Taiwan Vs New Zealand

After reading 'Going to School in Taiwan' by Megan Williams the Avengers compared a Taiwanese school with a New Zealand school.

Many people migrate to New Zealand for a better education for themselves or their children. However different cultures from around the world have their own ideas about what makes a good education. This means that children’s experience of school can be very different. Two cultures with different perspectives of what makes a good education are New Zealand and Taiwan.

                    

Languages - Harrison and Aadi

Like many countries Taiwan and New Zealand students both learn languages. Taiwanese students learn languages by doing lessons in Chinese for half of the day and the same lessons in English for the other half of the day. All lessons in New Zealand are taught in English and we also have a Te Reo Maori lesson once a week.

School Times - Moksha and Brianna S

Schools in both countries begin in the morning and finish in the afternoon. In Taiwan their school starts at 8:30am and finishes at 4:10pm. Whereas Auckland school’s start at 8:55am and finish at 3:00pm. This means Taiwanese students have to wake up at 7:00am to reach school on time. In Taiwan they have 7 hrs and 40mins at school and in Auckland students have 6 hrs and 5mins. In Taiwan they have 1 hour and 35mins more than Auckland.

Furniture - Jack and Nikhil

Another similarity between New Zealand and Taiwan is that they both use desks. However in Taiwan desks are set into rows that face the front and the teacher. Whereas students in Auckland can sit around round tables, jelly bean shaped tables and even beanbags. Taiwan’s students work individually on their own desks, conversely New Zealand students are encouraged to collaborate.

Jobs/Responsibilities - Brianna

Students in Taiwan and in New Zealand both have jobs and responsibilities in their classrooms. In Taiwan their classrooms are very dusty so the students have to bring a cloth to school and regularly dust down all the surfaces, they also have to sweep and mop the floor. On the other hand in New Zealand we only have to take out recycling, tidy books in the library and close windows.

Conclusion

Overall we believe students in Taiwan have a harder time in school than New Zealand students because they have a longer day, have more responsibilities, have to sit quietly in rows and have lessons in two languages. We prefer the classrooms and system in New Zealand as we believe it better prepares us for a future of working collaboratively. Also finishing earlier allows New Zealand students to have a balanced life where they can mix homework, sport, play and relaxation rather than just homework. This helps develop good physical and mental health for now and the future.