Impact of Social Reform and Education on Sociological Development (Paperback)

Too often America looks outside of herself, at other cultures, for guidance to improve. America seems to be hypercritical of itself and it has become the trend to look to Asia for examples in order to implement improvements. The picture below shows me at the Forbidden Palace. while teaching in China and also having done extensive studies of the Chinese educational system, I have grown to appreciate the historical focus of China on education going back as far as Confucius and beyond. America can certainly learn from the Chinese and they are certainly learning from us. However, it is a mistake to seek to implement Chinese methodology into the American system without modifications being made. There are great differences in the two systems and to walk away from the strengths of the American system to indiscriminately adopt the strengths of the Chinese system is to throw the baby out with the bath water. The Chinese are very insightful and know this. this is why they look to America and other systems to discover the best of those systems, adapt it to the current Chinese system, and graft it on making it a part of the living ever-evolving structure gaining strength, endurance, and efficacy. This book examines these other systems and compares them with America's system. We can learn from China, Japan, and especially France and, like the Chinese, graft on the best of the other systems to ours making it stronger and more efficacious. As the Chinese welcomed me and all Americans, so we should welcome them and the best of their system and graft it into our historically incomparable educational system once again making it an formidable force to be reckoned with worldwide.