INSPIRED: REFLECTIONS ON ZHENG DAO RESEARCH & TEACHING PRIMARY SCHOOL
? ? ? ? ? ? ? 啟發(fā) : 正道小學(xué)的教學(xué)研發(fā)
I had visited many preschool education models around the world, e.g. the creative multiple symbolic languages of children’s expression of their understanding of the world in Reggio Emilia, Italy; the Block Play-based collaborative learning model of Bank Street’s Development-Interaction approach in New York, USA;? or Fuji’s Kindergarten in Tokyo, Japan that uses its architecture and physical environment to encourage learning through inventing play and more.?
我參訪過世界各地許多學(xué)前教育模式。? 比如,? 意大利的雷焦·埃米利亞，兒童對(duì)世界理解的創(chuàng)造性的多重象征語言;? 美國紐約，基于塊游戲性的銀行街開發(fā)-交互方法的協(xié)同學(xué)習(xí)模型; 或者是日本東京的富士幼兒園，利用它的建筑和客觀環(huán)境來鼓勵(lì)學(xué)生學(xué)習(xí)。
Zheng Dao Primary: A Non-mainstream Research & Teaching School
正道小學(xué):? 一個(gè)非凡的教學(xué)研究學(xué)校
On my recent visit to Hezhou 賀州prefecture-level city in Guangxi廣西, I had the privilege of visiting a rather unique local primary boarding school -? Zheng Dao Primary 正道小學(xué)-? having been told that beyond its simple, basic, almost spartan setting, there was an interesting philosophy in education behind the school.? When Principal Cheng Shi Ming (成世明) asked if I had a few hours for him to show me his school – I knew then that this wasn’t going to be a breeze through his school facilities.? As he kindly drove me through the country roads leading from Hezhou Prefecture to Sha Tin village沙田村, I wondered, what I might see that would be so unusual in a rural village.? I anticipated eagerly as I gradually saw less than modern buildings and partially paved roads, but an increasing oneness of the rural landscape with the simplicity of its people and life in Sha Tin village.
最近在廣西的地級(jí)市賀州的訪問中，我有幸參觀過了當(dāng)?shù)匾凰喈?dāng)有特點(diǎn)的寄宿小學(xué)—正道小學(xué)
有人告訴我，在學(xué)?？此瀑|(zhì)樸與簡(jiǎn)單的環(huán)境外，其實(shí)存在著一種我們?nèi)庋劭床灰姷氖钟腥さ慕虒W(xué)理念。學(xué)校的校長(zhǎng)成世明問我能否騰出幾個(gè)小時(shí)，讓他帶我參觀他的學(xué)校。我立即就意識(shí)到，他不僅僅是要帶我隨便看一看學(xué)校的設(shè)施。在他開著車，駛在從賀州市通往沙田村的鄉(xiāng)間公路上時(shí)，我想，等會(huì)我將見到的，可能很難存在于一個(gè)尋常的小村莊里。我懷著無比期待的心情，看著現(xiàn)代的建筑越來越少，瀝青路面也走完了。引入眼簾的，是一幅漸趨完整的鄉(xiāng)村風(fēng)景畫，使我們看到了沙田村淳樸的人民和簡(jiǎn)單的生活。Zheng Dao Primary, a nondescript school of only 68 children, ages 2.5 years to 12 years old, occupies an old, white primary school building in Sha Tin village in Hezhou Prefectural-level City, Guangxi.? Against a backdrop of the vast agricultural landscape, here exists a revolutionary approach to education that does some boundary-breaking things that would challenge my traditional expectations of a regular primary school.?
廣西壯族自治區(qū)賀州市沙田村的正道小學(xué)，一所看似平凡無奇的學(xué)校，建在一棟老舊，泛白的建筑上，僅僅擁有68名，年齡在2.5歲到12歲的學(xué)生。在這廣闊的鄉(xiāng)村里，它的教育理念方式和方法突破了常規(guī)和傳統(tǒng)，打破了我對(duì)原有對(duì)傳統(tǒng)教育的認(rèn)知與期待。
Amongst many things there that left a deep impression on me, 3 stood out.
這兒的許多見聞都使人印象深刻，但有點(diǎn)3點(diǎn)尤其突出了它們的非凡與獨(dú)特。
Living in a Zheng Dao Economy – Within the school gates exists a system of transactional currencies and reward system for character building as well as an early introduction to economics in society.? This transactional and reward system comes complete with (i) banking services run by the older, more capable children taking turns to man a cash register and Zheng Dao bank accounts of each student (there is actually a small corner set up as the bank in one of the classrooms!) ; (ii) a simple barter and trading exchange centre using real goods or Zheng Dao currency obtained through services rendered, donations and rewards for achievement; (iii) a children-run Zheng Dao Canteen that requires children to purchase and use Zheng Dao currency with a social undertone that encourages the more ‘well-to-do’ children with extra resources to buy and donate bowls of “Wall Rice” （墻飯）- literally bowls ofrice drawn on a chalk board for needy ones to claim in exchange for real food till supply runs out.?
1.生活在正道的經(jīng)濟(jì)體系下——這所學(xué)校有著它自己的貨幣交易與獎(jiǎng)勵(lì)體系，目的是建立學(xué)生自身的性格品質(zhì)，并提早使學(xué)生了解社會(huì)的經(jīng)濟(jì)狀況。這種貨幣交易與獎(jiǎng)勵(lì)體系和銀行服務(wù)是由更年長(zhǎng)，更有能力的孩子來運(yùn)行的。他們輪流充當(dāng)取款機(jī)，和各個(gè)學(xué)生的銀行賬戶（實(shí)際上，每個(gè)教室的小角落里都設(shè)置了銀行）；2.簡(jiǎn)單的以物易物的服務(wù)中心。學(xué)生們可以用真實(shí)的物品或正道貨幣（通?？梢詮奶峁┑姆?wù)，捐贈(zèng)和獎(jiǎng)勵(lì)中得到）來換取成績(jī)；3.學(xué)生自己運(yùn)營(yíng)的正道食堂。孩子們需要用正道貨幣來購買食物。甚至還存在著一種約定俗成，有著更多資源的“富?！钡暮⒆映袚?dān)了購買或捐贈(zèng)“墻飯”碗的責(zé)任。這種“墻飯”碗實(shí)際上是畫在粉筆板上的碗。對(duì)那些需要食物的孩子，他們可以用這種碗來換取真的食物，直到吃完了所有食物供給。One can already imagine the strong messages of basic economic principles so lacking in our modern world of affluence especially from an early age such a system can inculcate.? You and I certainly cannot solve the problems of poverty and disparity at large.? But here in Zheng Dao, I saw glimmers of hope as the seeds of philanthropy are planted when children start small and give as they receive, age-appropriately.?
我們已經(jīng)可以想象，即使在我們現(xiàn)在富有的生活里，特別是在早年，也是如此缺乏這樣的經(jīng)濟(jì)制度的系統(tǒng)的認(rèn)知。當(dāng)然你和我不能完全解決貧困和貧富差距的問題。但在正道，我看到了希望的光芒，因?yàn)閺男?，在適當(dāng)?shù)哪挲g里就種下了慈悲善良的種子。
It is also interesting to note that almost all services within the canteen are run by children themselves - from payment, to cooking, to serving, to cleaning - all assisted by only 1 auxillary kitchen staff!
同樣有趣的是，食堂里幾乎所有的工作都是由孩子們自己經(jīng)營(yíng)的——從付款、烹飪、服務(wù)到清潔——所有這些僅僅是由一個(gè)廚房輔助人員提供的!
Competency Grouping – Where institutions of learning typically group classes of children according to age, Zheng Dao’s unique grouping is done through identification of readiness and competencies and not by age or academic achievement alone.? 4 interesting distinctions in learning and readiness profiles separate the groups of children.? These included:
根據(jù)能力分組——典型的學(xué)習(xí)方式，把不同年齡的學(xué)生分進(jìn)不同水平的小組，而正道小學(xué)獨(dú)特的分組方式，不單單根據(jù)年齡或年級(jí)，還需通過鑒別學(xué)生的思維敏捷程度和他們的實(shí)際能力來進(jìn)行。學(xué)習(xí)的能力和思維能力可分成四種不同的水平，而正是這種頗為有趣的區(qū)分方法將學(xué)生分進(jìn)不同的小組。這四種水平包括了：
真學(xué)過關(guān)隊(duì)literally translated into Truly Learned and Passed Team;
自學(xué)自強(qiáng)隊(duì) meaning Strength from Self-Study Team;
入學(xué)準(zhǔn)備班 核心隊(duì)Admission Prep Class, a core team ranging from 2.5 years to 6 years who are of a calibre truly ready for admission to Primary School, and （2.5歲到6歲的學(xué)前班）
自賢隊(duì) 精英隊(duì), the elite Intelligent & Virtuous Team, nurtured since Primary One.?
Looking for evidence of the unique curriculum used in Zheng Dao in the short 3-hour visit, I can only surmise that there is a lot of learning outside the classroom walls.? I see many photo clues of happy, excited children of different ages, integrate life skills learned in school and applied to real-world settings as they took hiking trips out into the countryside as well as other cities in China – only if they are assessed ready and competent to face the demands of such life-learning excursions.? On a day-to-day basis, here children are immersed in academic tasks as well as life activities that oil their competencies inside Zheng Dao.
在短短的3小時(shí)的交流和探討，尋找“正道”獨(dú)特課程的證據(jù)，讓我看到出了教室以外的課堂。我看到學(xué)校照片中有許多的線索：不同年齡段孩子有著不同的美好體現(xiàn)以及表達(dá)方式，他們?cè)趯W(xué)校得到的生活能力與認(rèn)知， 以及在徒步旅行到農(nóng)村和其他城市時(shí)，體驗(yàn)到的并應(yīng)用到現(xiàn)實(shí)世界的環(huán)境中去。在每天里，如果他們能夠做好準(zhǔn)備并覺悟地面對(duì)生活和學(xué)習(xí)，無論是在哪樣的境緣，? 孩子們都會(huì)在學(xué)習(xí)以及生活活動(dòng)中并學(xué)以致用，這些都是他們?cè)凇罢馈睂?shí)踐出來的。Self-Paced Learning and Individual Learning Plan – Every Zheng Dao student makes his/her own weekly learning plan – the dream of many parents and teachers!? Imagine a weekly checklist of learning KPIs to be accomplished, dutifully kept and updated by each student daily and checked by supervising teachers.? The role of the Zheng Dao teacher, apart from teaching key skills and concepts according to the national syllabus, is truly a facilitative one.? After 3 failed self-attempts by the student on any given learning problem,? the teacher steps in to do a 1-on-1 tutoring, only to teach “the unknown” rather than to repeat the obvious.?
自我學(xué)習(xí)與個(gè)體學(xué)習(xí)計(jì)劃–? “正道”的每一個(gè)學(xué)生都制定了自己的每周學(xué)習(xí)計(jì)劃–許多家長(zhǎng)和老師的夢(mèng)想！設(shè)想一個(gè)每周學(xué)習(xí)KPIs的清單，由每個(gè)學(xué)生每天認(rèn)真地保存和更新，并由監(jiān)督老師檢查?！罢馈?里老師的角色，除了根據(jù)國家教學(xué)大綱教授關(guān)鍵技能和概念外，確實(shí)是一個(gè)促進(jìn)性的角色。在學(xué)生3次自我嘗試失敗后，對(duì)任何給定的學(xué)習(xí)問題，老師都會(huì)介入進(jìn)行1對(duì)1的輔導(dǎo)，只教“未知”而不重復(fù)已知的。
There is a strong emphasis on self-learning and use of meta-cognitive ability applied on both academic as well as life skills in Zheng Dao’s education.? It was pointed out that there is a large degree of freedom in the way children go about their learning in this educational approach.? Yet the truth was that I saw a very structured foundation in training and study habits that starts way before these children are able to self–pace and self-study.? There is impressive evidence of self-discipline, e.g. calming oneself through mantra chants and relaxation especially after a high activity from as young as 2.5 years (Principal Chen emphasized that children are encouraged not to be distracted by visitors but to be focused about their activities).? However, I still witnessed good social etiquettes such as greetings along the hallways and outside the classroom and in classes when children were not engaged in reflections and relaxation.? And yes, laughter abound too!
Nothing Short of an Educational Ideology
It is obvious that there is a great degree of structure both in the physical and teaching environment.? Yet there also exists a large degree of personal freedom within a very systematic approach to learning established early on.? Throughout my 3-hour visit,? there was no evidence of loitering or children left wondering what to do with their time.? Instead, I witnessed a high degree of planful, intentional activities across the ages.? Principal Chen described his past 2 years of passionately research and teaching in Zheng Dao Primary.? With a firm belief in laying the foundations of Chinese history and philosophy, he and his team tries new ideas, affirms proven beliefs, test boundaries and continuously challenges the norms.? With such simplicity and basic infrastructure and materials, one can only imagine how much farther Zheng Dao’s educational approach can take its students when they are given access to more and better resources and facilities.? That indeed is the aspiration of Principal Chen (成校長(zhǎng)), a man I have come to admire for daring to dream and live the bold vision of how he would go about educating and training the body, heart, and mind of China's future citizenry!
完善的教育思想
顯然，無論在硬件條件或是教學(xué)環(huán)境中，（這里）都存在著高度的結(jié)構(gòu)性。然而，在這種很早就建立起來的系統(tǒng)的學(xué)習(xí)方法中，也存在著很大程度的個(gè)人自由。在我3個(gè)小時(shí)的訪問期間，沒有看到任何孩子游蕩或者不知該如何打發(fā)時(shí)間的現(xiàn)象，相反，我見證了一系列有高度計(jì)劃性與自主性的活動(dòng)。陳校長(zhǎng)描述了他在正道小學(xué)兩年來的熱誠研究和教學(xué)。懷著對(duì)中國歷史與哲學(xué)基礎(chǔ)的堅(jiān)定信仰，他和他的團(tuán)隊(duì)不斷嘗試新的思想，再次確認(rèn)已證實(shí)的信念，檢驗(yàn)界限，并向規(guī)范發(fā)起挑戰(zhàn)。基于這樣簡(jiǎn)單基礎(chǔ)的結(jié)構(gòu)和物資條件，正道教育尚且能做到如此，我們可以想象正道教育在獲得更多、更好的資源和設(shè)施的情況下，會(huì)帶領(lǐng)學(xué)生走向更廣闊的天地。這就是我一直欽佩的成校長(zhǎng)的遠(yuǎn)大抱負(fù)，他敢于夢(mèng)想，大膽地設(shè)想他將如何教育和訓(xùn)練中國未來公民的身體、心靈和思想！
Dr. Jane Ching-Kwan
Curriculum Founder/Director; Skool4Kidz Pte. Ltd.
http://skool4kidz.com.sg/about-us/
Advisor/Director; KLC International Institute
https://klc.edu.sg/klc-international-institute-klcii/
June 10, 2018
