A group of Chinese teachers has blamed the generosity of Britain's benefits system for lack of ambition, ill-discipline and idleness among school pupils. They believe the option of living on welfare handouts has produced 'feather-bedded' teenagers prone to rudeness and disrupting the classroom rather than concentrating on working and getting ahead.

一組中國老師指責英國慷慨的福利制度讓學生沒有進取心、缺少紀律性而且很懶散。他們認為，選擇依賴福利救濟生活，這使得嬌生慣養的青少年很容易變得粗魯，擾亂課堂秩序，而不能專心做功課，積極進取。

This verdict on the failings of British pupils and the influence of the welfare state was delivered by five Chinese teachers who spent four weeks in a Hampshire comprehensive school to see whether the strict methods used in China would work here.

針對英國學生的弱點，以及英國福利制度的影響，五名中國老師作出了上述判斷。他們在漢普郡一所綜合中學待了4周，試驗中國所采用“嚴加管教是否也會在這里奏效。

Teachers who stand in front of a class giving instruction for up to 12 hours a day have been credited with putting Chinese schools at the top of international ratings in maths, sciences and literacy, in which the record of UK schools is mediocre.

每天，老師們站在教室前講課多達12小時，因此，中國學校在數學、科學和文化素質方面處于國際領先水平，而英國學校在這些方面的記錄卻很普通。

One of the teachers, Wei Zhao, believed British pupils lacked motivation. She said: 'Even if they don't work, they can get money, they don't worry about it. But in China they can't get these things so they know, "I need to study hard, I need to work hard to get money to support my family". If the British Government really cut benefits down to force people to go to work they might see things in a different way.’

其中一位老師名叫魏昭(音譯)，她認為英國學生缺乏上進心。她說：“即使他們不工作，他們也可以拿到錢，他們并不擔心。但在中國的情況截然不同，所以中國學生知道，‘我要努力學習，我要努力工作，賺錢養家’。如果英國政府能削減福利，就能迫使他們去工作，那么他們可能會以不同的角度來看待問題。

Others among the Chinese teachers who took classes at Bohunt School in Liphook, Hampshire, found their group of 50 children, aged 13 and 14, were disruptive and unable to concentrate. Li Aiyun, from Nanjing Foreign Language School, said: 'When I handed out the homework sheets, I expected everybody to be concentrated on the homework. But when I walked in the classroom some students were chatting, some students were eating, somebody was even putting make-up on her face. I had to control myself, or I would be crazy. About half of them tried their best to follow me. And the other half? Who knows what they were doing?'

其他幾名在漢普郡利普胡克博航特中學授課的中國老師發現，他們組的50個孩子，13、14歲不等，容易擾亂紀律且無法集中精力。來自南京外國語學校的李愛云(音譯)說：“當我分發作業紙時，我希望大家都能專心致志做作業。但當我走進教室時，有的聊天，有的吃零食，有的化妝。我必須克制自己，否則我會瘋的。大概有一半的學生在聽課，至于剩下一半，誰知道他們在干嘛?

Science teacher Yang Jun, who taught in Xi'an, central China, before moving to Britain, said: 'In China we don't need classroom management skills because everyone is disciplined by nature, by families, by society. Whereas here it is the most challenging part of teaching.’ She also questioned the use of different teaching programmes for different pupils. ‘You have different syllabuses to suit different students' ability,' she said. ‘We don't. We have one syllabus, one standard; you survive or you die. It's up to you.’'

來英國之前曾在中國中部城市西安任科學老師的楊軍(音譯)說：“在中國，我們不需要教室紀律管理技巧，因為每個人受天性、家庭、社會影響都很有紀律性。然而在這里，這卻是教學中最具挑戰性的一部分。她也質疑“因材施教是否有效，她說，“你們對不同能力的學生有不同的教學大綱。我們沒有。我們只有一個教學大綱，一種標準。要么適應，要么被淘汰，這取決于自己。

The Chinese methods are to be screened in the BBC Two documentary, Are Our Kids Tough Enough? Chinese School. A trailer for the programme shows a teacher shouting 'listen to me', 'just use your brain' and 'no talking, no questions' at bewildered looking British children.

中國的教學方法即將在BBC2臺播出，名為《我們的孩子真的很難管嗎?中國學校》紀錄片里。在節目預告中，一個老師對著困惑不解的英國學生喊道：“聽我說、“動動腦子、“別說話，別提問。

But the Chinese methods did not appear to impress the Bohunt head teacher, Neil Strowger. He described the teaching techniques as ‘mind-numbingly boring’ and said usual standards of discipline at his school were not as loose as the Chinese teachers described. Mr Strowger added: 'I don't believe we are somehow causing our children to fail by having a welfare state.'

不過，博航特中學的校長史尼爾•史端喬似乎對中國式教育方法并不感冒。他認為這種教學方法“讓人思想麻木且枯燥無聊，他說，他們學校平時的紀律標準并不像中國老師所描述的那般松散。他還說：“我不相信我們國家的福利制度在某種程度上導致我們學生失敗。

Vocabulary

feather-bedded: 嬌生慣養的

verdict: 判斷，判決

mediocre: 平庸的

syllabus: 教學大綱

trailer: 預告片

numbingly: 麻木地

A group of Chinese teachers has blamed the generosity of Britain's benefits system for lack of ambition, ill-discipline and idleness among school pupils. They believe the option of living on welfare handouts has produced 'feather-bedded' teenagers prone to rudeness and disrupting the classroom rather than concentrating on working and getting ahead.

一組中國老師指責英國慷慨的福利制度讓學生沒有進取心、缺少紀律性而且很懶散。他們認為，選擇依賴福利救濟生活，這使得嬌生慣養的青少年很容易變得粗魯，擾亂課堂秩序，而不能專心做功課，積極進取。

This verdict on the failings of British pupils and the influence of the welfare state was delivered by five Chinese teachers who spent four weeks in a Hampshire comprehensive school to see whether the strict methods used in China would work here.

針對英國學生的弱點，以及英國福利制度的影響，五名中國老師作出了上述判斷。他們在漢普郡一所綜合中學待了4周，試驗中國所采用“嚴加管教是否也會在這里奏效。

Teachers who stand in front of a class giving instruction for up to 12 hours a day have been credited with putting Chinese schools at the top of international ratings in maths, sciences and literacy, in which the record of UK schools is mediocre.

每天，老師們站在教室前講課多達12小時，因此，中國學校在數學、科學和文化素質方面處于國際領先水平，而英國學校在這些方面的記錄卻很普通。

One of the teachers, Wei Zhao, believed British pupils lacked motivation. She said: 'Even if they don't work, they can get money, they don't worry about it. But in China they can't get these things so they know, "I need to study hard, I need to work hard to get money to support my family". If the British Government really cut benefits down to force people to go to work they might see things in a different way.’

其中一位老師名叫魏昭(音譯)，她認為英國學生缺乏上進心。她說：“即使他們不工作，他們也可以拿到錢，他們并不擔心。但在中國的情況截然不同，所以中國學生知道，‘我要努力學習，我要努力工作，賺錢養家’。如果英國政府能削減福利，就能迫使他們去工作，那么他們可能會以不同的角度來看待問題。

Others among the Chinese teachers who took classes at Bohunt School in Liphook, Hampshire, found their group of 50 children, aged 13 and 14, were disruptive and unable to concentrate. Li Aiyun, from Nanjing Foreign Language School, said: 'When I handed out the homework sheets, I expected everybody to be concentrated on the homework. But when I walked in the classroom some students were chatting, some students were eating, somebody was even putting make-up on her face. I had to control myself, or I would be crazy. About half of them tried their best to follow me. And the other half? Who knows what they were doing?'

其他幾名在漢普郡利普胡克博航特中學授課的中國老師發現，他們組的50個孩子，13、14歲不等，容易擾亂紀律且無法集中精力。來自南京外國語學校的李愛云(音譯)說：“當我分發作業紙時，我希望大家都能專心致志做作業。但當我走進教室時，有的聊天，有的吃零食，有的化妝。我必須克制自己，否則我會瘋的。大概有一半的學生在聽課，至于剩下一半，誰知道他們在干嘛?

Science teacher Yang Jun, who taught in Xi'an, central China, before moving to Britain, said: 'In China we don't need classroom management skills because everyone is disciplined by nature, by families, by society. Whereas here it is the most challenging part of teaching.’ She also questioned the use of different teaching programmes for different pupils. ‘You have different syllabuses to suit different students' ability,' she said. ‘We don't. We have one syllabus, one standard; you survive or you die. It's up to you.’'

來英國之前曾在中國中部城市西安任科學老師的楊軍(音譯)說：“在中國，我們不需要教室紀律管理技巧，因為每個人受天性、家庭、社會影響都很有紀律性。然而在這里，這卻是教學中最具挑戰性的一部分。她也質疑“因材施教是否有效，她說，“你們對不同能力的學生有不同的教學大綱。我們沒有。我們只有一個教學大綱，一種標準。要么適應，要么被淘汰，這取決于自己。

The Chinese methods are to be screened in the BBC Two documentary, Are Our Kids Tough Enough? Chinese School. A trailer for the programme shows a teacher shouting 'listen to me', 'just use your brain' and 'no talking, no questions' at bewildered looking British children.

中國的教學方法即將在BBC2臺播出，名為《我們的孩子真的很難管嗎?中國學校》紀錄片里。在節目預告中，一個老師對著困惑不解的英國學生喊道：“聽我說、“動動腦子、“別說話，別提問。

But the Chinese methods did not appear to impress the Bohunt head teacher, Neil Strowger. He described the teaching techniques as ‘mind-numbingly boring’ and said usual standards of discipline at his school were not as loose as the Chinese teachers described. Mr Strowger added: 'I don't believe we are somehow causing our children to fail by having a welfare state.'

不過，博航特中學的校長史尼爾•史端喬似乎對中國式教育方法并不感冒。他認為這種教學方法“讓人思想麻木且枯燥無聊，他說，他們學校平時的紀律標準并不像中國老師所描述的那般松散。他還說：“我不相信我們國家的福利制度在某種程度上導致我們學生失敗。

Vocabulary

feather-bedded: 嬌生慣養的

verdict: 判斷，判決

mediocre: 平庸的

syllabus: 教學大綱

trailer: 預告片

numbingly: 麻木地