作者/David Santandreu Calonge
編譯/李苾琳
[tabs]
[tab title=”中文”]
盲目追求韓國SKY 造成社會的間接傷害
成功教育背景等同於高社經地位的觀念，南韓比起其他國家更加重視。南韓把教育看作為社會流動的主要驅力，從小他們就有壓力，為了自己及家人，必須畢業於頂尖大學以順利躋身高社經地位。
競爭與用功讀書幾乎是深植韓國學子的心，所有孩童的生長環境（比如家長、家庭、教師）全指向一個共同目標：準備考試，而且只許成功不許失敗。學生走在被安排好的道路上，在教育的過程中，從第一步就有著明確的目標。
為什麼南韓學生老是稱霸排行榜？
根據國際教育改革專家邁可包伯（Michael Barber）表示，韓國文化認為後天努力能勝過先天遺傳，也堅信長時間的鑽研學習終將獲得回報。
研究發現，學習態度與亞洲父母強烈的信念，造就了他們下一代的學業成就。史丹佛大學研究指出，亞裔的學童會在父母的期望下產生尋求功成名就的動機。
接受東亞父母教養的澳洲學童遠較其他澳洲同儕辛勤，研究發現東亞裔的學童一週需花15小時進行課後學習（當地澳洲人僅9小時），也有較強烈的工作熱情與未來期望，高達94%的東亞裔學童欲就讀大學等高等教育。
不管是專家學者或是國家元首，從美國總統歐巴馬到澳洲前總理茱莉亞吉勒德，都經常引用『芬蘭學派』或『亞洲模式』作為改善教育的妙方。
比起韓國的孩子，美國的兒童在學校少花一個月以上的時間。對於此現象，歐巴馬表示：「無法好整以暇的面對21世紀的經濟體。」這種想法似乎越來越引起共鳴，也深入教育界各層的權力核心。
可以複製南韓的教育模式嗎？
「韓國的孩子最終都將與自由、個人選擇、快樂無緣；你只能接受產值、表現與服從。」耶魯大學的學者See-Wong Koo表示。這種說法卻與培生教育公司（Pearson）最近的教育專欄和經合組織（OECD）公布的教育排名中韓國名列前茅位等現象大相逕庭。
相對於芬蘭的教育體系，韓國教育壓力大、要求服從、競爭激烈又重視菁英。韓國教育強調高壓與高成就表現，特別是2014年11月針對640,621名學生所舉辦的長達八小時之suneung學術能力測驗（College Scholastic Ability Test）。
這對韓國的家庭來說是件大事，進入前三大最負盛名的頂尖大學：國立首爾大學、韓國大學和延世大學（三校合稱SKY，Seoul National, Korea和Yonsei），就能奠定他們這一生的社會地位，也能在家族企業或財團中獲得高薪的工作。
注重階級的韓國社會將各級教育，尤其是科學與工程領域，視為向上流動的關鍵。近年還產生了一個特殊現象：「豬媽媽」（Dwaeji Omma）。
豬媽媽無所不用其極，為了自己以及其它豬媽媽的小孩，鎖定韓國的常春藤名校。她們安排孩子求學中的所有活動，包括課外活動（即讀書學習）、在開放日參訪所有的名校，集合討論申請學校的戰略、以強硬手段遊說、甚至賄賂私校與老師以獲得走後門的入學機會。
應該以韓國的教育模式解救西方的教育弊病嗎？
韓國人不計任何代價追求成功，這些財務支出與社會成本導致龐大的經濟壓力。由於大學名額有限，韓國花在課後私人補習教學（hakwon）的費用高達200億美元以上，佔了家庭支出兩成之多。有75％的韓國孩子參加課後補習，主要集中在首爾的補習班集中地大棗洞（DaeJi Dong）。
研究發現，亞裔的美國學生比起白人學生，容易因為未達成父母期望及自我理想和父母發生衝突。
舉例來說，2014青年幸福指數指出，只有67.6%的韓國青年表示滿意自己的生活（經合組織平均為85.8%），最主要的原因就是學習壓力太大。
2013年研究結論指出，相較於充滿支持的教育環境，「虎氏育兒」（嚴格的家長教育，常見於亞洲文化）要求過多且效果低落。
經合組織成員國中，南韓自殺率（28.9%）最高。韓國小說家 Young Ha Kim在專欄寫道：「在10到30歲之間，自殺是第一大死因。」
韓國也有著家庭債務、抑鬱、離婚與酒精消費等等「之最」。有人認為韓國教育讓學生犧牲了健康與快樂，而產生無法預期的代價。
無論取得憑證認證、參加測驗還是入學考試，都培養了韓國學生創新和團隊合作的能力，以期能在日益艱難的當地就業市場或高等教育功成名就，
因此當其它國家還在欽羨南韓在各種排名的表現時，這種苦幹實幹的文化因素卻無法在任何地方複製，畢竟對社會產生的間接傷害也許非他國所樂見。
【作者介紹：David Santandreu Calonge】
David Santandreu Calonge現為南韓成均館大學客座教授。
教學領域：品牌、設計思考。研究專長：課程設計、(教育)破壞式創新。
[/tab]
[tab title=”English”]
South Korean Education Ranks High But Its The Kids Who Pay
In Korea, perhaps more so than anywhere else, educational success equals socioeconomic status. South Koreans view education as the main driver of social mobility, for themselves and their family. Graduating from a top university is the ultimate marker of high status and the pressure is on from an early age.
Competition and studying hard to be the best is deeply ingrained in the psyche of Korean students; the entire environment surrounding the child (parents, family, and teachers) is actively involved and geared towards the same goal: to be test-ready and succeed. Students have a clear path and a clear purpose in mind at the start of their educational journey.
Why do South Korean students consistently dominate league tables?
According to global expert on education reform Sir Michael Barber, Korean culture “prizes effort above inherited ‘smartness’”, and believes long hours studying and hard work will eventually pay off.
Research has found the attitudes and strong beliefs of Asian parents make an important contribution to their children’s academic success. Researchers from Stanford University say Asian children find motivation to succeed in parental expectations.
Australian children with East Asian parents outperform their Australian peers, with researchers finding East Asian children spent 15 hours a week studying after school (9 hours for Australians), and have a stronger work ethic and higher aspirations (94% of them expect to go on to university).
Experts and heads of state, from US President Barack Obamato former Australian prime minister, Julia Gillard, often cite Finnish schools or the “Asian Model” as the panacea to improve our education systems.
The fact that American children “spend over a month less in school than children in South Korea” will, according to Obama, in “no way prepare them for a 21st-century economy”. This belief seems to increasingly resonate in the corridors of power in many parts of the educational world.
Is the South Korean educational model replicable?
“To be a South Korean child ultimately is not about freedom, personal choice or happiness; it is about production, performance and obedience,” argued Yale academic See-Wong Koo. This statement seems miles away from recent reports by education company Pearson and the OECD placing South Korea at the top of the education league tables.
While Finland is considered a non-competitive system of education, South Korea’s is often described as very stressful, authoritarian, brutally competitive and meritocratic. It emphasises high pressure and high performance, particularly for the 640,621 students who took the eight-hour long suneung(College Scholastic Ability Test) nationwide in November 2014.
This event is critical in the life of South Korean families – entry to one of the three most prestigious “SKY” universities (Seoul National, Korea and Yonsei) will basically determine social status for most of their lives and will secure a highly-paid job in one of the chaebols (family-owned business conglomerates).
Education at all levels and particularly in science and engineering, is viewed as a key to upward mobility in the still highly stratified Korean society. As a consequence, a new phenomenon has emerged in recent years: Dwaeji Omma, or “Pig Mums”.
A Pig Mum does her research thoroughly and keeps her eyes on the ultimate target: a Korean Ivy-league university for her child and her “adopted” children (those belonging to her Pig Mum network); she plans every step of her kid’s educational journey and all the extracurricular (studying) activities, attends all the best schools’ open days, organises strategic planning reunions, bullies, lobbies and even bribes private schools and private teachers to skip admission lines if necessary.
Should South Korea’s system be adopted to remedy Western education’s ailments?
The intense pressure to succeed no matter the cost is taking its financial and social toll: as university places are limited, Koreans spend over $18 trillion won (A$20 billion), around 20% of household income to pay for after-school private academies called hakwon. 75% of all children attend a hakwon, mainly atDaeJi Dong, Seoul’s study Mecca.
Research has found that Asian-American students are more likely to have conflicted relationships with their parents over unmet expectations and more self-image issues than white students.
The 2014 Youth Happiness Index found for instance that only 67.6% of Korean youth said they are satisfied with their life (OECD average is 85.8%), mostly because of study pressure.
The conclusion of a 2013 study was that Tiger Parenting (strict parenting, often in Asian cultures) is less effective and more demanding than a supportive parenting environment.
South Korea has one of the highest rates of suicide (28.9%) in the OECD. South Korean novelist Young Ha Kim wrote in an op-ed that suicide is the “No.1 cause of death for people between the ages of 10 and 30”.
Korea also ranks among the highest for household debt, depression, divorce, and alcohol consumption. It has been argued South Korean education produces overachieving students who pay a stiff price in health and happiness.
Neither does a focus on credentials, tests and entrance exams give South Korean students the skills (like creativity and teamwork) to succeed in higher education or in an increasingly difficult local job market.
So while other countries may envy South Korea’s positions in the league tables, there are cultural factors that mean this focus on hard work probably can’t be replicated elsewhere, and given the societal collateral damage, probably wouldn’t want to.
【Author：David Santandreu Calonge】
David Santandreu Calonge is currently Visiting Professor at Sungkyunkwan University (South Korea), where he teaches branding and design-thinking, and Director of the Da Tong project (Interdisciplinary Research and Projects) at Hong Kong Baptist University.His research interests are in the areas of innovative curriculum designs, and disruptive innovations in Education.
[/tab]
[/tabs]
圖片來源：《The Conversation》
原文經合作媒體：《The Conversation》授權編譯，未經許可不得轉載
