約8000所英國小學將引進中國式數學教學方法

As reported by The Times, half of primary schools in the U.K. will soon adopt the traditional Chinese method of teaching mathematics.

據英國《泰晤士報》報道，英國半數小學即將引進中國式數學教學方法。

Teachers will be specially trained and given new textbooks with which to teach the "Shanghai math" method. The new teaching style will rely heavily on repetition, drills and "chalk and talk."

教師們將接受培訓，使用新教科書，學習"上海式數學"教學方法。這種新方法將完全依賴於背誦、練習以及"填鴨式教學"。

Previous tests have shown that the average mathematics ability of 15-year-olds in Shanghai is three years more sophisticated than that of 15-year-olds in the U.K.

此前的測試結果顯示，上海15歲學生的數學水平比英國同齡學生超前3年左右。

Nick Gibb, the Minister of State at the Department of Education, announced that training will be provided for 8,000 primary schools--half the country’s total--to switch to the Shanghai approach.

英國教育大臣尼克·吉布日前宣佈，將會對8000所小學--約佔全國半數--的教師提供培訓，以引進上海的這種教學方法。

"We are seeing a renaissance in maths teaching in this country, with good ideas from around the world helping to enliven our classrooms," he said.

他說，"我們期待着英國數學教學的復興，希望引進全球的優秀教學方法以活躍我們的課堂。"

Critics of the new program complain that the "progressive" math-teaching style used in China, Singapore and Japan is difficult to apply to real-life situations. Others say that the reform would lead to confusion, and could even stop children from learning the basics and enjoying the subject.

對這一新項目不滿的批評人士表示，這種在中國、新加坡和日本所採用的"先進"教學方法，很難解決日常生活中的實際問題。還有人指出，這項改革會引起混亂，甚至會影響孩子們掌握數學的基礎，阻礙他們的學習興趣。

Mike Ellicock, chief executive of National Numeracy in the U.K., says it is necessary for children to learn the basics of math so that they can be confident about the subject, and repetition and drills are not the right way to achieve that. Ellicock believes it is inappropriate to simply import a teaching method from such a different culture.

英國算術基金會負責人邁克·埃利科克表示，孩子們當然需要掌握數學基本思想，這樣他們才能在此基礎上感受到自信。但要實現這一點，練習和重複並非正確的方式。他認爲，從一種完全不同的文化中全盤引進教學思想是不合適的。