Are American Schools Better? 美國的學校比較好嗎?

People in Taitung often ask me if American schools are better.  My answer is always no.  Of course, there are good and bad schools everywhere, and the worst school in America might be better than the worst school in Taitung, but really, on average, I would say that Taiwanese schools have a lot going for them.  台東的朋友常常問我, "美國的學校比較好嗎?"  我的回答是 "不."  到處都有好學校跟壞學校, 美國的學校不一定比較好.  美國最差的學校可能比台灣最差的學校好一點, 但是我覺得台灣的學校很有自己的特色.

For me, one of the major differences between American and Taiwanese schools is the emphasis put on either facts or opinions.  In America, teachers tend to reward students with strong opinions about things, even if those students' mastery of underlying facts is a bit shaky.  我認為美國跟台灣的學校的最大差別在於重視書本知識或個人意見.  在美國, 老師傾向於鼓勵學生對事物有自己的想法, 有時可能學生對事實並沒有很深的瞭解, 只是有意見就好.

In Taiwan, students are rewarded more for their mastery of facts, and less for their opinions about these facts.  Obviously it would be the best thing to have well-informed opinions, based on a thorough knowledge of a given subject, but schools in both countries tend to emphasize one half of the equation over the other.  在台灣, 大部分的老師比較重視書本知識.  個人意見顯得沒有那麼重要.  當然正確的知識觀念跟正確的個人意見都很重要, 可是這兩國家都還沒在這兩項重點上取得平衡.

People also ask me if American schools are more "free."  They aren't often able to elaborate on what they mean by "free," but I assume they are asking if American schools are less bound by rules and tradition.  In this instance, there is a sharp distinction between American public and private schools.  American public schools are certainly more free, but often to a disorganized or even dangerous extent.  American private schools, on the other hand, are sometimes even more rule-bound than Taiwanese schools.  Many American Catholic schools, for example, attract a large number of students not on religious grounds, but on the fact that their discipline is much, much stricter.  還有人問我, "美國的學校比較自由嗎?"  他們通常都無法定義"自由"的意思.  我想他們要問的是學校的規矩是否比較少.  在這方面, 公立學校跟私立學校比較起來就差很多.  美國有的公立學校真的很自由, 自由到超亂的或是有點危險.  有的私立學校的規矩甚至比台灣的學校還嚴格.  特別是美國的天主教學校.  很多美國小孩在那種學校上學不是因為宗教的關係, 而是因為那種學校很嚴格.

Another big difference between American and Taiwanese public schools is money.  In Taiwan, public schools are pretty much the same everywhere, and are allotted funds out of the same general purse.  In America, many schools are dependent upon local education levies, federal and local government assistance, and money from other sources.  This means that schools in affluent areas tend to look (and often be) better.  Immigration also plays a role here, since schools in affluent areas tend to educate more native speakers, from more stable households.  Schools in poorer areas just can't compete.  另一個美國的學校跟台灣的學校的差別在於"錢".  在台灣, 每所學校的經費由縣市政府決定.  美國的狀況比較複雜, 因為部分的錢由中央政府提供, 部分的錢來自於地方的土地增值稅等...... 所以有錢的社區的學校通常比較好.  那些比較窮的學校通常有比較多的移民學生跟家庭有困難的學生,所以兩者的素質就有所差別.

During my time teaching in Seattle (about two years altogether), I taught at both kinds of American school.  One school I taught at was so poor that they couldn't even heat the building properly, and some of the interior walls were falling down.  Many of the students in that school came from very frightening home environments, where drugs and domestic violence were an everyday occurrence.  我在美國教書的兩年中, 在這兩種學校當過老師.  其中一所學校很老舊, 有的牆壁快倒了, 冬天的時候也沒辦法供應足夠的暖氣.  那裡的學生很多是家庭狀況不好, 他們居住的環境中常常碰到毒品或家庭暴力的問題.

I have also taught at very nice, new schools, in very rich neighborhoods.  These were like the schools you see in Hollywood movies, where all the kids are well-dressed and well-behaved.  The strange thing is, I tended to like the poorer schools more.  Many of the kids in those schools felt more "real" to me, even if some of them were a nightmare.  我也在有錢的社區的學校教過書.  那裡的學校很像美國電影裡的學校.  每個學生穿著流行的衣服,行為也很好.  奇怪的是我比較喜歡沒錢的學校, 因為那種學校的同學對我來說比較"真".

So are American schools better?  On average, I would have to say no.  Just different, I think, and burdened with their own problems.  There's good and bad everywhere, and America is no exception.  美國的學校比較好嗎?   我覺得不是,而是不同而已.  因為環境跟政策的關係, 每個學校都有他們自己的問題.  到處都有好跟壞的學校.  在美國沒有什麼不一樣.

P.S.

If you want to see a funny movie about American schools, I highly recommend "Bad Teacher."  You can rent it at Blockbuster!  如果您想看部關於美國學校的喜劇片, 我建議你看"Bad Teacher"[罷凌女教師].  您可以在百視達租這片DVD.