 billion people, China possesses unique cultural characteristics that allow its citizens to live in harmony. Nevertheless, cutting in line, being loud over the phone or invading other people’s personal space are all valid forms of social behavior in China. Dr. Caryn Voskuil dives into some of the unique patterns of behavior in China and compares them with those in the West

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When I first moved to China, I was baffled by what I considered the excessive patience of the Chinese people. On the streets, people often stood in front of or blocked other pedestrians, oncoming automobiles, and bicycles. This is an acceptable form of behavior in China. In the public transportation, shops and narrow lanes of China, there is regularly intense competition for seats, access to doors, and access to products or services. And what is the response of the average Chinese citizen? Complete indifference! It is as if no one even notices that their opportunities and comfort are being negated by the actions of those around them. Watching an elderly woman as her place on a bus was usurped by a younger person, I saw in her wrinkled face neither disgust nor concern. In fact, what I saw seemed to be nothing at all – a supreme resignation. This amazed me – and I wondered how behavior in China, which results in the suffering of such unpleasantness without complaint, or indeed even without the acknowledgement of any displeasure, is socially normal. Familiarizing myself with Chinese culture, I have come to understand that there is a reasonable explanation for accepting such social behavior in China, and it is not that the Chinese are fundamentally an unaware or indifferent people. What the Chinese are, however, is quintessentially tolerant.

If there is one thing that we see little of in the West, it is tolerance. I am not talking about the legal tolerance of other peoples and individual differences that is legislated by western laws and rules of social behavior. Certainly there is much of that type of tolerance in contemporary western societies. The tolerance I am speaking of is far more internal and essential. It is the tolerance that is synonymous with ‘forbearance’ and with ‘patience’. It is measured by either the ease or the tightness that one feels in one’s chest when faced with circumstances that are less than ideal or comfortable. It is a reflection of the deeply-held belief that life is fundamentally difficult, and that we do not and will never have complete control over our surroundings or those around us. In most western countries, being pushed or shoved in public, or having your place in line violated, would certainly result in protest and in some cases, violence. Toleration is rare and viewed as a sign of weakness.

In the west today, the industrial and technological revolutions that were spurred on by Renaissance humanism and Enlightenment confidence have led individuals to believe that the world can be molded according to their precise specifications into a sort of social utopia. Absolute comfort is seen as a reasonable expectation and indeed, as a right. For this reason, being pushed in public, inhaling second-hand smoke, or having one’s ears assaulted by excessive noise elicit intense and often violent emotional responses that many feel they must (and have the right to) express. Such responses are often the cause of a great deal of stress, and a single perceived ‘injustice’ can ruin one’s day. Behavior in China, however, dictates otherwise, and one notices little anxiety being produced over what westerners would perceive to be ‘injustices’.

Metaphorically, it is as if people who exercise social behavior in China are temperamentally like water, and Westerners are like wood. Water flows around impediments and is not cut by sharp corners or eroded by rough edges. It continues on its path regardless of impediments, and if momentarily diverted or delayed, it will eventually find a path and continue unaffected on its way. Like water, wood has a sort of strength – but it is a strength of a different sort. Wood is firm and substantial. It holds its shape and effectively resists pressure and counter-forces. However, when faced with barriers, wood must crush that which impedes it or be stopped in its path. It can not conveniently change form or momentarily split in half to avoid an obstacle. Because it can not bend, it must succeed or break.

When faced with the difficulties and discomforts imposed by daily life, a Chinese person will more often approach these as water, not letting themselves be bothered or impeded, but simply moving around and through them without becoming substantially agitated. Such is the social behavior in China. Westerners, on the other hand, tend to feel they must change those around them or manipulate uncomfortable situations when difficulties arise. As rigid as wood, they try to force life to yield to their wills, and as a result they more often get their way, but they also experience a great deal of stress and anxiety.

Certainly, western societies have gone to great lengths to legislate civil behavior and to smooth the rough edges from social interactions in an effort to improve the living conditions and standards of their citizens. One might well wonder then why it is that a recent poll has claimed that the Chinese are more satisfied with their lives than westerners. The accuracy of the poll may be challenged by some, but in my experience the Chinese I know certainly seem less troubled and apprehensive about the trials and tribulations of their daily lives than my western friends and colleagues. History and expectations are indeed part of this, but I also am convinced that the patterns of behavior in China and how the Chinese approach daily difficulties in the manner of water is the underlying key to their admirable composure in the face of life’s storms.

Westerners and Chinese often see each other as inscrutable. While acceptable norms of behavior in China, such as long-suffering and patience, may be seen as a form of weakness by many from the west, Western impatience and stubbornness when dealing with daily discomforts can equally be viewed as unseemly by many Chinese. It is only when we understand that our differences arise from varied cultural learning – a water-like approach as opposed to a wood-like approach towards managing life’s difficulties – that we can truly begin to appreciate and learn from one another.

Victims of Chinese Festivities – Year of the Dragon is a post from: Laowaiblog

As the Year of the Dragon commences, the unusual tradition of lighting fireworks in every possible location in mainland China is under review. Anastasia Novobranova takes notice to the origin of this habit and examines why no one has forbidden firing rockets that can damage buildings, injure children and even kill city dwellers

Russians have a really interesting tradition: While celebrating the first days of spring, they burn a straw man; an act symbolizing the end of winter. Recent events in China indicate that the Chinese people have decided to adopt this tradition and to modernize it further – instead of burning a straw man, they celebrate by burning… a hotel!

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Beijing, February 2009. Being especially excited on the last day of the Chinese New Year (春节- chunjie, also known as Spring Festival), several CCTV (Central Chinese Television) representatives organized a massive fireworks display. No expenses were held back to finance this occasion: The best pyrotechnics were bought and set to be launched close to the CCTV Tower (also known as the «Big Underpants» of Beijing). The 159-meter building was expected to be opened by May of 2009 and to include many TV recording and production studios, as well as a 241-room 5-star hotel which would be part of the brand of Mandarin Oriental.

Unfortunately, the opening never took place. Merely minutes after the amazing fireworks had been launched into the air, the building turned into a torch! The fireworks completely burned down the building. Extinguishing the fire took more than 6 hours and occupied more than 600 firefighters for hours. It resulted in 7 wounded firefighters and 1 person dead, roughly estimated direct losses of 163.83 mln. RMB (US$24 mln) and a tall black charred building, which might still come crashing down at any time, right in the center of the capital city of China.

History, however, is recurrent. And so is Spring Festival. In 2011 we again witnessed the blaze of a 5-star hotel, this time the role of the straw man was given to the Huang Chao Wanxin Hotel, located in the city of Shenyang (Liaoning province). This hotel is a part of the Dynasty Wanxin Compound, which comprises of 3 towers, rising to 219 meters each. According to local media, two of the towers were almost destroyed by the fire. And of course, the cause of the fire, you guessed it: fireworks! Unfortunately, no detailed information was released, but rumor has it that the creators of the fire were in fact guests of the hotel, who ignited fireworks in the hotel itself. It was reported that a residential building close to the hotel was also destroyed by the fire. Luckily, no deaths or injuries that year. Financial losses were high yet have not been published since the incident.

It is worth mentioning that the 2010 Spring Festival was not without architectual losses as well. On February 18, 2010, the fireworks in Zhengding city (Hebei province) resulted in a huge fire that left little of the South City Gate. The gate was a great historical monument, built approximately 1600 years ago. Its complete reconstruction was carried out in 2011 and cost some 4 mln RMB. Luckily, no injuries or deaths in this incident as well. Nonetheless, a historical relic that was prominent for more than one thousand years was gone in a couple of hours.

And so the habit goes on and on – fires, injuries, wounds and even deaths. As local newspapers report, during the last 5 days of this year’s ‘Chunjie’, there have been more than 30 fires in Hangzhou alone; more than 200 people have been injured in Beijing, and two men died. One might ask, when the losses are so apparent and massive, why nothing has been done to change this dangerous habit?

Well, to answer this question one needs to investigate the well-established Chinese tradition, which is much stronger than the fear of any injury or even death. The belief in the existence of evil spirits has been quite persistent since ancient times in China. Chinese people believe that ill spirits choose to stay close to their homes during the New Year period, and thus it is necessary to drive them away by inducing loud noise. This is why many people ignite powder explosives right at the doorstep of their homes. Noise is the main element of the holiday, and during the 15-day Spring Festival, it is incessant, even during late-night and mid-day hours.

In Chinese culture, superstitions are many: Chinese people widely believe that the more fireworks one fires, the richer he/she will become in the following year. Yet another superstition claims that a serious accident occurred during Spring Festival is a bad omen. The 2009 fire in Beijing created expectations among locals that disasters will come in the following year. Not surprisingly, disasters did occur, and these were mostly natural ones: severe droughts, wind-hails, freezing weather, and floods. Such is the paradox in China: by trying to push away evil and misfortune, people create them for themselves.

The year of 2012 has a special meaning in China – it is the Year of Dragon. According to the Chinese zodiac, the dragon is a purely fabulous creature. It is associated with power, wealth and wisdom. Back in ancient times, Dragon, the king of animals in Chinese mythology, was the symbol of the influential power of emperors. Believing in the supernatural abilities of the dragon, young Chinese people strive to produce an offspring. During ‘Dragon’ years, there is usually a demographic boost – there was a 5-% increase in reproduction rate in 2000, and there is one expected this year as well. Obviously, the powerful year of the dragon should be properly welcomed with massive fireworks – as the culture dictates. Although officially banned within the 5th ring road of Beijing, Beijingers started hearing explosions as early as the 17th of January (Chinese New Year Festival begins on 23d of January), most of which are dangerously close to living areas and office buildings. No doubt that arises fear that your home might fall and become one of China’s ‘victims of festivities’.