Book takes readers from around the world into China's schools

Leading educators from China and overseas take a photo together on April 23, 2017. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Leading educators from China and overseas have discussed a book on China's education system Portraits of Chinese Schools in Beijing on April 23, 2017.

The book, compiled by Professor Gu Mingyuan, Professor Ma Jiansheng and Teng Jun, was published in Chinese and English by the Higher Education Press and Springer last year.

The seminar was organized by the Higher Education Press and Institute of International and Comparative Education, Beijing Normal University. Officials, professors and scholars from well-known universities, headmasters of Chinese schools, experts and researchers in the education field, as well as publishing editors, were invited to the event.

Zhang Daliang, director of the Ministry of Education's Higher Education Department, said the book paints a vivid picture of China's primary and middle schools.

"Foreign readers who are interested in Chinese education will get further knowledge of tremendous achievements of our schooling system. Also, it will increase the international influence of our nation's teaching methods and promote the cooperation and dialogue between East and West."

He also pointed out that Higher Education Press, as directly subordinate to Ministry of Education, has a long-term commitment to educational publications and academia. Many of the best academic works have received a positive response and had a profound international influence.

Huang Wei, deputy director of the Ministry's Teacher Education Department, affirmed the social, influential and research value of the book.

He pointed out that the teaching theory explained in the book will promote the professional development of the nation's teachers and headmasters, and provide fruitful experience for global education researchers and school managers.

Han Jun, deputy editor-in-chief of Higher Education Press, congratulated the authors of the newly-published books and said that Higher Education Press would more strongly support education-related books in the future.

"We will hold more of this kind of high-level educational dialogues and communications. To bring more Chinese experts and Chinese education ideas and training methods abroad is our obligatory duty and big adventure," Han said

"It's great progress for Higher Education Press to coordinate with international press to further bring Chinese culture out," Han added.

During the seminar, Han Jun also illustrated the characteristics in the field of academic publishing of Higher Education Press.

"First of all, we will make great efforts to publish the leading-edge and latest academic magazines, as well as, high-level and classic academic books. Secondly, we will dig out more top-quality works to seek to improve our popularity and build positive word of mouth. Thirdly, we will promote Chinese culture overseas, devoting ourselves to building the soft power of Chinese culture. Last but not least, we will cooperate with more foreign leading publishers and domestic academic opinion leaders."

Gu Mingyuan, the author of the book Portrait of Chinese Schools, is one of the leading educators in China. He has been involved in all major education reforms in the country since 1949 and is a highly esteemed expert in China.

"Speaking of the Chinese education model in the old days, we tend to talk about it in a theoretical and academic way that foreigners don't understand. In this book, I try to convey the core theory of Chinese teaching methods by illustrating the 24-hour day of real protagonists including a student, a teacher, parents and school headmasters," Professor Gu said.

Gu Mingyuan, the author of the book, gives a speech during the meeting. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Fred Dervin, professor in the Department of Teacher Education, University of Helsinki, also highly evaluated the significance of the book.

"The authors are honest. Not only do they applaud the achievements Chinese education has achieved, but also objectively present the problems Chinese schools currently are faced with and gives some responses."

In the seminar, Chinese school principals also shed light on the dilemma involved in practical work.

Guan Jie, headmaster of Beijing No 18 Middle School, also felt enlightened after reading the book.

"I feel it's a story of my life," he said.