INYT Writing Competition 2015

INYT.COM

“WORD (WORLD) of YOURS” WRITING COMPETITION 2015 “Global Education” Queensland Academy for Science, Mathematics and Technology · St Luke's Grammar School · St. Leonard’s College · SSES Shanghai Shangde Experimental School · Baptist Lui Ming Choi Secondary School · C&MA Sun Kei Secondary School · Canadian International School · HKMA David Li Kwok Po College · Immaculate Heart of Mary College · King Ling College · Our Lady's College · Po Leung Kuk No.1 W.H. Cheung College · Sha Tin College · SKH Lam Kau Mow Secondary School · St. Joseph's College · St. Mary's Canossian College · St. Paul's CoEducational College · St. Stephen's College · The Independent Schools Foundation Academy · TWGHs Kap Yan Directors' College · TWGHs Lo Kon Ting Memorial College · Victoria Shanghai Academy · Yan Chai Hospital Wong Wah San Secondary School · Bombay International School · Fazlani L'Academie Globale · International School Aamby · Podar International School · The Heritage School · The Shri Ram School - Moulsari Campus · Vivek High School · Bina Bangsa School Bandung · Jakarta Intercultural School · Sinarmas World Academy · Stella Maris International School · Daewon Foreign Language High School · International School Parkcity · Malacca Expatriate School · Sri Emas International School · Rato Bangala School · St. Xavier’s School · Stanford University Online High School · Cebu International School · Good Tree International School · Philippine Science High School Central Luzon Campus · Philippine Science High School Eastern Visayas Campus · Philippine Science High School Southern Mindanao Campus · Philippine Science High School Western Visayas Campus · Singapore School Manila · Southville International School and Colleges · The Sisters of Mary Schools - Adlas · Dunman High School · Nanyang Girls' High School · NUS High School · Punggol Secondary School · Raffles Girls' School · Raffles' Institution · River Valley High School · St. Joseph's Institution · St. Patrick's School · Temasek Junior College · Bangkok International Preparatory and Secondary School · Bangkok Patana School · Garden International School · Harrow International School of Bangkok · Headstart International School · Rayong English Programme School · Renaissance International School Saigon · Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology · Shiv Nadar University · Universitas Katolik Parahyangan · Widya Mandala Catholic University Surabaya · Asian Institute of Technology and Management · COMSATS Institute of Information Technology · Nanyang Technological University in Singapore · National University of Singapore · Singapore Management University · Singapore Polytechnic · Yale-NUS College · National Taiwan University · Can Tho University ·

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Table of Contents Index Listed Alphabetically According to Institution Title-

Southville International Schools and Colleges Champion - Secondary School “Global Education: From the Ground Up, Through The Roots

By Svetlana Riguera ...……………………….………………………………………………………………...…..……

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St. Paul’s Co-educational College Runner up - Secondary School “A Beautiful Possibility”

By Tang Ka Yan, Tiffany…………………………………………………………………………………………….…… 11

Yale-NUS College Champion - University “The Death of Comfortable Education”

By Angela Ferguson ...……..…………………………………………………………………………………...…..…… 14

Singapore Management University Runner Up - University “Can We Achieve Quality Education For All?”

By Melissa Cheok… ...……..…………………………………………………………………………………...…..…… 16

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Secondary Schools: ......................................................................................................................................................................................

Baptist Lui Ming Choi Secondary School “Poverty And Education”

By Wing Yin Chan, Ling Sum Fong and Yi Lok Lam………………………………………………………………….. 18

Christian And Missionary Alliance Sun Kei Secondary School “Is Today‟s Education System Achieving Global Education?”

By Rosa Choy Wai Ming ...…………………………………………………………………………..…………………..

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Canadian International School “The Missing Piece In A Successful Education”

By Inika Sahney……………………………………………………………................................................................

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Canadian International School “The Movement Of Global Education”

By Mana Mehta……………………………………………………………………………………………………...……. 21

Dunman High School “What Does Chinese Education Offer?”

By Luyi Song……………………………………………...……………………………………………………………….

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Garden International School “Rural Rights: Learning To Access Remote Areas”

By Jennifer Powacht and Nadia Gilquin…………………………………...…………………………………………… 24

HKMA David Li Kwok Po College “Education, A Human Riot”

By Wezlie John Bautista Guadiz …………………………………………………………………………….………….

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Harrow International School of Bangkok “Our Global Obligation”

By Carrie Tian…………..……………………...…………………………………………………………………………

Immaculate Heart Of Mary College “Global Education And Us”

By Chan Nga Ki .....................................................................................................................................................

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NUS High School “In Conflict-Ridden Regions, Education Takes A Backseat”

By Dejoy Shastikk Kumaran……………………………………………...……………………………………………… 29

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Nanyang Girls' High School “Education - A Call For Reform?”

By Tan Shi Ying……………………………………………...……………………………………………………………

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Our Lady’s College “Do Hong Kong Students Get Greater Burden Than Foreign Students?”

By Chow Ting Chun Jany, Wu Hiu Yan Cherry and Leung Wing Sum Polly...…………………………………….. 32

Po Leung Kuk No.1 W.H. Cheung College “Global Education - The Future One”

By Crystal Chan, Edward Chan and Jacky Law……………………………………………………………...……….. 34

Po Leung Kuk No.1 W.H. Cheung College “Global Education” Liu Hiu Yee….……………………………………………………………………………………...……………………... 36

Podar International School “Education To Liberate”

By Hana Vaid………...…………………………………………………...……………………………………………….

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Queensland Academy for Science, Mathematics and Technology “WHY 0UR 3DUC471ON 3FF0RT5 4R3 F4111NG”

By Abtin Vatun Doust……………………………………………………………………………………………………..

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Rato Bangala School “Eighty Years Of Failure”

By Sarthak Mani Sharma………...…………………………………………………...………………………………….

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SSES Shanghai Shangde Experimental School “Sugar Rather Than Coffee”

By Qian Lin …………….......................................................................................................................................

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Sinarmas World Academy “This is The Way We Could Be”

By Christhalia Wiloto………...…………………………………………………...………………………………………. 41

St. Luke’s Grammar School “Are We Taking Education For Granted?”

By Claudia Hayman ……………………………………………………………………………………..……………….. 42

St. Mary's Canossian College “Global Education In Action”

By Luisa Wan….……………………………………………………………………………………...…………………... 43

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

St. Paul’s Co - Educational College “Global Education”

By Kenaz Lai….……………………………………………………………………………………...……………………

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St. Stephen’s College “Education: Not For Sale”

By Chow Hin hang, Tan Kwong Mau and Choi Tsz Lok ……………………………………………………………..

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TWGHs Lo Kon Ting Memorial College “Is HK‟s Global Education Settling For Less?”

By Ben Tsang….……………………………………………………………………………………...…………………... 48

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Universities: ………...…………………………………………………...………………………………………………………………………

Asian Institute of Technology and Management “Making The World Our Cloister”

By Sneha Pandey…………..………….…………………………………………………………….............................. 50

COMSATS Institute of Information Technology “Global Education, We Have Been Calling It „Global Peace‟ For Too Long”

By Rao Ibrahim Zahid…………..………….………………………………………………………..............................

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Can Tho University “When Global Education Goes Local”

By Nguyen Huu Gia Bao…………..………….……………………………..............................................................

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National University of Singapore “Global Education”

By Vijayavenkataraman Sanjairaj…………..………………………………………………….................................... 53

Singapore Polytechnic “My Mom Is A Tiger Mom, But I‟m Not Fantastic”

By Winnie Goh…………..………….………………………………………………..................................................... 54

2013 Hall of Fame: ………...…………………………………………………...………………………………………………………………………

St. Joseph’s College “Liberal Studies – Raising Awareness?”

By Thomas Fung…………..………….……………………………………………………………..............................

The University of Hong Kong “Impact Of Social Media On Global Awareness”

By Joyce Xu………….…………..………….………………………………………………………..............................

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

CONGRATULATIONS Svetlana Riguera Champion Secondary School Category

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Global Education: From The Ground Up, Through The Roots Champion

BY SVETLANA RIGUERA Southville International School and Colleges Philippines Joab Onyando was 10 years old when in January of 2003, the Kenyan government announced primary school was free for the first time in thirty years. Having previously been unable to attend school due to unaffordable fees, he and his little brother, 7-year-old Gerald, trudged through the unpaved pathways of the Nairobi slums they called home wearing matching backpacks and yellow uniforms.

Their joyful apprehension was palpable. ―When the government introduced free primary school, it was like every child wanted to join school,‖ Joab, now 21, recalls, in the Public Broadcasting Service‘s sixpart documentary series Time for School, released Sept. 19. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) had convened to relaunch the Education for All (EFA) movement only three years before in Dakar, West Africa, and there the international community had come up with six education goals, comprising issues such as adult illiteracy and gender inequality in schools; mainly, it hoped to ensure that by 2015 all children, particularly girls, children in difficult circumstances and those belonging to ethnic minorities, have access to, and complete, free compulsory primary education of good quality. Later that same year, the EFA goals were adopted into one of the United Nations‘ eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Then president Mwai Kibaki‘s resulting abolition of primary school tuition fees is what ultimately brought Joab, only one of 1.3 million new students to join the education system that day, to his first taste of standardized education.

At the time, a lack of basic primary school education had already been a large barrier to international education goals. The World Conference on Education in 1990 had yielded little results; the more recent Dakar conference had been organized to revitalize the world‘s quest to provide education for all. The United Nations‘ Global Education First Initiative has acknowledged that students who have not learned to read or write in their first few years of schooling experience difficulty in progressing to higher levels, underlining the importance of primary education in lowering dropout rates and ensuring quality education.

While it was hardly a smooth ride for Kenyan schools (headmasters and teachers struggled to maximize their already limited resources), initial results were encouraging. The country‘s elimination of school fees caused an immediate increase in primary school enrollment, and bolstered its chances of fulfilling the United Nations‘ primary education goals for enrolment and gender parity. By 2004, the country‘s primary school enrollment was at approximately 7.4 million, in stark contrast to the 6 million it posted in the year 2000. Dropout rates were reduced by 2.9%, and although a gender gap still remained where enrollment was concerned, Kenya‘s ratio of girls to boys (94:100) was the best in East Africa.

Nevertheless, time proved detrimental for both Kenya and Joab.

Shortly after starting first grade, his mother died, allegedly of AIDS. His father soon left them to remarry.

Joab was forced to become both parent and provider for his two younger siblings, and the burden

continually cracked at him throughout his education; after an on-andoff schooling, he left school to live on the streets for the last time at 18 years of age.

Kenya, on the other hand, learned that free education came at a price.

The sudden spike in enrollment did not come with any improvement in facilities despite a 360% increase in budget allocation for primary education, and schools began to struggle with congested classrooms and heavy teacher workloads. In some institutions, the teacher:student ratio reached a glaring 1:70 to the recommended maximum rate of 1:40.

In Ayani Primary School, which Joab had attended in 2003, children were forced to sit on mats for the entirety of the school day, adversely affecting their writing skills and physical development.

This, at least, is a lesson the whole world is learning. The EFA movement has long been under fire for its hefty, seemingly unrealistic targets, ones that countries all over the world still struggle to reach. As of this year, there are still 58 million children with a widening gap of 22 billion dollars in funding standing between them and a primary school education. Tellingly, only 52% of countries, including Kenya, have succeeded in providing universal primary education.

Quality of education remains questionable. 84% of Primary Three level students from Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania cannot pass a test of Primary Two level. More than 200,000 Kenyan public school teachers went on a two-week strike in January to protest low wages, a small-scale reflection of an education system riddled with larger is-

10 sues of overstretched resources, both monetary and educational. This latest mass exodus of teachers, the third in as many years, is not unique among East African education countries: teachers in Ghana and Swaziland also have their history of strikes, all owing to overdue salaries and allowances.

Still, the UN is optimistic. ―Despite not meeting the 2015 deadline, millions more children are in school than would have been had the trend of the 1990s persisted,‖ says UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova. Indeed, 50 million more children are in school than there were in 1999, and all six EFA goals have been reached by at least 46% of the world‘s countries (with the exception of adult illiteracy).

Last May, the EFA agenda was relaunched in Incheon, South Korea, putting together a set of post-2015 goals promising to place greater importance in quality of education, rather than quantity. Joab, on the other hand, has just recently gained admission to a day school outside his village, with hopes of rekindling his studies to become a civil engineer.

Joab is now eleven years older than he was in 2003, and a solemn young man who no longer wears bright yellow backpacks to his first day of school; yet his posture is immaculate, shoulders drawn back as if there remains a heavy burden pulling at them. ―The way I was on the streets of Nairobi, [and] the way I see life now, I would follow any rule, just for me to be in school. I would do anything, just for me to stay there.‖ For the next years, Joab will have to work to reaccustom himself to the daily grind of schooling, as well as slug through an education system that is slumping under absenceprone teachers and students receiving, on average, two hours of instruction a day. These are long-term issues that the United Nations must tackle head on.

If Joab is to ever build a bridge that can stand the test of time, for he and the rest of the world, there is work yet ahead.

―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

CONGRATULATIONS Tang Ka Yan, Tiffany Runner-Up Secondary School Category

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

A Beautiful Possibility

BY TANG KA YAN, TIFFANY

Runner-Up

St. Paul’s Co-Educational College Hong Kong In theory, schools from around the world should not be too different. To learn properly, you really only need textbooks, pens, paper – and a teacher. The last is the most important. Of course, schools are immensely different, depending on where they are and who attends them, but the truth remains that they really should not be worlds apart.

That is the dream of global education, and it is a noble ambition for educators, ministers and philanthropists to pursue – the dream of a world where every child anywhere can go to school, where children are taught about the world and the worthy journey towards achieving peace, justice and equality.

Unsurprisingly, though, for many children living in this world, global education is a myth. The phrase implies equal education everywhere, but equality is a tantalising dream that some children can never experience; the brilliance of education is turned to naught when some are still living lives of poverty, persecution and prejudice – and cannot even go to school. Net enrollment rates for primary education vary widely from country to country, from one end of the world to another. According to the World Bank, in 2012, the rates for Japan and the UK were 100%. In the same year, only 66% of school-age children were in school in Burkina Faso, and in Pakistan, 28% of children were out of school. Clearly, education is not global. It is unequal and dominated by the rich, and even more unevenly distributed when we look at gender, race, wealth and the quality of the education received.

In the slums of Burkina Faso, one of the poorest nations in the world, most children never finish their schooling. Education is supposedly free, but the government cannot afford to pay for universal free primary education.

Children are taught in French, but for many young boys and girls, the language of the former colonial power is not the one they have grown up with. Small wonder, then, that the literacy rate in Burkina Faso is, again, one of the lowest in the world.

Evidently and obviously, growing up in Britain would be far different from growing up in Burkina Faso.

But for a new breed of educators, global education is the catchphrase of the hour, and does not only mean promoting education everywhere. It means a new type of education revolving around “global” values – teaching children to value peace, to uphold human rights. Even if not everyone can experience an equally good education, at least children everywhere can gain a basic understanding of the most important and supposedly universal values, and children in the first world can start to understand the importance of what they take for granted. This is, of course, essential, and to teach a schoolchild in the first world these ideals in a textbook is hardly difficult. For this schoolchild, though, learning is not the same as understanding.

Speaking of global awareness feels irrelevant to many people, and if it feels irrelevant, then children will hardly feel much empathy for others or show much keenness in learning. After all, a fifteen-yearold growing up in Hong Kong will

not really be affected if the Yemeni Civil War never ends. It is an unfortunate side effect that in this strange age of peace in much of the West, few schoolchildren grow up truly understanding, for example, the horrors of war. The tales of their grandparents of a difficult past are exactly that – distant, faraway and incomprehensible. The children of the developed world cannot value that which they cannot contemplate losing.

And for those growing up in a less fortunate place in a time not of peace, but of conflict, preaching of peace and human rights often seems to miss the point. Tell a child in the West Bank that war is bad – he will understand, if he has just seen his UNfunded school bombed to pieces, if his father has just died in a missile strike. Talk of rights to the Rohingya child growing up in Myanmar, tell him he should be given the right to go to school, the right against persecution – but he is not, and education alone cannot change that. Inform them of their rights – that is a worthy cause – but in order for change to take root, telling children what they are entitled to but do not possess is mostly futile and cannot change their lives.

Global education is wonderful. It is a laudable ideal that does need to be promoted. But while both education and global values are not truly global in their implementation, and are regarded as wishy-washy ideas where they actually prosper, talk of promotion and expansion can only achieve so much. The way we are going about it now is not working, and in order to make education universal and equal, and allow it to achieve its

13 moral and civic goals, it is not the teacher who needs to do better. It is the governments of the world who need to back up fine words, inspiring catchphrases and praiseworthy principles with real action, so that children from all worlds can receive the finest education possible – and that is impossible without social change.

―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

CONGRATULATIONS Angela Ferguson Champion University Category

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

The Death of Comfortable Education Champion

BY ANGELA FERGUSON Yale-NUS College Singapore There may be an outfit for every occasion, but one in particular has served me in my most daunting moments: a grey V-neck, magenta Nike pullover, and black yoga pants which have never once been used for yoga.

This was my battle armor when I took the SAT, then again when I took and re-took the ACT. Other times, this was my I‘m-sleep-deprived-so-Imight-as-well-be-comfortable outfit for nights of working on the high school magazine until 5 am. These were my comfort clothes. So of course, that‘s what I was wearing one July morning as I hugged my parents outside airport security and sobbed.

I was leaving for college, the caveat being that it was located in Singapore—three flights and 24 hours away from home in aggressively suburban southwest Ohio. And yet, just six months ago, I hadn‘t been confident that I could find Singapore on a map. Even after I‘d decided to enroll, my mom‘s friends had berated her for sending me abroad when teenagers in other countries would give up so much to study in the U.S. Ultimately, though, I wanted to learn more outside the classroom than I did in it. That idea tugged enough at my mind to make me leave behind everything that I knew, but not enough at my heart to make it easy. After crying through the morning car ride, the walk through the airport parking lot and the check-in process at the airline counter, any words I tried to find strangled themselves in my throat before I could choke them out. My mom found only two: ―Just go.‖ And so I did, crying as I went through security and walked to my gate alone.

The next ten months ended up being the best of my life. I threw myself into exploring Singapore‘s nooks and crannies, and it amazed me to get along so well with friends who‘d grown up worlds away from me. And yet those months, which opened my

eyes in more ways that I can say, did not come without growing pains. I sometimes found myself deeply unsettled. The more I learned about the world around me, the more unsure I felt about my place in it. Ironically enough, it was being away from home that, for the first time, pushed me to reflect on what it means to be an American citizen. As opposed to reading about U.S. foreign relations online, I was living it. I finally learned what young people from other countries thought about my own and, rather naïvely, was shocked at the polarized views I heard. That was when I began to sense my behavior being unconsciously shaped by the stereotypes I perceived. If people generalized Americans to be culturally insensitive and lacking global awareness, it felt like my personal responsibility to prove them wrong.

So I caught myself inadvertently trying to go the extra mile, overcompensating as if through my actions, I could say it‟s alright, we‟re not really like that.

When I wasn‘t attempting to defend my country from negative stereotypes, I criticized it for seemingly misunderstanding my new home. I‘d grown to love the diverse, bustling city-state that I once knew nothing about. Singapore‘s education system had taken me in and its people were warm, from the construction worker who always chatted with me to the teacher who‘d treated me to supper when I was lost at midnight. I‘d developed a secondhand appreciation for the country‘s fifty-year transformation from a small port to a global hub. So when American news outlets peppered Mr. Lee Kuan Yew‘s obituary with comments about the country‘s ban on chewing gum and lack of civil liberties, I felt defensive. Previously, I perhaps would‘ve also scoffed at governments which didn‘t mirror my own. But from living abroad, I‘d seen that there was no

absolute formula for structuring a society. Norms that work in some societies simply don‘t exist to the same extent in others, and that‘s the nature of diversity.

After a year of mulling over these ideas, I finally went back to Ohio, only to feel like a total outsider. Here I‘d made best friends and undergone the horrors of puberty and learned to drive a car and yet, it was as if the last one year had written over the past 17. Now I was straddling two different worlds: the former one, revolving around my 28-square-mile suburban stronghold, and the one in which I now cared about Rohingya refugees and South China Sea disputes—people and events far removed from the place where I grew up. My perspective had permanently shifted and I was uncomfortable in both of these worlds. But perhaps that‘s the point. Global education should make me feel uncomfortable.

It should open my eyes to other cultures while allowing me a new pair through which to see my own.

Undoubtedly, it‘s a position of privilege that allows me to fly 15,427 km away from home in the pursuit of higher education. But at its core, I have to think that global education today doesn‘t require moving halfway around the world. It is a mindset—a willingness to learn from people whose backgrounds differ from your own, and about places that exist outside your own bubble. To engage with ideas which go against everything that you‘ve always believed to be true. The simple act of being open to learning opens many doors that would‘ve otherwise remained closed.

So whether it‘s down the hall, down the street, across the country or across the planet, seek out your own global education and just go—even if you need your comfort clothes to get there.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

CONGRATULATIONS Melissa Cheok Runner-Up University Category

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Can We Achieve Quality Education For All? Runner-Up

BY MELISSA CHEOK Singapore Management University Singapore ―World leaders sitting there, look up because the future generation is raising their voice,‖ Malala Yousafzai, prominent Pakistani education advocate, told scores of senior government officials at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit on 25 September 2015. The 18 year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner implored global leaders at the address to look upon the issue of global education seriously.

As the U.N. prepares to replace the Millennial Development Goals enacted in 2000 with newly minted Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) at the end of 2015, Goal 4 aims to ―ensure inclusive and quality education for all and promote lifelong learning‖.

For those of us far removed from this struggle, a world without access to school might be unfathomable, but for droves of people across the globe; the daily fight for this basic human right is commonplace and very real. Today, a staggering 124 million children and adolescents are still deprived of their right to education, with girls facing a large part of this deprivation, according to the UNESCO Institute of Statistics (UIS). Though some progress has been made in past years to increase access to education and enrollment in schools, the UIS predicts that 41 percent of 59 million out-of-school children are unlikely to ever set foot into a school in their lifetime. Most of these children and adolescents hail from countries such as Bangladesh, Nigeria, Sudan and Mexico. Even more shockingly, these latest figures do not include notorious countries like Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo or Somalia, which also have large numbers of out-of-school children but lack precise data. This serves as a grim reminder of the long road that lies ahead as we strive to fulfill our

commitment to provide every child, regardless of race or religion, with a quality primary education.

To add fuel to the fire, armed conflict has severely impacted and impeded any previous educational momentum gained in war-torn countries. In fact, 34 million outof-school children reside in conflict countries. Take the case of the Syrian Armed Conflict: in 2000, the country had achieved commendable universal primary enrolment but as civil war continues to ravage the country today, more than 1.8 million children and adolescents are currently out-ofschool. Of the swarms of refugees who storm the gates of Europe and neighboring Middle Eastern countries, many have been placed into refugee camps with deplorably limited access to rudimentary educational amenities. Presently, in Lebanon, it is estimated that 90 percent of school-aged refugee children are not receiving an education.

In total, only two percent of humanitarian aid today is allocated to education. Though governments and non-profit organisations such as the Dhaka Project and the Malala Fund have undertaken multifarious noteworthy efforts, most aid has been inadequate and minimally effective. Furthermore, between the period of 2011 and 2013, institutions like the EU and the World Bank sizably scaled back their commitment to basic education as they faced other looming socioeconomic problems closer to home.

In light of this, some have postulated that if any progress is to be made on the aid front, private sector involvement is not just necessary but crucial. The pockets of the private business world run deep and a commitment to business philanthropy could be a promising panacea to the burgeoning global educa-

tional divide. Companies like Aviva and Deutsche Bank, through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives, have already helped millions of children achieve basic education.

But will simply throwing more money at the problem really solve anything? The World Literacy Foundation suggests that besides monetary support, measures to enroll more children in school should be combined with effective and proactive strategies to ensure sustained enrollment and completion of education in order to be truly successful.

As education in developed economies becomes increasingly advanced and more robust with the integration of technology, more must be done to level the proverbial playing field. Laggard economies will remain behind unless concrete efforts are made to equip them with the essential educational foundations for progress.

The SDGs will remain conference room idealism unless concerted tangible action is pledged.

Education is a powerful catalyst for social change. It results in increased literacy rates, job creation, health provision, social justice and gender equality which then further spur development and help to catapult societies out of vicious poverty. In committing to providing this basic right to the millions of underprivileged worldwide, we are not just promising them access to a quality education, we are promising them and the generations to come, hope of a brighter future and a fighting chance.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Poverty and Education

BY CHAN WING YIN, FONG LING SUM, LAM YI LOK Baptist Lui Ming Choi Secondary School Hong Kong Students in Hong Kong generally have a heavy homework load, so it is not uncommon for students to complain about school. But while you were moaning about how you hated school, thousands of economically challenged children around the globe are in their homes, wishing desperately for a chance to receive education. In this editorial, we are going to discuss the relations between poverty and education, more specifically in China.

How does poverty affect education?

Firstly, students who are povertystricken might not be able to afford going to school. It is a rarity for an impoverished child to go to school, but even so, learning conditions are bad, as penniless children might not be able to buy basic school supplies such as stationary and textbooks.

Village schools or schools in rural areas also lack resources, are generally understaffed, and are hard to reach, as some are located in less ideal places, such as on a cliff or near rivers. Secondly, children from bad off homes may have to get help in the fields to support their family, affecting their health and studies. Their choices when applying to higher education might also be affected as they must first consider the cost. Thirdly, wealthier students can afford to study in better schools, which have stateof-the-art facilities and well-qualified educators. This will give them an edge over indigent students, who have less-ideal school environments as well as educators who are generally under-resourced and lack enticement.

Rich Students Vs Poor Students Let us use Hong Kong and Guizhou as an example. In Hong Kong, children have equal opportunities to study. If there are poor families in Hong Kong who cannot afford the school fee, they can attend public schools. But in Guizhou, people do not share an

equal opportunity to study. If you have money, you can study. If you do not have money, you can only bow your head and keep working.

What is a poverty cycle?

The definition of the poverty cycle, also called a poverty trap is a ‗seemingly endless continuation of poverty‘.

Without intervention, the cycle will continue, and chances are the second generation will be poor too and will not be able to receive any means of education. With the absence of education in children‘s lives, they will not have a chance to redeem themselves, thus earning money and breaking the poverty cycle. Hence, the poor remain poor their entire lives, and they will not escape the vicious cycle of poverty and illiteracy. It is no secret to the government that education is one of the most powerful means to fight poverty and break the poverty cycle. However, a gaping chasm exists in the Chinese education system, as seen from the fact that China once pioneered a merit-based education system through standardized test score, which has done nothing to help break the seemingly unbreakable poverty cycle.

What has the government done to help poverty?

In the mid-eighties, the Chinese government started a program to implement 9 years of free compulsory education, especially in rural and less developed areas. The education reform lets hard-to-reach students to have more financial support and a higher chance to receive education.

Also, the government has released a wage reform ensuring the payment of rural teachers should not be lower than that of local civil servants.

Despite the reduction of the number of illiteracy, there is still a whopping amount of 85,070,000 illiterates in China, and among them, 20,000,000 are middle-aged and young people.

Although education is becoming more and more common in poor rural areas, there is still a long way to go.

What can we learn from other countries‘ experiences in solving education problems induced by poverty?

The 2011 GMR has suggested several policies that can help reduce the impact poverty has on education in less developed countries. Firstly, cash transfers to families in need, with eligibility linked to school attendance rate, can help economically challenged children get a chance to be educated. A programme like this has been employed in Mexico, where it improved enrolment and average years of schooling accomplished. On the other hand, ensuring that schools have the required staff, resources, and underlying framework is also essential. A programme to improve the quality and importance of education was employed in Columbia, and it significantly reduced dropout rates.

Flexible timing of classes is also useful in reducing the indirect costs of sending youngsters to school. If China implements these policies in the more poverty-stricken rural areas, the poverty issues concerning millions of hungry mouths might just be mitigated through education.

All in all, the lack of quality education is the one true underlying cause of rural China‘s poverty. This reflects how important education is to families, futures, and even lives. Without education, poverty will continue; and with poverty, the next generation will be unable to receive education. These two concepts are linked together closely, and the government‘s interference is needed to stop the poverty cycle and change the lives of students in rural areas for good. After all, a decrease of illiteracy and a rise of education level would benefit both students and the country itself.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Is Today’s Education System Achieving Global Education?

BY ROSA CHOY WAI MING Christian And Missionary Alliance Sun Kei Secondary School Hong Kong Getting up at 5:30am, finishing a meal within 15 minutes, having a maximum 3-minute toilet break, and then study for at least 10 hours a day, this kind of life is no more than usual to the high school students in China.

Everyone around the students emphasizes the importance of the college entrance examination, gaokao.

To the students, gaokao seems to be of paramount importance. Having a military-liked life, students suffer from an indescribable pressure, and not every youngster can manage this enormous pressure. It is not rare to hear high school students in China committed suicide due to the unbearable pressure from gaokao. Hengshui No.2 High School, one of the best high schools considered in China, even installs metal bars on all balconies to prevent students from committing suicide.

The military-liked school life is not only present in China, but also in other countries, like Korea. It is needless to describe how diligent the students are for preparing the college entrance exam again. But one that worth mentioning is, all the Koreans, including the government and the residents, placed the entrance exam on the first priority on the examination day as well. In order to ensure all the candidates can arrive at the examination room on time, the government has increased the frequency of trains and buses. The government delayed the opening time of stock market, and the companies delayed the working hours, doing all these for letting the candidates arrive at the examination room smoothly. Though the society has done all these for the students, they certainly added an invisible stress to them. And this

showed how the society values the exam.

It is undeniable that examination has its good uses: to check whether the students understand the knowledge, to judge the ability of the students.

But it seems that today‘s education system laid stress on knowledge and examination only, and neglected the development on moral education. It is understandable that students work hard for the college entrance exam, so that they can get into university and hence get their ideal job to improve their quality of life. But some students determined to enter university by fair means of foul. There are plenty of cheating tools in the market, cheating mp3, cheating watches, cheating earphones… And there are always students choosing to have the exam with these cheating tools, and abandon their moral value.

In this generation, people are talking about global education. Global education aims to educate young people with justice, help develop the moral value of the young people, and allow the youngsters to have a wider vision of the world. Global education assists students to see themselves as a global citizen who can contribute to a sustainable world. Then look back on today‘s education system, it focuses on knowledge on textbooks and the marks that students got. Skipping the lessons that educate students with justice, made the students lose the ability to judge right and wrong. Focusing on the textbooks only made the students have no sense of the world. The present generation is still far from the ideology of Global education.

After the release of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua, the parenting style of parents has aroused

people‘s attention. And people discovered more and more tiger moms like Amy Chua in society, especially in Asian countries. The tiger moms concentrated on boosting the academic result of their children since they are still young. The tiger moms may force their children to study hard and work hard on musical instruments, and even hire private tutors who specialize in a particular subject to help push the children to go forward. Under the suffocating learning life, the children may be full of knowledge, but they have no chance to experience the world. They have no idea about what the society is, and even lack communication skills.

Though they are having education, the significance of education has lost.

It is impossible to exclude examination in an education system, then the teaching style of the teachers is the key to achieving global education. In the United States, schools are stressed on nurturing students‘ innovative spirit. The schoolwork assigned by the teachers does not require a lot of knowledge from the textbooks, but the spirit of inquiry and creativity, like doing research and project. In the process of doing research and project, students explore the world in their own way, they use their unique method to broaden their horizon, learn from the past experience, and this is what global education should be.

Global education lays emphasis on developing student‘s positive value, not the skills of cramming textbooks.

To achieve global education, schools and parents should focus more on students‘ psychological development, and be laid-back about the marks.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

The Missing Piece In A Successful Education

BY INIKA SAHNEY Canadian International School Hong Kong Year after year, Singapore leads world education. With a tiny population, this island nation bereft of any real natural resources has confounded people with its economic success and in recent years with its success in educating its people. Countries seeking to emulate Singapore‘s achievement in education have focused on traditional parameters such as their rigorous Math and Science courses.

They are right to look at this, as well as its teaching methodologies and the standardization of their education.

But there are other countries that also meet these parameters and can be argued are even more rigorous in their teaching of Math and Science.

So what does Singapore have that other countries do not?

Integration.

More than eighty percent of Singapore lives in public housing. There are complexes across the nation filled with people. Though what differentiates this housing scheme from others is that within each complex, there are specific ethnic quotas. The government has tried to ensure that every neighborhood has a mixed community full of people from different ethnic backgrounds. This concept has permeated not only Singapore‘s residential areas but also its schooling.

Having an education system that promotes diversity and has ethnic quotas is something that is not found in many other countries. Allowing students of different races and backgrounds to grow up and go to school together provides a somewhat equal opportunity for them as a whole.

An education system that allows such mixing of cultures and income not only helps minorities succeed but the community as a whole. It seems like a great way to make everyone come together, so why isn‘t integration happening in other countries?

Well the fact is that it has been tried before, a clear example being in the United States. In 1954, the Brown vs.

Board of Education ruling required integration of black and white students in schools. This law took a while to come into action but when it did, there was a significant difference between scores within these schools.

At the height of desegregation of schools the average scores of black students improved considerably. So much so that the difference in achievement between black and white students halved during this period. Contrary to what opponents of integration believed, this wasn‘t because scores of white students fell but scores of black students rose.

This wasn‘t a specific region or case

but the entire country as a whole.

Though this desegregation didn‘t last long. Many white people began to move to separate neighborhoods and the segregation continued. Today in places such as Boston, where there very clear black and white schools, overall black scores haven‘t really improved since the ‗70‘s.

Another interesting example is Finland in which there are no poor schools or rich schools. Kids are completely integrated. Finland, similar to Singapore, is also a country whose academic results are widely envied. The most common explanation for Finland‘s high scores would be their highly qualified teachers and lack of standardized testing. While this may be true, the great academic performance could also have to do with the fact that there is full integration of social classes and races within Finland.

Much like novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie said, we must look at the story as a whole. All perspectives and explanations play a role in the development of a story and if we just look at one side, we might just miss what the story is about. Therefore when we use just traditional parameters in judging the educational success of countries like Singapore and Finland, we might not find it.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

The Movement Of Global Education

BY MANA MEHTA Canadian International School Hong Kong 250 million children across the world don‘t receive basic education. This is largely because of inaccessibility to quality classrooms. Education‘s purpose is equipping youth to shape a better world. However, in this world, that has enough resources and people for every corner of this planet, there is tremendous disparity in education access across nations.

Let‘s define global education as having a set standard of education quality across the globe. It should have no relation to where you live, where you grew up or economic stance. When we talk about standardisation, it refers to the eventual possibility that anyone, whether from Cuba or Hong Kong or anywhere else, has the same opportunities. Ultimately, education corresponds to social mobility, without which, people are trapped into the constraints of their socio-economic backgrounds.

It has been statically proven that with the basic education of knowledge and skills, the choice making ability of youth is compromised by 30% or more. The youth are unable to determine and differentiate choices that affect their lives because education has plays a major role in these decisions. By anticipating global education as described above, it can only affect the future in a positive way.

Quality education is therefore imperative for global education to be sustainable. For global education to standardize their needs to first be global access to education, ensuring all children have equal learning opportunities.

Today, the annual cost of giving all children an education is US $149 billion in developing countries. By 2030 it will reach US $340 billion.

The lack of financial aid and economically stability in developing

countries is a barrier to global education. Though financial aid will help in decreasing the amount of children unable to access quality education it will not be enough ensure global education.

In this situation, movements like the Teach For Movement and Khan Academy are education platforms that have been consistently delivering quality education. These movements have been pioneers in globalizing education. While Teach For is a global movement done physically by training individuals to teach for two years in school infrastructures that require improvement, Khan Academy is done digitally. Digital classrooms are beneficial because by making videos explaining core points for all subjects, Khan Academy has thrived by allowing children to learn whether or not they are in or have access to a classroom environment.

The Teach for Movement on the other hand, demonstrates the efficacy of a teacher, and shows that expensive resources are not prerequisites to quality education; the key is the medium of the instructor.

Education inequity is a factor of unemployment and weak economies in countries. For some economically weak countries such as Pakistan, the estimated loss of resource is equivalent to the cost of a natural disaster, amounting to over 1.5 billion USD. If all students in developing countries have basic literacy the number of people living on less than 1.25 USD a day would be reduced by 12%.

That‘s 171 million people who can change their lives by improving their education.

The Teach For Movement mobilizes people in countries with dense populations by training people of various profiles in what it takes to be not just a teacher, but also a leader within a

classroom. They have an easily adaptable model that has strict standards for training, ensuring that the people that become Fellows have some basic requirements, and the potential to effect change. In other countries that struggle with certain local populations having remote access to schools and classrooms, the digital option seems like the most viable one, contingent upon internet access. Various non-profit organizations are able to translate educational video, specifically Khan Academy videos into local languages and make them available to download, or at least available offline. This will decrease the pressure on internet cost, and is being piloted across countries; in India, the Central Square Foundation is translating Khan Academy videos and making them available them Hindi. Khan Academy is already available in multiple languages but for places that are more remote this is being solved through translation. Although it may be difficult to ensure internet access, it is easier for national governments to work towards internet access than it may be to address the various other issues that crop up when working to ensure quality in education. This movement ensures both quality instruction, as well as remote access, combatting two fundamental challenges to education standards across countries.

What it boils down to, is that the solution to improving education, both access and quality, is through empowering the medium of instruction through which any form of education is disseminated. Movements in global education base their effectiveness on the effectiveness of the teacher; the movement is only as good as its teachers. With teachers being digital and physical it accounts for all potential problems. By training people to become teachers suitable for their level of knowledge it not only de-

22 creases unemployment but also supplicates teacher shortage, which countries like India and Pakistan are increasingly facing. The movement through its model education across countries is replicable, ensuring equal knowledge. Children living in rural places in China, who have a 5% chance of going to college will now have the same opportunity as anyone else. Global movements are changing education and creating better futures for all people. Geographical boundaries divide countries and continents but they shouldn‘t limit education, and its impact.

The pictures above were taken from Khan Academy videos on pre-algebra and shows how lessons and education on this education platform are standardized promoting global education.

―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

What Does Chinese Education Offer?

BY LUYI SONG Dunman High School Singapore I am a Chinese and in Singapore they call me PRC. It is my fourth year here and the last three months of my scholarship contract. I feel a strange mixture of nostalgia, excitement and relief. Finally, I am going back home.

At the age of 15, I was selected to take the entry exam of a Singaporean scholarship program, a result of my exemplary zhongkao (admission exam to high school) grade. Only the top 10 scorers in my Chinese school were given such opportunity and I ranked number 9. My teacher was confident, believing that no one could ever reject a student like me.

He was right. After the IQ test, an English paper, a math paper, and an interview, I was admitted with full scholarship. It was exhilarating for me as I had always wanted to study abroad, and for my parents too as they need not worry about the fees.

So four days after my 16th birthday, I boarded my first international flight to the tropical island.

My four-year journey in Singapore started with a signed contract. At that time, however, I did not know that a cold business style foreshadowed how they did everything here until I saw the fingerprint door lock installed on the wall outside the staffrooms for teachers. I asked my Singaporean friends why the school did this. They told me it was a rite of passage, and every school ―was like that‖. Immediately, I began to miss the privilege I once had, or every Chinese student has back home:

There is no door lock for the staffroom. All I need to do is to knock on the door, get the permission, and walk in. There is no barrier.

Another shocking fact is the business-style relationship between teachers and students in Singapore.

The regulation has probably stipulated a teacher‘s job scope and any outof-scope interaction seems to be forbidden. Living here alone, there are many occasions that I feel like relating my worries and queries to the adults and asking for help as my parents are not always available over the phone; and most of the time, I am turned down. The teachers often listen half-heartedly and suggest that I should seek professional psychological counselling. I know they are hinting it is out of scope. Ironically, the people who always listen to me and talk to me in Singapore are my former teachers in China. I‘ve always missed the feeling of being loved. I must have been pampered by my Chinese education.

Still, I appreciate the global exposure Singapore offers in making me an independent learner. Chinese students will not be able to write about the impacts of globalization or comment on the characteristics of the Chinese society at 15. In fact, they are barely exposed to such discussion. But the Singaporean students can, at 15, come up with wellstructured essays on how industrialization has impacted the Less Developed Countries or on the importance

of art to Singapore. It is challenging, but it makes one more aware of the world, and encourages academic curiosity and critical thinking. But in China, the priorities are teaching of tradition and values and building of strong foundation of knowledge through practice and repetition. It also believes that teaching a student how to be a person is as important as teaching math formulae. Until today, I still believe that the reason why I could survive the academic stress in Singapore is the foundation my Chinese school has given me, both in terms of academics and moral principles.

But I am also critically aware that without Singapore, I will never be able to express my opinions comfortably. I have to admit that the spoonfeeding back home is suffocating and it hardly encourages expression of self and idea. I am fortunate that I have got a good balance of openness and conservativeness at a good timing.

In four years, I‘ve seen myself transformed from a carefree teenager to an independent young adult. But I have always wondered what my life would be if I scored one mark less in zhongkao, and who I would become if I were the number 11. Four years ago I would definitely say that it would be much more miserable if I stayed in China. But now I am less certain about it.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Rural Rights: Learning To Access Remote Areas

BY JENNIFER POWACHT AND NADIA GILQUIN Garden International School Thailand Lumphun, Thailand. Noy, age 8, sees a floating raft classroom in the distance. A figure is standing there, waiting for her. A teacher. An overwhelming feeling of excitement consumes her. This is because education was never an option for her. ―I want my students to survive in the real world because an urban society is totally different from the village where they‘re growing up,‖ says Khallaya Jirapong of Ban Pan Mon School, ―When they leave the school and go for further education, they will face a different life. I want my students to be aware about this issue otherwise their lives might be deprived‖. 39 million children in 1990 did not attend school in South and West Asia, reports UNESCO. In addition, 56% of the school age population was not attending primary school. The reasons include factors such as: poverty, inadequate education programmes, gender inequality and geographical location. Fortunately, things have improved. UNESCO statistics shows a substantial decrease to 13 million children not in education by 2010. Access to primary education in Thailand increased from 81.4% in 2000 to 90.05% in 2009 and enrollment for Secondary education increased from 54.4% to 72.22%. ―I‘m glad we have our own school now‖, said 12 year-old Boonsong. ―Now we get to come to school every day‖. Those like Boonsong, in these remote areas were lucky enough to be given the opportunity to attend school. Ban Mae Surin Noi, a school set up in a remote area of Mae Hong Son province provided this opportunity. The school is one of many in Mae Hong Son managed by the Ministry of Education under a project that is supported by UNICEF. Randsun Wi-

boonuppatum, UNICEF Thailand Chief of Education states, ―The most important thing is to get children into school and to get them learning‖.

This particular project began ten years ago when the results of a survey showed that over one thousand children from Mae Hong Son‘s hill tribes were not attending school. Suraphan Suebfak, Mae Hong Son Education Service Assistant Director and his team, ―walked house to house, mountain to mountain, and knocked on every door to see if the children were in school or not‖. The results showed that children remained at home because the schools were simply too far away. However, UNICEF Thailand decided that they would tackle the inconvenience by bringing the schools to the children.

Samart Suta, a middle aged graduate in Sports Science became a teacher at Ban Ko Jad San School, teaching children of poverty stricken fishermen, living in raft houses. In 1994, Mr Suta sacrificed his city life to teach at an abandoned school, hours away from his home. The school floats on Mae Ping Lake near Tambon Ko Lamphun Li‘s district which is situated in a remote area and provides education as well as accommodation for children ranging from Grade one to six. By nightfall, the school becomes a home for the students as they live too far away. Their parents do not comprehend the importance of education, ―Most still think there is no need for their children to study at a higher level,‖ Mr Suta states, ―as they will eventually work as fishermen‖.

The school isn‘t just a space where the children are taught the alphabet or how to count, but instead it became a place where everyone involved in-

spired each other. As Mr Suta explains, what inspired him to stay was that he ―saw that they really wanted to learn‖.

The project is clearly a success: ―I want to pursue my studies at a higher level, if possible. I want to be a teacher like Khru Samart and work in this floating classroom,‖ states Maiprae Sumpong, a 12 year old student at the school. Suta‘s act of kindness was not only noticed by his students but by a wider audience, as he received a Good Teacher Award in 2012, from the Quality Learning Foundation. A film was also made by GTH, titled, ‗Kidteung Wittaya‘, based on Mr Suta‘s story. The film‘s success in Thailand and was translated into English. This raised its profile and spread awareness of the issue of equal opportunities for education across the globe.

Schools in Thailand's hill tribes currently have over 40 teachers teaching nearly 500 primary students in 17 new schools. Many of the teachers are from ethnic hill tribes, who speak Thai and ethnic languages. Boonsong, age 12, a student from one of the 17 schools, plans to continue his studies at a higher level and hopes to become a teacher in order to teach future generations.

"The floating raft classroom is considered a necessary school. Providing education to only one child and allowing him or her to have a better life is beyond worthwhile," says Nakorn Tangkapipope, of Quality Learning Foundation. He further states that Mr. Suta is one of over 500 Good Teacher Award recipients who is providing an education to underprivileged children including the disabled, the poor and non-Thai children.

25 Results show that these projects are having encouraging outcomes: education is having a positive impact.

Some children who were once not in schools, because of their geographical location, are now receiving the education they deserve. H.E Paul Kagame, at the Global Education and Skills Forum 2015, states, ―Education is about dignity. Even if you have problems today, eventually you should be able to stand on your own two feet‖.

―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Education, A Human Riot

BY WEZLIE JOHN BAUTISTA GUADIZ HKMA David Li Kwok Po College Hong Kong Education is a fundamental human right; this is because every child around the world, regardless of their race, culture, or economic status has great potential. This potential can only be harnessed and realized if those young minds receive proper education. We‘re in the 21st century, and the world is as advanced as ever with many economies flourishing and countries getting more developed in general, yet, there is still a plethora of children who have yet to receive education for their future. This issue isn‘t getting the spotlight that it deserves, but it will come back to haunt us if left unnoticed. The children of today will be the citizens of tomorrow, and it‘s saddening to know that a lot of uneducated children, if unaccounted for, won‘t be able to contribute or merge into society because they weren‘t given an education. Also, the current developing countries such as Africa will find it even harder to develop as their future population isn‘t educated too, and the cycle repeats itself yet again, resulting in a constant era where people have to live in poverty.

In 2012, there were more than 61 million children of primary school age that were out of school. That huge number rose to a staggering 72 million children in 2015.

The reason why the figures are so high is because of the inequalities and marginalization in both developing and developed countries. Some of these inequalities include the belief in some cultures like the Arab States, central Asia and in Southern and Western Asia where parents think that their daughters aren‘t worth sending to school, and instead they are told to stay home to help with the chores or do farm work. But the main cause contributing to the huge figures is poverty. It is said that there are still 1.6 billion people living in poverty. These

people barely have any income, which means that it‘s hard to survive as they can‘t afford money for food, clothes and housing. If they can‘t afford those totally basic things which are needed to survive, how can they afford an education for their children?

Most of the people living in poverty are in the continent of Africa. Some cities in Africa are severely underdeveloped and rampant with disease and crime. In those areas, there is a major lack of infrastructure which makes it hard for children to find somewhere that they can find teachers. It‘s no secret that a lot of people, especially children, have died of starvation and disease in Africa. There are constantly droughts, which make it impossible for them to grow crops, and if there are crops, they are usually too expensive for the typical family to buy. As families are so focused on trying to survive, they rarely even give a thought about sending their children to school.

This means that a lot of families in Africa who can‘t afford food can‘t send their children to school. Another problem that stops the children from going to school is that the children‘s parents are likely not to have received an education in the first place because of the reasons aforementioned. This means that either the parents don‘t know the value of education, or even though they are aware that education is vital to their child‘s success in the future, they can‘t really teach them as they may be illiterate. Some children may have been studying in a school at first, but there‘s a chance that they‘ll have to stop because of their health issues or do jobs to support their family.

Not only is it the problem of the individual families, the governments of some countries simply don‘t put

enough resources into education. This means that they are not spending enough of their money building or renovating schools and they‘re also not training people to become teachers. So, even if a family has adequate money to get their basic needs and afford an education, the quality of education may not be good enough and if they are sent to those schools, they may benefit insignificantly or not at all.

Those schools may not have enough teaching resources, which is a problem because children usually need some sort of mental stimulation to enhance their learning process. Another huge problem is the number of students in one class. Large class sizes cause a lot of problems. For one, the students simply aren‘t able to get enough individual attention, so their problems can‘t be solved and their learning process will be very slow. This is because children have different learning speeds, and if one‘s lagging behind, he/she might not be able to catch up.

This type of difficult teaching method can also take its toll on the teachers, as it‘s hard to discipline and teach more than 50 students at once, which will lower the effectiveness of teaching.

In conclusion, this problem should be tackled at its root, which is for developed countries to help out developed countries so that the general quality of life of people there will increase and they can afford to send their children to school. Also governments should realize the importance of education and prioritize the building of schools and improvement on the quality of education. If those things become a reality, a lot more children will be able to go to school and we will be one step closer to achieving global education.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Our Global Obligation

BY CARRIE TIAN Harrow International School of Bangkok Thailand Around the world, almost a billion people sit, chained to a life of social and economic repression. They work in factories, they scrub floors, they farm crops, or they beg for their daily bread. The chains that bind them are not forged from iron or steel, but are the much more obdurate bonds of ignorance and illiteracy. Their lack of education enslaves them as surely as any whip-wielding taskmaster. Education is one of the most fundamental rights of human beings, but it is one that is out of reach of over one-fifth of the world‘s population. If you are reading this paper, you are one of the lucky ones.

While you have the tools to study and learn new solutions to overcome problems in your daily life, the uneducated and illiterate cannot see ways to move beyond their limits. They find themselves trapped in dead-end jobs, with no way to make progress.

They struggle, day by day, to make ends meet, and in the end they can be cast into the street by some minor economic shock. This makes the lack of access to education one of the most profound personal tragedies of our modern age.

This tragedy is not limited to the personal sphere, but also has significant impact on national and international systems. Education does not stand on its own as a monolithic concept disconnected from the rest of life. A poor education for a child can limit their positive engagement in society for the rest of their lives, leading to increased criminality, increased state expenditures on social programs, decreased economic engagement, and in the end, a decrease in the overall stability of the nation or region as a whole. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in their report ―Equity and Quality in Education,‖ has affirmed this observation perfectly.

Even in developed countries, education is very disproportionately distributed. Every year, stories about ―good schools‖ and ―bad schools‖ find their way into the education pages of newspapers globally. These divisions between educational standards are often drawn on the very same lines as those of economic opportunity. While discussions about education and economic opportunity can easily become a chicken-and-egg discussion of prime causes, what is not in doubt is that education is one of the most fundamentally equalizing forces on the planet, and that we, as literate citizens of the globe, can and must take steps to correct this imbalance.

What steps can we take to achieve the end goal of realizing international educational equality? This effort will have to move forward on two separate fronts that will eventually come together in the end a simple personally-oriented approach is not enough to overcome this obstacle. At the same time, any sort of purely legislative solution would fall short without the involvement of the rest of society at large. Every member of global society at every level has the ability to contribute to a solution to global educational inequality.

Young children, in addition to their studies, can look to their peers and identify those that may be struggling with their subjects. Whether it is writing or maths, a helping hand and encouragement can go a long way towards increasing the positive learning atmosphere of a classroom. Students at this level should be focused on learning how to not only learn themselves, but also how to teach others with kindness and compassion.

Secondary school students have a special place in combating educa-

tional inequality, because they can reach out and have a profound impact on the younger primary school students, both at their own schools and at other schools in their areas.

Through ―buddy‖ programs, whereby students from one type of school will partner and co-learn with students from another, a level of both idea and material exchange can occur between schools in different socioeconomic brackets. As the students get older, their abilities to teach others will increase, and they can volunteer with organizations such as The Duang Prateep Foundation in the Khlong Toey slums of Bangkok, or even start their own socially-oriented educational ventures.

Students at the university level and above can have a transformational role in the battle to elevate the level of education in their own communities, as well as be a strong influence in building international communication and understanding. Each member of society has a vital role to play in building the educational structures that will define the next stage of human development.

All students around the world must recognize that they can play an important part in international education. It is only when society at all levels has been mobilized to drive educational change that the institutions of society will begin to flex under the pressure of the teeming waves of humanity all working to elevate one another. For centuries, governments and organizations have been seeking an answer to the ―question‖ of educational equality, and today, with a little work, we can say that the answer to this question is ―the youth of the world‖, combined and working together towards a single goal.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Global Education And Us

BY CHAN NGA KI Immaculate Heart of Mary College Hong Kong Have you all ever wondered how different the lifestyles of people from different countries can be?

I have some relatives living in Canada while I‘m here living in Hong Kong. Every Chinese New Year, they‘d come all the way from Toronto to Hong Kong and we would have our family time, enjoying buffets together, having family communion and sharing our stories and daily encounters as well as our up and down moments. I always get carried away by the stories of my cousin, Amy, because she has lived there for most of her life, that she has developed native Canadian accent which I love and admire, and simply because of that, I am rather indulged in knowing about how life differs in different parts of the world. Ever since when I was a child, I have been interested in knowing more about not only Canada, but the other parts of the world. Actually, we do all live on the same planet, enjoying the sunshine and rain from the Mother Earth every day, however, our lifestyles can be very much different from each other.

our own future. Obviously, we already have enough worries at this very moment, and unfortunately, that is our real life. Wasting our time on our worries has indeed axed our time to learn more about the world and most of all, has stopped us from improving.

What does learning about the world have to do with our improvements?

You may ask. Let‘s take a look at the Self- Strengthening Movement which took place in China during the Qing Dynasty. During that period, China underwent wars and was badly defeated. The weapons were not powerful enough, and to defend the country, the only way was to adopt Western‘s inventions including naval vessels, arsenals, telegraphs, etc. China then lost its reputation as a strong nation it had used to be.

I remember that once I had a nice chat with my native tutor from England, who has been teaching me for over 10 years. He told me about how accents can vary A LOT even in a very short distant in the same country.

I‘ve always thought that I know almost everything about England, since Hong Kong was once a British colony and we learnt quite a lot about British in history lessons. However, I was wrong. There is still so much I don‘t know about it, and let us not to forget the fact that there are totally 192 countries on earth!

Although the reformation was unsuccessful at the end; however, this induced a great impact on Chinese military. China was the first country to invent abacus, alcohol, clock, compass, paper, printing technology and umbrellas. The reason why people from all parts of the world use them nowadays is because of the ideas being exchanged between nations. In the past, this took place when merchants sold their goods to people from other nations, for example, some Chinese merchants traded with foreigners using the Silk Road, and since then, the silk which was produced solely in China and was considered to be the costly and valuable fabric to wear, was exported to other countries, and the Western world was delighted and astounded to see this soft and comfy material.

Perhaps we all live in the 21st Century, the time that emphasizes on minding our own business and fighting for

Now, exchanging ideas can be done easily or even effortlessly by chatting with people from other countries

online. So, there is no time for us to wait, and we should start our Global Education in Hong Kong right away.

Whether you want it or not, we are so much connected with other countries.

Therefore, we should understand and appreciate others' cultures so as to learn from each other and to promote world peace as well.

According to Global Education Network website, global education can be a very creative approach for making some changes in our society.

Making changes is no easy for every one, I am sure, but Global Education can give us a big picture of the whole world and broaden our view, so we do not only focus on our own duties as a student, as a Hong Kong citizen, but a citizen of the whole world, and thus we know our responsibilities well and to take part in improving the current situation for the benefits of all.

Moreover, Global Education is an active process based on the universal values of tolerance, solidarity, equality, justice, inclusion, co-operation and non-violence. These values are indeed the nutrition for every one living on this planet, and all these help to nurture us to be a whole person, helping us develop the global future to hand in hand.

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In Conflict-Ridden Regions, Education Takes A Backseat

BY DEJOY SHASTIKK KUMARAN NUS High School Singapore 40 million people in war-torn areas can‘t get a proper education. That‘s the population of Argentina, and no one seems to want to do anything about it.

In the last decade, destructive civil wars have sprouted or severely intensified within several nationsSyria in 2011 during the Arab Spring, the civil war in Iraq after the Islamic State crossed over the border from Syria, Boko Haram starting a brutal civil war in the North of Nigeria in 2009 and the continuing civil wars in so many other nations. In the four most brutal conflicts alone, approximately close to a hundred and fifty thousand people died, and tens of millions of people in these war-torn areas either became internally displaced persons or refugees fleeing elsewhere seeking asylum.

Even as the global community shivers at the number of people dying from these civil wars, only a few organizations remain concerned about the growing numbers of young people who are unable to get an education in these war-torn regions. According to War Child, a British organization protecting children in conflict areas, ―there are almost 40 million children out of school in conflict-affected countries‖, out of a total of 69 million children. This means that close to two thirds of all children who aren‘t able to go to school aren‘t able to do so because of the conflicts that are tearing up their homes and schools. According to the UNHCR, 66% of Syrian refugees in Lebanon are not able to attend school. Given the status of education as a right and not a privilege, and given the role that education can play in a

society by ways such as improving salaries and reducing extremism and bigotry, how can it be that the organization UNESCO is only able to raise 10% of the $2.3 billion they need to be able to send 34 million of these students in conflict-ridden regions to school?

There are so many benefits to education. According to various organizations, long-term education has several benefits for individuals. For example, the OECD claims that individuals who undergo higher education or equivalent can expect to live closer to a decade longer than individuals who do not undergo such education. Furthermore, individuals having undergone such education can expect to be more civic-minded individuals and in general much happier than someone who has not received education.

Education also is amazingly efficient at helping societies grow and modernize. Education can result in greater productivity and economic growth for society. A study published in 2009 in the Brookings Papers on Economic Activity shows how increased educational levels can bring greater technological progress to society, thus resulting in greater economic growth. Education remains one of the most effective ways for a nation-state to become economically successful, stable and prosperous.

Countries have a moral and practical obligation to fund educational efforts in these countries. Understandably, the international community today is more concerned on the short term effects of millions of refugees flooding Europe and some of the Middle East, but it is vital

that the world as a whole look at the long-term responsibilities to make these conflict-ridden nations the beautiful places they once were.

Countries have a moral obligation firstly to help refugees to establish a sustainable education system in their nations and allow these nations to grow economically and socially. Do the people of these nations not deserve the quality of life that has been robbed from them by the conflict in their region? But even with the moral consideration, there is a practical aspect to aid.

Aiding nations build sustainable education infrastructure and investment sufficient resources in education can only do good for both that nation and the nations aiding it.

A more educated populace in these conflict-ridden areas would pursue peace and economic development, which would undoubtedly help these aid-giving nations economically as a chance for their nations to invest in these developing nations.

Furthermore, aid can help to thwart things like disease and violence, as a more educated population will be able to access vital medical infrastructure easier, as well as reject extremist ideologies that actively encourage violence, thus resulting in less terrorist violence in these aid-giving nations as well. Giving foreign aid to conflict ridden nations for them to rebuild educational systems constitutes a mutualistic system, as both the receiving nation benefits through increased economic opportunities and the aid-giving nation benefits from increasing investment opportunities and the reduction of the terrorist threat.

30 Given the estimated $30 billion in wasteful spending by the US alone in 2013, is it not morally and practically just for the international community to make a vital yet relatively minuscule investment to educate tens of millions of children in conflict-ridden areas? Let us work together across all borders to make sure that these children have the opportunity to succeed that they might not have otherwise.

―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Children at Ahlam Al-Tofoola kindergarten, in the city of Tartous, Syria playing with hand puppets. Photo: UNICEF/David Youngmeyer

An aerial view of the Za‘atri Refugee Camp which houses 80000 Syrians, many unable to get an education.

Photo: US Department of State

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Education - A Call For Reform?

BY TAN SHI YING Nanyang Girls‘ High School Singapore It has fallen.

Dewey watches us from above. His words seem to have become a mere blaring siren at the back of our minds: wise advice to be heeded, but thus far not acted upon. After all, in this age of heightened connectivity and globalisation, what else beats having a competitive, thriving economy?

We have, as countries and peoples, trudged far. In just one century, we have made remarkable advancements: we marched through the age of Industrialisation and embarked upon deep explorations and exhilarating ventures with the birth of New Media. Yet now, we seem to be stumbling over ‗Globalisation‘. Our values and systems conflict, institutions questioned. Education remains the burning batholith lying at the core of our conscience.

The primary purpose of education in the 20th Century was, to put in Dewey‘s words, ―necessary to enable people to participate in democracy, and thus without an educated, informed and literate citizenry, a robust democracy is impossible‖. Education was meant to empower citizens with the fundamental skills and knowledge necessary to process the world. Industrialisation cannot be missed from the equation of education then as well. Students were drilled and moulded to be the ―brains and hands‖ of a 20th Century industrialised workplace.

Today, education continues to be modeled on the interest of industrialisation. Children continue to be raw materials for an industrial process.

This is despite having observed a shift in systems from one of rote mechanisation to one, as what corporations will say, filled with ‗VUCAs‘

(volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity). This is despite incorporating ―21st Century Competencies‖ into our education system.

Undeniably, countries across the globe have sought to change the way education is being run. More emphasis is being placed on creative thinking, innovation and critical and analytical skills. This is evident in educational institutions where student outcomes now include ‗active citizenry, critical thinkers and independent, self-directed learners‘. We claim that a paradigm shift of education to constructivism has been observed.

However, are we doing enough? The theory of constructivism is based on the understanding that people ―construct their own understanding and knowledge of the world, through experiencing things and reflecting on those experiences‖ (2004, WNET, Concept to Classroom). We have to acknowledge the efforts of countries in attempting to create a culture of reflective thinking in schools where students are ―responsible for their own learning‖. However, to quote Sir Ken Robinson, schools across the globe are ―pretty much organised on factory lines‖. Regulations, rigidity and stringency are classic terms used to describe a typical academic institution. While undeniably we are giving students greater ownership to their learning through having more creative, reflective components in learning in a formalised setting, the system of education is still one that limits more than it empowers. Students‘ ownership over their own learning remains weak. We are told what to learn, see and do. We are told what is ‗right‘ and ‗wrong‘, ‗black‘ and ‗white‘. Schools continue to define our learning by drawing boundaries for us. We are given a neat and compact view of the world. As such,

learning is seldom done on free will and initiative, but often by rule of order instead.

It is also pivotal to realise the paradoxical nature of education as one carried out to ―meet the demands of the 21st Century‖. Creative and critical thinking, innovation and reflection are indubitably skills important in a child‘s growth and development today. It helps students, children and youths alike, to comprehend the world and society in deeper depth, and issues with bigger lenses. However, therein lies the conflict. Are we as countries valuing education because it empowers and enables individuals to carve their own voice and build their own values about society and community, or because it is very much a useful and efficient tool in sieving out and producing the ―best brains‖ of a country necessary to sustain her position on a competitive international playing field?

There is hence a pressing need for world leaders and educators to rethink education today again: to promote empathy, democracy and human needs, or to serve the needs of businesses and the global economy?

There needs to be a reform in education, a rethinking of purposes and ideals. Education should not be a used as a means to achieve an end.

We need to give students a greater say in their learning, to thrust them into the realities of life, and believe in the power of experience. We have to let loose and let students define their own learning. Let us not forget the words of John Dewey, ―Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself. Give the pupils something to do, not something to learn; and the doing is of such a nature as to demand thinking; learning naturally results.‖

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Do Hong Kong Students Get Greater Burden Than Foreign Students?

BY CHOW TING CHUN JANY, WU HIU YAN CHERRY AND

LEUNG WING SUM POLLY Our Lady‘s College Hong Kong Recently, some survey and TV infotainment Programs show that most Hong Kong students suffer from stress because of homework. Do all students in different countries face the same problem? Or they face different problems of homework?

Being a typical Hong Kong student, I totally understand how great the burden of homework is. Every day I am given a lot of homework. Besides, there are many quizzes and tests every day. In fact, Hong Kong students‘ workload is much higher than their peer in the western countries. This makes the students unable to spare time on relaxation. The serious consequence is that the students are sick of these tasks and lose their interest in learning. Why is there so much homework in Hong Kong every day?

The most important factor is Chinese parents‘ expectations. In traditional Chinese society, parents believe that doing homework means hard work.

Many parents think that entering university is the only way to get higher social status and earn more money, so they use all kinds of methods to achieve it. As the public exam is the only way for the students to get into the university, parents do not want their children to fail in this important exam. As a result, they expect the school to provide more exercises for their children to do. Some of them may even spend a lot of money going to different kinds of tutorial class in order to train their children‘s exam skills. A survey shows that 54% secondary students go to tutorial classes.

Practice makes perfect, but does homework really improve their learning? Homework is just one of the many ways to evaluate and monitor learning. Many western countries such as UK has limited the amount of

homework as they think homework will make the student lose the time to play and do the other extra-curricular activities. Now, maybe you will ask how these countries‘ teachers evaluate the learning of students. The answer is that these teachers will design different kinds of activities such as discussion and role playing to foster learning inside classrooms. Then, they will observe the performance of the students and find out whether they know about the topic. Maybe you think this method may increase the workload of teachers as they need to use more time on designing activities. On the contrary, the workload does not really increase so much as it helps reduce the time spent on grading students‘ paper homework.

Apart from school homework, the design of the public exam is another driving force behind the huge homework stress. Students undergo so much training about the public exams.

They need to do endless school-based assessments and exam papers drilling in order to examine their school performance. Although the purpose of SBA is to reduce the weight of paper exam in order to assess students more thoroughly, students are exhausted when all subjects, both compulsory and elective ones require them to be assessed once or twice every year.

Furthermore, as the public exam is held only once every year, many weak students need to wait for one more year to re-take the exam. This creates a big pressure for the students.

Let‘s see other countries‘ situation.

In the US, the public exams of some states are held more than once every year. You may fail in the morning and re-take in the afternoon. More importantly, students in western countries are given more paths to get admitted to university besides taking the public exam. It is high time the

government considered evaluating students in diverse ways and reduced the burden of students.

Just mentioned before, Hong Kong students uses a lot of time on homework, then do they not have any time on extra-curricular activities? On the tontary, Hong Kong‘s students also join many different kinds of extracurricular activities like, swimming, piano and drawing. However, they join these courses mostly for the sake of enriching their portfolio or resume rather than their interest. They believe that learning some special skills gives them advantages to outdo others. This is quite different from other places like Japan. In Japan, the students join extra-curricular courses mainly for their interest. Unlike their counterparts in Hong Kong, they mostly focus on one activity and are taught or guided by parents. Hence, they are more likely to enjoy the activity to the full. As extra-curricular activities are an essential component of a balanced development of students, it is necessary for the government to reform school curricula, adjust the number of lessons, improves facilities so as to cultivate students‘ interest apart from learning for examination.

In conclusion, as public exam is considered to be the only and the fairest way to screen students for university education in Hong Kong, it is difficult to undermine the influence of the public exam. Extra-curricular activities and diverse assessments are also very important to balance the learning of students. It is recommended that the amount of homework can be reduced to release the burden of students. As parents play a key role in Hong Kong students‘ learning, it is believed that the government can put more effort to educate parents so as

33 to change the mindset that homework is not the only way to make their students get higher marks in their study, there are still many methods to prepare students for their learning.

―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Global Education - The Future One

BY CRYSTAL CHAN, EDWARD CHAN AND JACKY LAW Po Leung Kuk No.1 W.H. Cheung College Hong Kong While you are sitting nicely and reading this sentence, I, behind the words, am begging you to stop for a few minutes. Take a deep breathe, close your eyes gently, and imagine the future education system. Your children are rushing to school joyfully, carrying lots of creative homework including a gigantic 3D map and some lovely drawn pictures.

Suddenly, you see a thin and fragile old man fall down in front of you.

Without any hesitations, your children run forward and help him to stand up. Isn‘t this view gorgeous? In fact, you and your children are tasting the sweet and juicy fruit from global education.

Global education has recently become a prominent trend in the education sector. To the general public, this extraordinary term may seem to be peculiar, leaving a first impression of ‗allowing children from developing countries to obtain education‘ or ‗dispensing employment opportunities through advanced education‘.

However, these assumptions do not really match the meaning of global education.

To clarify, there are a lot of definitions for this uprising term. According to glen-europe.org, a teacher resources website which advocates global education, it is a ‗creative approach of bringing about change in our society‘. Universal values such as tolerance, equality, inclusion, solidarity, justice, co-operation, nonviolence are included. Apart from the universal values mentioned above, it also contains topics including global justice, human rights, sustainability and intercultural communication.

Global education, as a fashionable form of education, has been encouraged to be embraced into the current education curriculum. We get ninetynine problems in the education sys-

tem, but promoting this fresh kind of education is not one. Now, ready to take a journey to investigate the advantages of global education.

First of all, global education is sustainable. Sustainable development, regarding to the statement the United Nations had issued in 1987, refers to the type of development which would not affect needs from the current society and would not require the future generation to compromise. Nowadays, many countries have been carrying out political reform to build a democratic community. Human rights foundations have long been fighting for basic human rights namely freedom of speech and right to own a safe accommodation. The society has also focused on the importance of equality among races, genders, ages, social statuses, etc.

With global education emphasizing on justice, human rights and also sustainability, this variety of education can meet with the development of modern civilization. Men are improving alongside with years. It is therefore crucial to incorporate global education into the existing curriculum as to update with sustainable development.

In addition, global education is innovative. In the current education system, traditional methodologies may not be appealing enough to capture the attention of students, since they are asked to sit down properly and listen to the teacher for the whole day. These accustomed means would be old-fashioned in the following years due to rapid advancement of technologies. A full update on the input of scholarship seems to be inevitable and essential. The Global Teacher Project from the United Kingdom has stated that global education ‗combines active and experiential discussion based activities, a

caring, co-operative and open outlook on the classroom experience‘.

Without any doubts, this category of education encourages creativity, consoling teachers to use other interesting methods to enlighten students and permitting students to think out of the traditional box. With such environment, the traditional learning methodology could be updated to an appealing way. The interest of students in studies could be raised, enhancing the learning efficiency. As a result, global education should be promoted worldwide due to its stress on creativity and innovativeness.

Moreover, global education is inspiring. Aside from academic teaching, global education also focuses on moral development. The current education is biased to academic performances rather than moral development. For instance, in Hong Kong, to applicate for primary and secondary schools, academic performance is the first priority for consideration, instead of moral performance. Among a week of regular lessons, merely one out of forty lessons is consumed for moral initiation, which is seriously meagre. On the other hand, global education is able to achieve a balance between academic performances and moral development. Global education dwells on interdependence among people. Respect on others, such as the underprivileged, the disabled and the elderly could be developed. In addition, global education boosts cultural diversity as it is promoted worldwide. All whites, yellows, browns and blacks could gather together and learn from the cultures of each other, acting as the oil for the lamp of globalization. It is thus encouraged to incorporate this genre of education to the present curriculum.

In conclusion, in order to construct a healthy and sustainable learning environment, global education is

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

crucial to comprise this sort of education in the curriculum. If you wish your children could rule a kind and innovative kingdom, please don‘t be reluctant to show your generous support to global education, the future one.

Creativity is unlimited, nearly infinitive, in all people‘s mind.

One of the topics in global education is about cultural diversity.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Global Education

BY LIU HIU YEE Po Leung Kuk No.1 W.H. Cheung College Hong Kong While you are enjoying 12-year free education in Hong Kong, do you know that there are many people who are not educated in the world?

Under globalization, education has become more and more important for students to develop a global vision. Education also determines one's future and therefore, it is said to be a key to success. For the poor, it is also the one and only way to lift themselves out of poverty.

However, despite the importance of education, there are still some countries where education is not free or provided to everyone. In some countries, education may be an extravagant thing, given the lack of well-developed schooling resources. In Aldeia Vemasse Tasi, Baucau District, there are not enough schools for students to acquire knowledge. Until 2009, students faced different logistical problems to continue with their studies. Not being educated, students preferred to go back to their villages and become farmers instead. Can you expect a brighter future for people who cannot enjoy education? Comparing their plight with our fully accessible education opportunities, we can easily tell which one is more comfortable and of higher quality. This is the difference between people with education and those without.

Today, the phrase 'global education' is always emphasized. What is global education? Some may think that global education is the kind of education we are receiving in Hong Kong as Hong Kong is an international city. However, under the exam-oriented education system, what Hong Kong students usually learn is just the exam skills and thousands of words. It is not the essence of global education. Global education emphasizes the importance of interdependence of society, the understanding of cultural diversity, criti-

cal thinking and the affirmation of social justice and human rights. It also helps students develop positive values. 'Global education' is different from just 'education' and it brings huge benefits to the world and her global citizens.

With the advancement of technology, people are now becoming more materialistic. They only focus on their desires but neglect the importance of conserving the environment. Nature is the most beautiful and precious thing in the world and it is important for the survival of human being. However, for our own, we have done so many things to pollute nature. Our wasteful lifestyle is the best example. Some unscrupulous merchants may even ignore the human rights of the disadvantaged for profit maximization.

Also, there are often wars and conflicts triggered by the competition for resources, such as the Persian Gulf War in 1991. With all the wars and conflicts, will our world have any chances of becoming peaceful one day? Also, the environment is one of the essential perspectives of sustainable development. The environment being polluted, will our world be sustainable? Or will our world become one without justice in the hands of the greedy people?

As we can see, the world is now facing different kinds of problems.

With global education, people can take the responsibilities as global citizens. They can better understand what is happening in our world every day and their awareness of global issues can be raised. Their concerns about social justice and human rights can also be raised. As a result, people will no longer emphasize only their own interests, but also the interests of others, as well as the whole world's. When people can become less selfish, our world can be more peaceful and sustaina-

ble, and then, we can have a brighter future.

Apart from arousing and cultivating people's awareness of being a global citizen, global education also opens our eyes and minds. Also, it helps impart the knowledge of technology, medicine, or other aspects. This can change the way people communicate, travel and live due to the advancements of various aspects. In other words, the lives of people can become more convenient. Besides, people can share their culture, values, and language with each other so they can have a better understanding of different cultures in the world. It is obvious that global education can broaden students' horizons and enable them to understand better the world.

Furthermore, when we talk about learning and education, the focus is usually shifted from acquiring knowledge to acquiring skills. Under globalization, we need different skills for survival, such as critical skills, communication skills, problem-solving skills and other life skills, instead of the ability to memorize words or mathematical formulae. This is exactly what global education offers students.

With different essential life skills, we can easily adapt to the new working environment in the future and we can cope with adversities more easily.

The importance of global education cannot be neglected. Being educated in a place where global education is available, you should be glad and cherish the opportunity to learn.

At the same time, we should learn more, act more and share more so as to help other people who are in need or to respond to different issues. Taking action is one of the most important principles of global education.

Let's apply our knowledge and skills to strive for a better future!

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Education To Liberate

BY HANA VAID Podar International School India Freckled skin, pursed lips and wisdom folded between the crinkles at the corner of her eyes; my grand aunt murmured the only words I would remember her with, once she had passed away, ‗Education is liberation. Liberate yourself.‘ Unbeknownst to me, until recent times, my grandaunt was the first woman in her village to be educated.

Initially, my great grandfather‘s decision to ensure that she was literate was met with heavy criticism; but he egged her on, refusing to be shaken from his stance. Due to her education, she was given the opportunity to leave her village; to live life as an independent woman during a time when the two words were nothing but antonyms in the dictionaries of most Indian households. Thus, it would be normal to assume that she was referring to the mainstream notion of education: the slow process of bleeding information into the minds of the young from the second they push open kindergarten doors, to when they bid farewell to years of certainty with the toss of their graduation caps.

But what if she wasn‘t?

To most, the definition of education is limited within the confines of the four walls of an educational facility; to the spaces between the front page and the last page of a textbook; to the notion that it‘s the one way ticket to a secured career and therefore, a successful future. However, by doing so, most fail to acknowledge that in its most primary level, it is an institutionalized method of cultivating only the most basic human instinct to learn; to absorb all that exists in the ever changing world around us. Further on, education aids us in integrating into global society. It teaches us how very alike we all are to each other even, with borders or oceans spanning between us, and that we

must learn to appreciate the cultures unfamiliar to us. Without this kind of acceptance, beneficial practices such as Yoga, or even medical remedies, may not have spread around the world and elevated the mental as well as physical health of an innumerable number of people; bereft of it, we wouldn‘t be able to empathize with the plight of other people, or even other creatures, suffering in places that exist outside of our field of vision. Education stretches our gaze to a global scale. It is one of the most effective as well as undiscriminating method of uplifting those who exist in the less favorable strata of society.

Education informs the unaware about situations that they may be facing and how they potentially could spar against them, or ensure that they do not witness it once more. It spreads awareness in a manner akin to the way in which a fire spreads its flames. Thus, it is vital in imparting justice to those who do not receive it, and emancipating those who are oppressed. Additionally, it may also expose an issue that was originally thought to be insurmountable, but in fact, has a solution to it.

Educations can also awaken passions or talents within a person, who was previously oblivious to them.

Devoid of it, some of the greatest figures of human history would not have existed, or founded the most potent moments in our species‘ timeline; to quote Nelson Mandela, ―Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.‘‘ Learning begins the second we are born and is a continuous, endless process that functions throughout our lives, while education sculpts our ability to empathize and coexist with other members of society.

As an educated woman creating a life for herself in a patriarchal society, my grandaunt knew that the benefits of education did not simply pertain to securing a stable career. Education taught her how she is much more than just a wife, a daughter and a sister, and that her gender did not incarcerate her or her opportunities.

Her belief in education transcended generations until it fell into my grasps and taught me to peel open my eyes a little wider, break the barricades that sheltered my mind and remember that the highest degree of freedom that can be attained is that of the mind, which can only be obtained through education; for education is the greatest form of freedom there is.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

WHY 0UR 3DUC471ON 3FFORT5 4R3 F4111NG

BY ABTIN VATUN DOUST Queensland Academy For Science, Mathematics and Technology Australia Were you able to read that title? If so congratulations you are privileged, although it is uncommon to be commended upon, as the capability of reading is taken for granted. Here is food for thought, what if every single sentence, every letter, every email, every text message, was bereft of meaning. As of 2012, 31 million primary-school pupils worldwide dropped out of school. UNESCO estimated in a recent concept note, that at least 250 million children are not able to read, write or count even those who have spent at least four years in school. This fact should send the governments and educators of the world into immediate action for it seems a deplorable statistic even in this jaded world of depressing facts.

Yet as you are reading this only two percent of humanitarian aid goes to education.

If education is the act or process of imparting or acquiring general knowledge whilst developing the powers of reasoning and judgment – then why are substandard decisions being constantly made by governments around the world? Many, if not most, developed countries have a structured education system which is reliant on a specifically tailored curriculum. If the purpose of an educational process is to develop internationally minded people, then in which world is it acceptable for the National Science Foundation to shell out 856,000 tax dollars on training three mountain lions to run on a treadmill, whilst children rich in potential, but poor in wealth are abandoned in the bleak reality of life without education?

It‘s a conundrum that education is one of the essential factors needed for development, therefore requiring

substantial investment in human capital. In recent figures provided by the Centre on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), the United States spends a staggering 18% of its budget towards defence and international security assistance; however, a maximum 2% of the federal budget is spent on education. A poll conducted

by USA Today/Gallup in 2011 indicated that 6 in 10 Americans opposed cuts to education, whilst smaller majorities objected to cutting national defence. As stated by UNESCO‘s International Literacy Data 2014, Central Asia and Central/Eastern Europe have the highest youth and adult literacy rates in the world. This is in direct correlation with the economic performance and Gross Domestic Product (GDP). For instance Germany‘s education system has outperformed countries such as Australia and the United States. Niger has one of the lowest literacy rates and education levels in the world, rendering its communities bleak and infused with poverty. Niger faces challenges ranging from poverty to poor infrastructure preventing access to schools, which provides an explanation for its degrading state; however, developed countries such as Australia are not excused for an underperforming education system.

These astounding statistics uphold the idea that many wealthy nations are falling behind on a necessity of economic growth. Australia is grasping hold of the concept the ―lucky country‖, consequently their spending on education is less than laudable with sub-standard literacy rates. In many countries it is a struggle to provide sufficient education for youth. It is a responsibility for wealthy nations to set the standard for ethical conduct regarding education. If there is to be

a global eradication of illiteracy, governments need to place mechanism which effectively encourage democratic participation in the constant evolving educational systems.

As citizens we have observed that governments are very adept at funding projects that are fostered with vacuous intent and limit value to our lives and those of the world. This complication can no longer be ignored as it can have devastating consequences, for instance in 2014 students in the Mexican city of Oaxaca rioted, demanding better schools and education services. Governments of illiterate countries are swift to ignore the negative repercussions arising from inadequate funding towards education, also lacking the awareness of the pressure that education places on economic performance.

An underlying solution is present to each global complication, the unity of people is the basis of which all problems are solved. In 2010 an event chaired by the executive heads of UNESCO and UNICEF, highlighted many success stories surrounding educational development.

Innovative strategies mentioned include targeted efforts to train and deploy female teachers in rural areas in Egypt. Notable individuals such as Pakistani activist for female education and the youngest-ever Nobel Prize Malala Yousafzai have significantly impacted the perception of education. People around the globe are fighting in the front lines of education, in an attempt to usher a change to eradicate the infectious disease which is illiteracy.

“Let us remember: One book, one pen, one child, and one teacher can change the world.” – Malala Yousafzai

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Eighty Years Of Failure

BY SARTHAK MANI SHARMA Rato Bangala School Nepal A busy street in Kathmandu usually reverberates with the shrieks of children. But it is not frolicking schoolboys who let out these squeals; it is bus conductors. Eight-year-old Raju Tamang is among several children in Nepal‘s capital who bring in passengers by yelling out the route their buses will take. He squishes himself in an overcrowded bus and occasionally peeks out of the window for a whiff of fresh air. Braving abusive travellers and working for 12 hours every day is part of his job. ―They even beat me up sometimes,‖ he says. ―I really wish I were in school.‖ For almost 80 years, the UN has sponsored one declaration after another promising universal primary education. But, like Tamang, 58 million children still do not attend primary school. The optimists among us may like to think that there are other significant areas of success. Unfortunately, there are not. Gender parity in enrollment for example, which is another of the Millennium Development Goals, hasn‘t been achieved either. Why do we continuously fail to meet these basic objectives, pushing each successive generation further into the mire of poverty and difficulty?

A severe lack of funding may explain why so many children are at homes, in brick kilns, in coal mines, in the militias or in the fields rather than at school. By one measure, we don‘t even have a fifth of the aid money we need to achieve universal lowersecondary education. Governments in developing countries often spend large amounts of their budgets on .

grandiose projects but only a smidgen on education.

This is puzzling. Surely any country that wishes for growth and development – and all do – realize the huge importance of education? The lack of funding has led to poor infrastructure in schools. In some developing countries, girls prefer staying at home because rural schools don‘t even have toilets for them.

The problem is not only one of infrastructure but also of teachers. Some countries desperately lack teachers, but in schools that supposedly have them, they are absent. So egregious is the situation that teachers in northern Nepal stopped teaching a few weeks ago, busy as they were in selling herbs across the border in China.

There are two things to realize here.

One, these problems also extend to the quality of education. Poorly trained, if at all, only a fifth of teachers in Uganda have rudimentary skills in math and language. Many schools still stick to traditional, didactic ways that hardly go beyond textbooks, snubbing the curious, experience-seeking minds of the children they attend to.

Two, these problems aren‘t limited to less-developed countries. If standardized test results are anything to go by, even some students in Brazil, Indonesia and the United States fail to meet basic levels of proficiency in language and numeracy.

There is hope, however. Even small improvements will lead to noticeable changes. We should begin by chang-

ing the way we think about universal education. Many states have begun to dole out subsidies to parents who send their children to schools. As a result, student numbers have improved but not the capacities of schools to deal with them. We should focus on achieving both universal education and quality education – simultaneously.

For that, of course, the funding must increase, not just from wealthy philanthropists but also from governments, which don‘t transcend short-term populism to think about the powerful long-term results of educational investment.

For long, education has traditionally been the state‘s domain, but the private sector should also be involved.

Private schools often give better results than public ones for a cost much less. This is truer than anywhere else in Nigeria, which has almost 18,000 private schools that cost a dollar a day. These avoid public-school scams, which include paying for nonexistent teachers.

Governments must also make sure that the most marginalized are not left behind. For even schools which have high enrollment rates, students that do not attend are typically less well-off or sidelined in some way.

An affirmative action of sorts must therefore be ensured.

Above all, we must truly believe in the power of education to change people‘s lives. Raju Tamang knows that his own life will change once he leaves his bus to be where he really wants to be: at school.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Sugar Rather Than Coffee

BY QIAN LIN SSES Shanghai Shangde Experimental School China When Tim Berners Lee pressed the last button on the computer‘s keyboard and accomplished the construction of WorldWideWeb (WWW) in 1989, he could never imagine of its infinite possibilities offered to education. Never ever was there a moment like now that people all around the globe sit in one ―classroom‖, breaking the limit of geographic distance and breathing the same air brought by shared knowledge and higher education. It is MOOCs (Massive online OPEN courses) that ignite human beings‘ passions of study and realize the dream of global knowledge network.

There has been a slightly long history on the idea of MOOCs, but it was the platforms such as Udacity, edX and Coursera that turned it into reality and even made it be on upswing.

German scholar Prof. Dr. Andreas Kraeme‘s study shows by 2015, 45% 1 of the American population already has experience with e-learning. And most of the online courses are real class recordings from top universities world-wide such as Harvard University, MIT and so forth. It is, thus, not surprising that an increasing number of reports and forums take place, discussing the probability of having traditional education be overturned.

But the revolution could be murdered in the cradle. Though it minimizes the distance between people and knowledge, not only criticism from economists and educators, but also its inherent flaws make it impossible to perfectly substitute the traditional education.

It does give one equal rights to watch Harvard professors‘ lectures as those who have opportunities to enter the real classroom, which are rare. But it cannot replicate other mechanisms behind the gate of the real Harvard: club activities, communication and social relationship among classmates and, most importantly, cultivation of characters, that is, seriousness and perseverance towards academic work. Indeed, A comprehensive investigation to Chinese users carried

out by the largest Chinese MOOCs platform ―Guokr‖ indicates over 60% 2 of online learners in China did not even complete the curricula. They took it simply more for fun than for credit. No endurance of pressure from graduation and sense of difficulty is incorporated in online courses. Even though one has completed, so reluctant can a society acknowledge the values he obtained from the courses. After all, a bachelor degree in Harvard is far more persuasive than a completion of those courses. And let alone the increased number of fake websites in some developing countries which deceive people by offering fake diploma that potentially impede learner‘s benefits.

Yet, these cannot disapprove its other values. Such a convenient tool of study have just twist fates of thousands of the poor who lack of access to proper educational resources over the globe. After determining the new economic strategy ―Internet plus‖, China is now seeing an optimistic picture of domestic education equity.

Teaching training videos, textbooks‘ information are more evenly distributed in a larger scope of areas within this emerging economy by MOOCs and other websites. Of course, the government does not ignore the significance of keeping the hardware‘s improvement with the same pace as updating of courses. Large quantity of subsidies are funded to relatively remote western areas to construct internet service. All these efforts resort to MOOCs to mitigate education inequity.

Actually in this regard, China is not alone. U.S, though considered as possessing superiority of higher education, is facing a more severe situation than its pacific neighbors. Critiques are growing in recent year, highlighting the attention the federal government ought to pay on education inequity. So called ―the preserve of elites‖ higher education system mostly only reaches out its hands to those whose parents are with higher educational background rather than those who are not. Climbing tuitions

are making higher education so unavailable to middle class‘s descendants. The education gap between the rich and the poor alarms there must be some changes taken. While, pressured by rising number of international applicants who are eager to take a position in universities of America, those elite education resources have been in a great shortage to meet domestic needs. The uprising of MOOCs just enlightened a new low-cost path of study, compensating the gap to some extent — though not so sufficient and effective.

Even the global education is reshaped

by MOOCs in a positive way. Developing countries with less mature educational system now get more chances to reference more mature one, narrowing down the education strength discrepancy between developed countries and themselves and thus, boosting the entire society‘s great leap. And what it brings to each local society is a more flourished labor market. Countless staff are able to be open-minded and enrich their own life, updating their knowledge which could be as far apart as heaven and death as what they have just studied in the universities 5 years ago. Intake of refreshing knowledge boosts refresher ideas in the workplace. The further effects are immeasurably marvelous.

Quite alike a Starbucks coffee shop where various cups of coffee are waiting for customers‘ selection, education resources provided by institutions throughout the planet, including different baccalaureate programs, universities, academies, resemble those coffee. Whereas MOOCs can at most be treated as sugar, it customizes our needs, adjusting different cups of coffee‘s sweetness and supplementing the tastes, benefiting more people. But it could never replace those cups of coffee as, after all, a qualified education system offers an extent of bitter taste — an challenging and difficult academic environment which MOOCs cannot — to have customers clear-headed.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

This Is The Way We Could Be

BY CHRISTHALIA WILOTO Sinarmas World Academy Indonesia Scattered across the late afternoon traffic are children, some of them a little older than ten, others barely six; dusty palms towards tinted glass, eyes pleading. This is a sight not uncommon along the streets of developed cities within underdeveloped nations. Nonetheless, regardless of where these children may be throughout the day, what is certain is that they are not in school, receiving the education that they desperately need for a chance to break away from the poverty that they were born into.

Instead, they are out across the city, hoping to be able to bring something home for their families, living day to day as a result of the poverty. It is no revelation that sometimes, life gets in the way of proper education.

While this may justify the vastly occurring lack of sufficient education amongst underprivileged students across Southeast Asia, this in no way absolves the issue at hand. Without proper education, the chances of breaking away from poverty for these children are bleak, continuing the cycle of poverty to no end. When faced with conundrums such as these, where there seems to be no right answer, perhaps we need our focus towards global education to be bigger than the building or the classroom of the school itself.

One way to engage children in the custom of learning is through reading. It may not be easy to get students to attend classes, and even then, not any easier to engage them in the material being taught, but books may be a way to challenge this occurrence.

These books would be filled with stories that not only effectively reach and entertain young students, but inspire, and ultimately, educate them in spite of all else. When the practice is introduced to children at a young age, students will be more eager to pick up reading as a habit, which will eventually, evolve as a self motiva-

tion to keep reading, and therefore, learning.

Unfortunately, the idea of education through literature is far easier said than done. In the first place, without having been taught how to read and write, it would be difficult to introduce books to these underprivileged students. Furthermore, even if a student‘s literacy is sufficient to pick up the basic messages of a picture book, their families may not have the financial means to pursue this lifestyle, as books are not widely accessible.

For that reason, perhaps this is where we should start in the pursuit of global education.

Essentially, the world needs to firstly address the lack of widespread literacy, as education will prove to be complicated without it. Assuming that the world will eventually get to a stage where widespread literacy becomes a reality, educators should then also extend focus towards making books accessible to everyone.

That being said, making books widely accessible for everyone, primarily for those who are underprivileged, will be a challenge on its own. Nonetheless, pursued at small manageable scales, this idea can still be effective.

The idea of community service has been growing widespread across the world. Today, there are mobile library programs that bring access to books for communities that were previously unable to have easy access to books, whether due to financial reasons or due to unfamiliarity to the reading culture. There are small-scale local libraries being built in rural areas year-round, achieved by groups of people coming together, contributing in various ways, whether it be organizing book drives or extending physical labor. There are also people willing to contribute their time to visit these students and interact with them, whether by teaching them a

language or how to read and write, or through interactive, yet educational, programs such reading buddies. These are only to name a few of the different services people have engaged in to contribute towards widespread literacy. Collectively, these small scale movements contribute to a far larger reformation in the culture of education.

Coincidentally, this is exactly the kind of thinking that is highly promoted by many international education systems. With an understanding of the world around us, and a comprehension of the needs of the surrounding communities, many international schools embrace student engagement in service. Although combating the lack of widespread literacy may not be something that students have the capacity to pursue themselves, there are other ways in which students can contribute towards this cause. In fact, many of the aforementioned service activities are student led and student run across the world, which goes to show how with a little more direction and support, it is possible to reform the culture of education in order to achieve global education.

In whatever capacity it is that students are able to contribute to their community, whether it be that they have an entrepreneurial mind and contributes through financial plans, or perhaps a passionate heart for engaging directly with the local underprivileged children, they will be able to initiate the first steps toward a change in their own local communities, which all goes towards raising a widespread appreciation for reading, and therefore learning, globally. After all, what better way to embrace global education than to have students share their knowledge, understanding and passions with other students?

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Are We Taking Education For Granted

BY CLAUDIA HAYMAN St. Luke‘s Grammar School Australia The last week of term three and frequently sentences like "I can't wait for the holidays to come" and "I'm so over school" are being thrown around. To quite a few kids of the western world, education is seen as something we have to do, therefore it must be boring and mundane. Too often I also get caught up in this, complaining about school. But what we are blinded to, is the great opportunity it provides us with.

My view changed after reading I am Malala. Her passion for education is inspirational and she opened my eyes to the importance of it. The length she goes to to promote education, specifically for girls, makes me ashamed of how I formerly treated this gift. She said, "In some parts of the world, students are going to school every day. It's part of their normal life.

But in other parts of the world, we are starving for eduction... It's like a precious gift. It's like a diamond."

I go to school everyday without the thought ever crossing my mind that I would ever be deprived of it.

I take it for granted. And I know many like me do as well. School is part of everyday life, we just do it.

But for many this is not the case.

Only 55% of boy and 51% of girls around the world attend secondary school (UNICEF 2008-2011). These shocking statistics are due to factors such as the children are needed to support their families, the families do not have the money for education, or like Malala are in danger if they go to school or if the country is in war so children cannot access education.

Some answers to these problems include more stable governments, as this will prevent war and economic crisis in the country meaning the families will be more financially stable so the children don't have to work and can go to school.

A more stable government will also build schools and qualify teachers to educate the children. Access to free education is necessary especially in LEDC's where the families have a higher birth rate and less money so cannot afford to educate their kids. A free education means they will have that opportunity without worrying about the cost.

Time effective schooling is another key way. If children go to school for a couple hours a day, they have time to work and support their families. Some children are the main breadwinners of their families so if they work they don't have time for schooling. More awareness on the importance of education will increase school enrolment. Parents would be more willing to send their children to school if they have the knowledge that this will bring them out of poverty.

Changing certain societies' views on girls and education is important also in increasing education. Girls should have the same right to boys to go to school but unfortunately that's not the case, with boys having a higher school attendance rate than girls, particularly in LEDCs. Women's role in many cultures is lesser than the men, so girls are often less likely to be sent to school then boys. Empowerment of girls and encouraging their education and place in society will increase the levels of education for girls as

well as improve their chance of survival particularly if in extreme poverty. These solutions can be achieved if people around the world join together under the cause of giving access to education for all.

It's a basic child right to be educated and this is being deprived of a large number of children around the world. Imagine if all the world was educated. Our world would be flourishing and so many problems would be solved. Governments would be diverse and stable, people would be more globally aware and have so many more opportunities. Technology would flourish, people would have the capacity to solve the problems around them and environmental problems would decrease if people knew impacts they have on the environment. Crime would decrease because people would have better paying jobs and the global economy would be flourishing. Kids could be kids and not have to grow up to support their family. Poverty would dramatically reduced because education is the answer to breaking the cycle of poverty.

What would the result be? A better world for everyone.

Education is something that should not be taken for granted and should be enjoyed and used to its full capacity. Education for the entire world is still to come but for those of us lucky enough to have it need to use it to the best of our abilities, so that we help give the gift of education to all.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Global Education In Action

BY LUISA WAN St. Mary‘s Canossian College Hong Kong When people speak of providing aid to third-world countries, the proverb springs to mind, ―Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.‖ Education is internationally recognised as a way for social advancement, and in the case of developing countries, a means to break free from poverty.

cotton price, giving the US cotton farmers an unfair upper hand over those in Brazil. The US and the European Union are reported to have abused loopholes to continue dumping manufactured products on developing markets, distorting the natural trade habitat. All of the above actions do not seem to be in accord with the ideals they preach.

In recent years, education around the world has placed significant emphasis on promoting global citizenship, encouraging students to question topics such as poverty, human rights, and sustainability. One of the main issues that is explored is improving the condition of less developed countries (LDCs) and how to help their people break the intergenerational cycle of poverty.

Another interpretation of the phrase ―global education‖ is promoting education worldwide, providing children everywhere an opportunity to learn.

For LDCs that are already struggling to solve financial, medical, or political problems, to name a few, how are they supposed to juggle with so many pressing matters at hand and provide education without external assistance? Unfortunately, the Global Partnership for Education has found out that global donor support to education is decreasing at a startling rate, decreasing by 16% between 2009 and 2012. This seriously affects LDCs‘ ability to get children into school.

More alarmingly so, a survey in 2010 showed that while more children had access to basic education, the aid was unsuccessful in improving its quality nor was it most effectively spent. Part of the problem stems from the fact that most donors‘ major concern is whether their programmes are completed as planned, and that their success is easily demonstrated. Effective education is a long-term process, and its result cannot be simply measured by success rates or be detected in a matter of months. Great haste makes great waste.

Though wellintentioned, project aid‘s contribution to the well-being of LDCs‘ children‘s education is ultimately fragmented in the long run.

However, while schools are advocating global education, urging students to acquire a global outlook and to nurture empathy for the less privileged others, are our leaders setting a good example for the young hopefuls to follow? In 2013, the Obama administrations‘ trade agenda called for the implementation of the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) on developing countries, which they were exempted from before. So far, LDCs have been relying on the production of generic drugs to protect the public‘s health.

The passing of the agenda undoubtedly would be giving LDCs a much harder time in acquiring the medicine they so direly need. On the other hand, while free trade has given LDCs the opportunity to export their goods and generate more income, there are signs of some LDCs being exploited and taken advantage of. In 2003, the US cotton program funded farmers to push down its exporting

If the world truly believes in equality, then genuine and sustainable education is what we need. Leaders cannot arouse people‘s empathy for the LDCs while acting otherwise themselves. Meanwhile, aid-providers cannot hand out assistance while neglecting the true benefit of the receivers. At the heart of global education lies the values of solidarity, justice, and empathy. Similarly, any actions taken to tackle poverty should be based upon said values. Selfishness on the more developed countries‘ part will only bring forth a vicious cycle. While on the surface assistance is given to third-world countries, it is in fact rendering them reliant and addicted to foreign aid, leading to a loss of motivation to be independent and strong. Quality education is key to allowing these countries to break free from their dependent and stagnant state. The process of global education begins with raising the awareness of global issues and ends with people becoming responsible global citizens who genuinely acts for the well-being of the seven billion others. Now that technology has allowed us to be conveniently alerted by world issues, it is time to bring about real and effective changes to the world‘s wealth disparity problems.

Global education can create people who bring sustainable change and in turn change people‘s behaviour in the long term.

Quoting Malala Yousafzai, the winner of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize, ―One child, one teacher, one pen and one book can change the world.‖ If global education is done right, with a good teacher, a usable pen, a meaningful book, perhaps one day, all men can be fishermen without being given any fish.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Global Education

BY KENAZ LAI St. Paul‘s Co-Educational College Hong Kong ―Tensions rise as white St. Louis police officer shoots black man dead‖ ―Horrors of Eritrea Met With a Shrug‖ ―Migrants found dead in truck in Austria as leaders meet about refugee influx‖ ―Two British men arrested in Magaluf on suspicion of rape‖ We live in a world of abundance; yet every day, we are bombarded by headlines that define the worst of human nature. Why are these tragedies, some domestic while others transcend borders, still occurring in the 21st century? Despite the remarkable human advancements in science, technology, and medicine, we are still surrounded by poverty and inequalities.

Unfortunately, many of us remain keenly unaware of or choose to ignore the unfair distribution of resources, the rapid deterioration of our environment, violent conflicts and bloodcurdling sickening? violation of human rights – sources of inequality and injustice – that are haunting our world. Worse, the notions of stereotyping, protectionism and self-preservation are so ingrained in us and so permeate the world today that kindness and compassion are hard to come by. Do we want the next generation to follow suit? How can we change this?

The answer is: Global Education.

According to Global Education Network of Young Europeans (―GLEN‖), global education is a creative approach to bringing about change in our society. It is an active learning process based on the universal values of tolerance, solidarity, equality, justice, inclusion, cooperation and non-violence, and addresses topics such as global justice,

human rights, sustainability, peace, and intercultural communication.

Global education involves learning to understand and appreciate our neighbours who have cultural backgrounds and identities different from ours and to realize that other people of the world need and want much the same things.

By opening our ―eyes and minds to the realities of the globalized world‖, as stated in the Maastricht Global Education Declaration (2002), global education will eventually help stem the tide of unfair incidents such as discriminatory and inequitable treatment based on ethnic and religious backgrounds. It highly emphasizes critical thinking and communication, which, in turn, will encourage students to think about their own culture, reflect on their roles in the world, and learn from people of different nationalities. The goal is to bring back love, compassion, tolerance and reasoning among humans as active, responsible global citizens.

There are four different types of learning in Global Education— student centred, inquiry based, experimental, and cooperative learning.

They help students build self-esteem and develop their analytical skills.

Global Education is not a subject; rather it is a dimension, a process of learning. Global education is understood to encompass Development Education, Human Rights Education, Education for Sustainability, Education for Peace and Conflict Prevention and Intercultural Education; being the global dimension of Education for Citizenship. The involvement of the whole school - cooperation between students and teachers – will be necessary for the successful development of global education.

Some people ponder if Global Education is really needed, if we really

need to introduce a new way of teaching into our schools. Ponder further. Our curriculum has always been so academically focused that the system has bred many ‗A‘ grade students who do not necessarily have the opportunity to explore important themes such as change, poverty and wealth, interdependence, diversity of culture, identity, and justice. Well, think of all the people living under injustice and in the shadow of stereotypes around the world. A lack of Global Education has contributed to horrifying incidents throughout history - segregation in the US, apartheid in South Africa, raping of women in India, exploitation of workers in poverty-stricken nations, rampant human trafficking across the world, homophobia and persecution of LGBTs, to name a few - and the current Syrian refugee crisis, that have shamed humanity. Sadly, only a handful of people, such as the Greensboro Four, Martin Luther King Junior, Nelson Mandela, Liu Xiaobo, Malala Yousafzai, have dared to stand up to the injustices and to effect change.

Imagine a world full of these ‗global citizens‘ who care about humanity; the results of their efforts together would be exponential! Some others may still argue that Global Education is too costly, but it is a small price to pay if we want to build the foundation of a more ―human‖ world for our children, and our children‘s children.

In our world dominated by social media where a million different ideas surface every few seconds, in our cyber community where trolling and bullying thrive, it is easy for us to lose sight of our core values, to confuse right from wrong, to believe in stereotypes, to commit hate crimes.

We need Global Education to guide us back on the right path. Global education will open the eyes of the more privileged in the developed world to the needs and rights of those

45 who are less fortunate or simply different. Global education will also assure those living in poverty or oppression in the developing world that they are humans like everyone else and empower them with knowledge to defend themselves. Therefore, Global Education should be promoted as a smarter, more comprehensive form of education in schools today.

In conclusion, global education is a goal that is worth pursuing. It can help reduce stereotypes and injustices in the world. Global education inspires, motivates and empowers people to become caring, concerned and responsible global citizens. According to Jimmy Carter, former President of the United States, no poor, rural, weak, or black person should have to bear the additional burden of being deprived of simple justice. Activist Malala Yousafzai also once said, there should be no discrimination against languages people speak, skin colour, or religion. The goals are clear and unanimous. Global Education is the first step in tackling poverty, violence and injustice, so we should all work together to make our world a better place, a place of peace, respect and equity for all.

―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Education: Not For Sale

BY CHOW HIN HANG, TAN KWONG MAU AND CHOI TSZ

LOK St. Stephen‘s College Hong Kong From the mountainous villages of rural Pakistan to the modern universities of California, then to the chambers of the United Nations, there is a resounding echo: education is a human right.

Today, global education includes the perspectives of pursuing better education which allows the convergence of students worldwide to pursue knowledge, to prepare for a better motherland, to fulfill the dream of a more constructive global village. Yet nations where such promising standards once ensured are facing bleak situations. The increasing pace of privatization, decreasing fiscal spending in education and declining standards of global education system have paved way for the corporate takeover of public education by replacing the current curriculum through a series of reforms. In The Shock Doctrine, Canadian author Naomi Klein has written extensively on how a crisis had initiated the transformation of public schools into charter schools. The main perspective of American charter schools are said to provide an alternative model of education for students while providing an enhanced education quality with costeffectiveness compared to public schools.

Despite personal endorsements from economist Milton Friedman i , charter schools fail to aggrandize nor improve the quality of education. A study conducted by the American Center for Research on Education Outcomes stated that ―high-performing charter schools are in the minority‖.ii Furthermore, the temporary improvement exhibited by charter schools are suggested to be linked with the elimination of schools which poorly-performed,

and to discourage the attendance of ill-performing students. iii All these have contributed to the whitewashed façade of the surface success of charter schools.

The for-profit incentive of privatization has led to the distortion of the core pillars of education. The mass corporatization of schools has limited students‘ perspectives and understanding, discouraged free and independent thought, and trained them for obedience, in the words of renowned educator Noam Chomsky.iv The failing in grades of students is dreary, as long-serving teachers are being laid-off or paid less, while those who lack the experience are recruited so as to minimize the cost and maximize the returning profits. In austeritydriven Britain, students are the direct victims of the reduction of education expenditure and subsidies from the Conservative-led government. Public schools and sixthform colleges simply cannot afford recruiting teachers for subjects such as music, law, design and technology. v This reduces the curriculum choice available to students. The outcome of the consequential cuts in educational spending induce dire effects upon the British society, as this limits the choice of subjects for students to choose, and they end up in the over-competition in some occupations, meanwhile other fields of professions are emptying out. This would greatly impact different sectors correspondingly as the imbalance ratio of skilled laborers may lead to high unemployment when the demand for jobs is narrowed down.

The soaring of student tuition fees and hence unbearable debt increased have also exacerbated the deterioration of our education

standards. Students have been demotivated from enrolling in more classes, limited from accessing and qualifying satisfactory job posts, thus their graduation time slowed down, eventual dropping out snowballs. All these are sparked by a hitchhike in college tuition fees. vi Without formal college degrees, young people lack the experience, knowledge and qualifications to combat or fulfill the harsh requirements from companies they seek to be employed. Youth unemployment would soar resulting in the incapability to make ends meet. Disenfranchised high-school students would rather explore a low-wage career than to face a never-ending indebtedness.

Despite the bleakness of the dystopian reality, there are methods which would alleviate the problem and hopefully a remedy to liberate students from despair. The proposed phasing-out of charter schools and other privately-funded schools can ensure the success of an education-system-for-all plan.

This would guarantee a statemonitored and mandated education curriculum and model for all children of age to receive education. It would also ensure that the education standards would be more or less equivalent in every school, disastrous effects of unregulated and unfettered charter education must be in control. By enacting stricter regulations that prohibits corporations from outsourcing our education system as a for-profit business can guarantee the future of the next generation not as austere and grim as many contemporary students.

The unlimited increase in tuition fees should not only be brought to a halt, but also to be mostly or entire-

47 ly eliminated. Germany and Denmark have made college affordable to all students by eliminating tuition fees. US presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and UK Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn have both proposed similar measures to scrap college tuition completely.

The case for global education is clear: to establish a universal system whereby every student enjoys the same rights and opportunities.

By freeing students from an economic dilemma, we have also freed our society from acute catastrophes which are laid by privatized education speculators.

―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Is HK’s Global Education Settling For Less?

BY BEN TSANG TWGHS Lo Kon Ting Memorial College Hong Kong In his annual Policy Address in January 2015, Leung Chun-ying, Hong Kong‘s chief executive, proposed to enrich students‘ learning experience of history, an elective subject under the city‘s Senior Secondary Curriculum, by renewing the content of the subject. ―[The objective is to] broaden [students‘] global outlook,‖ Mr. Leung said as he announced the initiative.

Just weeks before this proposal in education policy, the Education Bureau of the Hong Kong government, in its interim review of the curriculum of liberal studies, suggested slashing some content in globalization, one of the six topics of the mandatory subject among the city‘s secondary school students.

Under the recommendation made by the Bureau, the texts concerning international disputes and Hong Kong‘s response to globalization are to be canceled.

Responding to the interim review, the Hong Kong Professional Teachers‘ Union raised concerns over whether the amendment would deprive pupils of the opportunity to learn more about global issues, and thereby enhance their global awareness via education, albeit the complexity of such topics.

Citizens of Hong Kong habitually proclaim their metropolis as "Asia‘s world city‖. Thanks to the encounter of Eastern and Western cultures, and its free, globaloriented economy, Hong Kong has developed into a de facto ―global village‖ over the past 170 years, in which people from all walks of life are exposed to global information and universal values in all aspects of life.

Under the sweeping tide of globalization over the previous decades, it has become inevitable for the entire population of the global village to interact with one another, in pursuit of global integration amongst economies and cultures, as well as tackling worldwide issues, such as climate change and refugee crises.

In this context, if people opt for state-of-the-art achievements in today‘s assimilating world, they are obliged to possess a certain degree of global vision. At this point, education plays a pivotal role in nurturing one‘s global outlook.

So, what makes global education fruitful? Are educators and students in ―Asia‘s world city‖ making progress when it comes to global education?

In Hong Kong, some social enterprises are active advocates of materializing global education, by promoting global awareness among youngsters. One of the groups, which organizes a handful of events in regard to global cultures and social issues for local secondary schools, notes the significance of the two ―Cs‖, in consideration of a successful global education, – curiosity and confidence.

First, for the former, students should stay curious about the happenings on the earth, from different countries‘ customs to international politics. In order to fulfill this, initiatives are taken to broaden their horizons, and to make them figure out the causes or the solutions of different phenomena, through brainstorming and questioning.

Hence, one could construct a sound foundation of knowledge, which is necessary for a global vision.

Second, for the latter, pupils should be sufficiently confident to express their opinions on different topics without hesitation. Students are

encouraged to exchange their views with each other. Confidence is especially crucial, since pupils would be capable of acquiring and understanding a host of opinions of others, which are potentially influenced by different religions, ethnicities, and other factors. Thus, one‘s knowledge could be by and large built up comprehensively. With the ability to think critically, one‘s global outlook would be consolidated.

The education system of Hong Kong is widely characterized as examination-oriented. Students are made to memorize and practice examination skills as the Hong Kong Diploma for Second Education (DSE) examination looms, such that they are more competitive in gaining a university place and a well-paid occupation. Hence, pupils' schedules are usually packed with after-class tuitions and exam practices. In this sense, they fail to stay inquisitive about different global issues, through means such as reading quality newspapers and books.

As for confidence, although globalization is included in the teaching of liberal studies, many find this concept complicated and distant from daily life, not to mention their inability or unwillingness to confidently express their point of view on matters such as international conflicts and cooperation. Even humanities education, such as history, could not produce any significance in promoting global awareness, attributed to the memorization-based course and its unpopularity in the business city.

Despite possessing a high literacy rate, and a much better learning environment compared with numerous regions on the globe, Hong Kong is in dire need of fostering new generations of well-

49 educated global citizens, who are concerned with the alarming problems facing the international community, and equipped with a genuine global insight, for the sake of the vivid development of one of the major international cities.

If educators in Hong Kong are in faith of global education, please kindly consider the words of Nelson Mandela: education is the most

―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015 powerful weapon which we can use to change the world.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Making The World Our Cloister

BY SNEHA PANDEY Asian Institute of Technology and Management Nepal Within the span of little more than a year, we have witnessed the gut wrenching death of the little Alyan Kurdi, the fascist kidnappings of school girls by the Boko Haram, the gruesome beheadings by the ISIS and the unscrupulous, overnight price hike of a vital, lifesaving drug from $14 to $700. We have been assaulted by news of rape of thousands in the civil war across the African continent, the atrocities of the Afghan forces as they engage in ‗Bacha Bazi‘, the gruesome murder of Mexican students by corrupt law enforcement and the forced exhile of the Rohingya (which has often led them to their watery graves). From the exposed corporate greed of trusted multinational companies in the west to the open pedophilic practices of some in the Middle East, we can agree that a lot of humanity is, today, struggling with its moral compass.

Our world today has a plethora of problems and each of the world‘s leaders (and future leaders) have different views on how we should combat several of these issues.

Some like Donald Trump and Viktor Orban are adamant that the answers to such problems lie in building bigger, stronger, more divisive walls and imposing sanctions and such. However, others like Obama and Angela Merkel believe in breaking the boundaries that have held people apart, moving past past rivalries and fostering a sense of global well-being. They are not wrong.

To combat the racism, sexism, blind faith and jingoism that is so prevalent in our world today, we need more Lincolns and Mandelas, more Dalai Lamas and Pope

Franceses; we need leaders that emphasize on the values of global citizenship. After all (and this can be assumed with a fair degree of certainty), people like Obama and Merkel must view themselves not just as an American or a German but as a global citizen. How else would you explain their compassion towards the Middle Eastern and African refugees, or their optimistic (albeit cautious) approach in Iran‘s nuclear deal? Their political approaches that voice for equal rights for all, or their ferocious belief in the importance of providing birthright citizenships to the children of immigrants?

We need such global leaders; we need leaders that can inspire feelings of compassion, optimism, interdependence and sobriety. To raise such global leaders for our future, what we require today, is to engage all the children of our world in global education.

Global education – these six syllables do little to impart the actual weight these words hold. Global education is the most potent tool we have today against most, if not all, of the problems our world faces. From the crippling poverty of the slums of Kiberia, to the blind faith that gives rise to terrorism, from extreme xenophobic attitudes of some to the inherent bigotry and misogyny that is prevalent in most underdeveloped nations– there is nothing that global education cannot vanquish.

For global education is an approach that accentuates the need to foster healthy bilateral and multilateral relationship with not just our immediate neighbors but with all the countries, all over the world. This type of education raises a child as a

citizen of the world, as a member who is capable of bringing about positive development and changes throughout the Earth. By granting a child the rights and teaching them the responsibilities of a global citizen, we can equip our children with the tools they require to live harmonious, fair and fulfilled lives. An education that emphasizes on global issues is capable of unlocking entire worlds to our future leaders and teaching them to adopt a multitude of perspectives (from all over the world) when scrutinizing any issue.

Global education not just builds a sense of self awareness in a person, it also makes us more aware and accepting of other lifestyles and cultures. And in doing so it helps with conflict resolution. This also works to combat discrimination which is often a result of ignorance or miscommunication.

Most importantly though, global education teaches us to look past our own selfish needs and ensures that we understand and respect the concept and importance of sustainability. It ensures that we utilize just what we need and no more. It teaches us to empathize with the needs of others and the needs of our future generations.

Global education can, thus, be that moral compass that will always guide us to right side of morality.

It will help us cultivate our next generation of leaders who will lead us into a more harmonious and united society. Global education will raise these leaders to be unhindered by crippling fears, irrational doubts or biased attitudes. It will raise leaders like Obama and Merkel to whom the entire world is their very own cloister.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Global Education, We have Been Calling It ‘Global Peace’ For Too Long

BY RAO IBRAHIM ZAHID COMSATS Institute of Information Technology Pakistan On 16th December 2014, a group of gunmen identified to be members of Tehrik-i-Taliban (TTP) attacked a school in Peshawar, Pakistan. The attack has been deemed as one of the worst terrorist attacks in the country‘s history. The world mourned the loss of 145 lives, 132 of which were, sadly, school children. But this was not the first terrorist attack on educational institutes or against education in general, in Pakistan, or in the rest of the world for that matter.

More recently, in July 2015, on the opening of the ‗Oslo summit on Education for Development‘ in Norway, United Nations SecretaryGeneral Ban Ki-moon stated that ―We are here to secure commitments to deliver on the promises of the sustainable development agenda. Education is essential to its vision of a life of dignity for all‖.

This took place amongst announcements of the establishment of a commission on financing global education. Norway, Chile, Indonesia, Malawi, and the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), will be the conveners of the commission.

Why are the extremists hell-bent on destroying education systems across the globe, while the guardians of peace are insisting on education for all? Why do the extremists specifically target and terrorize those who

promote education or those who want to be educated (Malala Yousafzai is a prominent example), while the UN is trying to raise funds for the ‗Global Education First Initiative‘ (GEFI)? What rewards will we reap tomorrow if we sow the seeds of global education today?

According to Mr. Ban Ki-moon, global education will lead to „a life of dignity for all‘ but that is not the real prize. Recently, UNESCO published the ‗Education for All Global Monitoring Report‘ (EFA GMR) titled ‗Education Transforms Lives‘ which accurately linked education to the development of any environment. Higher levels of education directly influenced employment, nutrition, child health, maternal health, economic growth, etcetera.

And yet, that is not the real prize.

Adding an academic achievement to your curriculum vitae is not the only purpose of an education, although it is almost essential in order to secure employment in today‘s competitive world. The true purpose of an education is to teach a person the difference between right and wrong. An educated person can differentiate between right and wrong much more clearly as compared to an uneducated one. An educated person will also recognize the responsibility to speak up in support of what‘s right, and to stand

up in demonstration against what‘s wrong.

Imagine a country where everyone can access 12 years of quality education for free. Everyone respects the rights and opinions of others.

Economic growth and sustainable development occur because everyone plays their part, everyone contributes to all that is right and shuns everything that is wrong, eliminating the need for violence, and providing justice for the entire population. Now imagine a world where every citizen can access 12 years of quality education for free…Global Peace!!!

How can we transform this dream of global education into reality? A series of info-graphics produced by GEFI explained how, even after an increase in domestic resources, there is still an annual funding gap of $US 39 Billion (which is equal to 8 days of annual global military spending) to achieve the target of providing 12 years of free, quality education for all in developing countries between 2015 and 2030.

So, an increase in global funding for the implementation of global education will not only permanently remove the infection of extremism and terrorism from the planet, it will in time lead us to global peace.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

When Global Education Goes Local

BY NGUYEN HUU GIA BAO Can Tho University Vietnam ―We are using E5, right?‖, asked my thirteen-year-old cousin, arching her beautiful left eyebrow. She was nagging on and on that my ignorance about the latest good news about energy was getting on her nerves. I shrugged. E5 was not that interesting: who cares about the bio-petrol with an ugly name?

But my sweetie seemed to be so upset with my zero attention that she began to tune in her blasphemous, Hermione-like self. ―You know, I am taught to care about our world. I care about sustainable development. That‘s what makes us different‖, remarked Sue. I laughed it off cheerfully, ―No no, darling.

It‘s global education that makes you care, not your teachers alone.

And I‘m glad you do‖. And I‘m glad that after decades, global education has finally found its localized way in Vietnam to magically turn my cousin into a troublesome but caring teenager.

What is global education anyway?

To make it simple, global education is a term that indicates any attempt to integrate and incorporating international issues and mostappreciated skills in the globalized world of work to better facilitate students in the ever-changing systems. Perhaps the most significant and noteworthy movement of global education is the full awareness of English language as a dominant tongue of global communication.

Students in even the most remote areas are now accessing foreign language resources completely free of charge thanks to the online availability. Undoubtedly, students nowadays know more about the mechanism of acid rain, or the cycle of El Nino, than did the previous generations thanks to the authentically designed curriculum.

However, what lies ahead when putting global education into practice is the fact that each country possesses very distinct and unique demographic, cultural and economic characteristics that confirm national identity. Were the attempt to introduce global education to become an aberration rather than innovation, the whole system would be sinking into an abyss with no direction for future.

The first underlying challenge is that with such a large amount of information needed to be implemented, how can we dynamically select one thorny issue over another? This has to be taken into careful consideration, as any educational reform would take several years, even decades, to finish wholly nationwide. Therefore, there is a strong possibility that the chosen topic would no longer be ―hot‖ or debatable. Besides, the duress of not catching up with what is going on is also hindering many educators from taking bold actions in this educational revolution. My astute Sue, for instance, may find E5 biopetrol very up-to-date and hotly debated now, but in the next few years, perhaps another kind of clean energy will occupy her. As a result, it is imperative that educators have the right vision into the perilous and changeable future.

While exercising global education processes, one should also consider the dormant power of nationalism and cultural aspects. On the roadmap to be a global citizen, a bombastic, boisterous student may find it hard to resist conformity, or the urge to be in fashion, belonging to a group. Obviously, cultural diversity is reflected in education as well, so it is recommended that

parts of the old values in the curriculum be preserved.

Last but not least, in countries like China or Vietnam, people are trapped in very rigid mindset that prevents them from liberating creativity and flexibility. This can be a downfall for the implementation of global education. In this case, the mindset barrier should be removed first before changing the ways students learn.

Therefore, studies into the adaptation rate of students in each country should be financially and lawfully supported. Ebullient and ingenious young researchers should be given more opportunities and respect.

SEAMEO Retract, an organization responsible for educational researches and teacher training for ASEAN, is such a model. It has gained credentials for the efforts of bridging the gap between the authentic, innovative systems and the conventional, corrupted ones. Incentives and appraise should be paid rationally to organizations and individuals that help localize global education.

I have to say I envy Sue and her friends. They are well-prepared for the convoluted world where nothing stays the same for long. I, on the other hand, have to struggle with the experience of a Guinea pig from a failed attempt to make global education more local. Perhaps I can make it up by asking her to give me some ―global‖ lessons – but not about E5, I‘m afraid.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Global Education

BY VIJAYAVENKATARAMAN SANJAIRAJ National University of Singapore Singapore ―There are still 58 million children out of school globally and around 100 million children who do not complete primary education. Inequality in education has increased, with the poorest and most disadvantaged shouldering the heaviest burden…‖ This extract is from Ms Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, in her foreword to EFA (Education for All) Global Monitoring report 2015. Two dimensions can be attached to ‗global education‘. The first is ensuring equal and adequate education opportunities to every individual around the globe and the other is to make sure that the education is truly global or complete.

Is there equal opportunity for education to every individual? Any person without any iota of erudition will quickly answer a big ―No!‖ Seventy years have passed since the end of the Second World War and still the countries of the world haven‘t made enough provisions for educational reforms. Nelson Mandela once said ―Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world‖. On the contrary, nations are investing on weapons other than education and the department of education in most countries remain underfinanced till date. The heads of states should realise the very fact that the real investment which will give multi-fold ROI to the country for generations to come, is education. Providing better education will put an end to most of the problems that a country faces, first of all, poverty. Poverty is the root cause of many other social evils, right from burglary to terrorism and even threatens to divide a nation

because of the effect of the inequalities. Education can help abate the poverty storm and ameliorate the conditions of the poor, which will directly have an influence on the safety, security, societal well-being and the economy of a country. One cannot expect the government to take all the necessary steps on its own and accomplish 100% education goal. Every person who had an opportunity or given one, to educate themselves should realize their responsibility to pay back to the society by educating at least one under-privileged child for whom education is unaffordable. One can contribute directly by adopting a child and paying for their education, form an NGO to adopt a village to provide better education or indirectly by providing monetary support to the field workers.

If ―each one, teach one‖ is made a universal education policy, the goal of 100% literacy rate will be more than just a dream.

The other dimension attached to global education is the standard of education, if it‘s truly global, complete in its purpose. Putting it plain, in the words of Martin Luther King Jr, ―Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education‖.

While we insist on the former, most of us fail to recognize the latter and the most important purpose of education, the character formation. No longer do schools aim at producing better citizens, selfless intellects ready to serve the society. Students and Parents alike do paper chasing just to command the highest salaries. What is the use conferring a doctorate in Aerospace Engineering to one who will use his erudition in

the destruction of mankind? Technological inventions without the wisdom and maturity to handle and put to use appropriately will only lead to destruction and that‘s exactly the problem that most developed countries face today. Another related point to make, education today doesn‘t engender confidence and courage to face the realities of life.

As a matter of fact, suicide is the second leading cause of death for 15-24 year olds in the U.S and third leading cause of death in the world for those aged 15-44 years, according to WHO reports.

Two action points are recommended to the nations of the world. The first one is to provide education for all, make education available globally and the second, to give a truly global complete education. Steps should be taken to demarcate enough funding for education, form special government bodies to facilitate and monitor the education programs, collaborate actively with UNESCO and other educational bodies, NGOs and individual volunteers to achieve the goal. Care should be taken to give an education that builds the character, which caters not only to the head but also to the heart, which engenders confidence and instils hope in the young minds, teaching them the philosophy of life along with technology. Global education will be a true success only when we attain a state where every individual born in any part of this world has equal educational opportunities of the same standard, which will not only make him a big headed person but a truly noble global citizen.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

My Mom Is A Tiger Mom, But I’m Not Fantastic

BY WINNIE GOH Singapore Polytechnic Singapore ―You could be better,‖ she answered. ―I should have been stricter Violinist Vanessa Mae, designer Vera Wang, and pianist Lang Lang have made astounding achievements. All have also experienced the brunt of Tiger parenting. But at what cost?

A stereotype commonly associated with Asian parents, Tigers are perceived as ―highly controlling, strict, and severe‖ taskmasters who consistently produce geniuses.

Popularized by ChineseAmerican professor Amy Chua as the term ―tiger mom‖, Chua spurred controversy from critics and experts alike when she extolled the virtues of Tiger parenting in Wall Street Journal excerpt Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior and 2011 memoir Battle Hymn of a Tiger Mother.

In tongue-in-cheek fashion, Chua recounts how Asian parents, when prioritizing academic achievement over sleepovers and video games, produce better, and more successful kids. She argues that her daughter's accomplishments (Carnegie Hall debutante at age 14, now Harvard law student) are testament to her somewhat unorthodox parenting style.

Last week, I saw yet another piano prodigy‘s rendition of Flight of the Bumble Bee, and it got me thinking about Amy Chua and Tiger parents.

Four years ago, my mother and I purchased Chua‘s memoir and tore it apart. And by that I meant we read it in one sitting. It was also when I asked my mother if I was 'good enough'.

with you when you were growing up‖. That comment made me wonder: If Tiger parenting is so effective, is it the way to go?

Singaporeans are no less zealous in getting our cubs ahead, with back-to-back tuition and year round enrichment classes.

Whether we belong to the kancheong (‗nervous‘ or ‗uptight‘) or kiasu (‗afraid to lose‘) pack, one thing is certain – Singaporeans can be Tiger parents, and we will do whatever it takes for our kids to survive.

In fact, tuition has become so prominent and rampant here that there are special Gifted Education Programme (GEP) preparation classes and yearly test papers for kindergarteners.

As a fourth generation Singaporean, I too have had my lap in the tiger mom wave. Thrust into an elite Chinese primary school, I entered the rat race with my peers with a slew of piano, swimming, art, gymnastic, and calligraphy tuition amidst Chinese, Mathematics, Creative Writing, and Confucianism classes.

Now fast forward 11 years into the present, where a decade of kicking and screaming is hopefully long over, I‘m a competent ABRSM Grade 5 pianist, NASSA Gold swimmer, and occasional sketcher, and calligraphist. It‘s nothing like Vanessa Mae, Vera Wang, or Lang Lang, but thanks Mom? Although some parents view stress as nothing more than part and

parcel of student life, angry forum letters calling for the scrapping of the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) say otherwise.

Despite the Ministry‘s strides in keeping schools and their curriculum relevant (such as replacing PSLE aggregate scores with letter grades like ‗O‘ and ‗A‘ level exams), Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong still maintains that ―we are still doing too much tuition in Singapore‖. But is it a bad thing?

According to the 2012 Trends in International Math and Science (TIMSS), our primary and secondary school kids top in Mathematics globally, and are only second to South Korea in Science. 5 per cent of children six and under here are also Mensa Singapore members.

The youngest is a 2 year-old with an IQ of 142, higher than the child average of 100.

Although much has been said on the subject of Tiger parents and their protégées, what it lacks is cold, hard evidence. That is, until April 2013, when associate professor of Human Development and Family Sciences, Su Yeong Kim published her study on Tiger parents in the Asian American Journal of Psychology.

Kim studied more than 300 Chinese-American families for over a decade. Kim argues that Tiger parents don‟t raise superior kids, and discredits the misconception that adopting tiger parenting will produce whizzes like Amy Chua‘s.

Instead, her study shows that children of parents classified as ‗supportive‘ had the best academic outcome, in terms of ―academic

55 achievement, educational attainment and family obligation‖.

In contrast, children of parents Kim classified as ‗tiger‘ had lower academic achievement and selfesteem, were considered more emotionally troubled and alienated from their families, and felt oppressed under academic pressure.

So here's the bleak truth, Tiger parenting goes two ways. You take the heat or you don‘t.

Let‘s face it: being a student or parent isn‘t easy, especially in Singapore where academic qualifications rule supreme. Tough decisions must be made no matter how unpopular, and painful sacrifices, and sleepless nights are just some of the many downsides.

But let‘s give Chua and those parenting gurus the benefit of doubt. After all, what one parent considers right for one child may be wrong for another. It‘s time the word ‗normal‘ be seen no different as ‗fantastic‘.

Instead of aspiring to be the next "tiger mum", parents should change their perception of how they define success, and give their children the right skills and attitude to face future trials and tribulations.

At the end of the day, it‘s a big world out there, and it‘s so much more than just acing an exam.

―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

2013 Hall of Fame Thomas Fung (Secondary School Category)

Joyce Xu (University Category)

INYT “Word (World) of Yours” Competition Former Champions

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Liberal Studies – Raising Awareness?

2013 – Secondary School Category

BY THOMAS FUNG St. Joseph‘s College Hong Kong Back in 2005, the Education Bureau of Hong Kong announced the implementation of the New Secondary School (NSS) curriculum, a complete overhaul of the education system. Among the plans was a befuddling subject called ―Liberal Studies‖, which was a subject that was compulsory to all students. This decision stirred up a powerful barrage of controversy, with parents fearing the complexity of the subject, and others choosing to see the subject run its test trial before making a verdict.

The EDB states that Liberal Studies aims to ―broaden students‘ knowledge base and enhance students‘ social awareness‖1 through issues from around the world, thus enhancing global awareness. Fast forward to 2013, where I, a F.6 student, am burying my head in piles of notes, ranging from essay formats to key points on data analysis. Each key concept is cross-indexed with some examples we can use in our exams: The Copenhagen Accord for political globalization issues, the SARS epidemic for public health topics, the wealth gap for arguments on Quality of Life.

As a stakeholder who is directly affected by the NSS curriculum, I have witnessed plenty of students who are well-informed of global issues, yet fail to get a satisfactory result in Liberal Studies and others who are apathetic about current events, yet obtain impressive results in the exams. Somehow, the intense academic atmosphere of Hong Kong has managed to reduce the subject to nothing more than formatted essay writing and stripped it of its necessity for global awareness. Teachers stress the rubrics and structure of answers instead of world conflicts. Tutorial centres publish books that highlight related concepts and sidestep the issue itself.

Of course, exam performance is never a true indicator of skill and passion, but the fact that students‘ global awareness isn‘t notably improved even after the baptism of Liberal Studies meant that it wasn‘t successful in its aims. While it is true that the subject‘s curriculum does involve analysis of newspaper cuttings and news reports, many students choose to learn the bare minimum of events to carry them through the examinations. The EDB clearly had high hopes for the subject, but intentions are immaterial when the goals are only met on a superficial level.

Parents and schools have commented on the inadequacy of teachers who are trained for teaching the subjects and schools often having to resort to hiring other subject teachers to conduct the lessons. However, this problem will certainly be mitigated in a few years‘ time, when more teachers of the subject emerge. The main problem stems from the nature of global awareness itself: It simply cannot be conveyed through textbooks and lessons.

The government should be well aware of the fact that, after the fierce rallies and protests against national education, that one‘s national sense of identity cannot be taught through hard facts and rote learning. This is analogous to the implementation of Liberal Studies: One‘s sense of identity as a global citizen cannot be enhanced by a school subject, because it eventually culminates to a grade on an examination report, rather than an enrichment of knowledge. Not everything can be solved by education.

Ironically, the many demonstrations and criticism in recent years against the government policies have been the main factor that raised my awareness for social issues. As the protests become increasingly heated

and extreme, it was hard to ignore such events when it was stoked by media reports and unrelenting representatives from both sides. I started paying more attention towards government policies, joined the argument in online forums, and browsed for similar cases in other countries. Discussions of government operations have also gradually appeared in my daily conversations with classmates – something that didn‘t happened when we started taking Liberal Studies lessons.

This serves as a case in point of the disposition of global awareness: The best way to acquire it is only through one‘s daily life. The importance of global awareness in students is undoubted, but the global citizen will emerge when the situation calls for it.

When we look at examples from other parts of the world, we see a general consensus that global thinking should be taught in areas other than school. Schools in the UK attempts to achieve this through investment in school-based programmes such as a young global enterprise scheme. The EDB can try to add funding on existing youth groups that involve activities related to global issues, or set the learning experience to be more personal and relevant to the students.

The government deserves credit for putting global awareness on the top of its education agenda, but its methods are questionable, and a new approach would greatly facilitate the process. In the meantime, however, we‘ll just have to make the best out of what Liberal Studies has to offer.

1

The New Academic Structure for Senior Secondary Education and Higher Education – Action Plan for Investing in the Future of Hong Kong

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Impact of Social Media on Global Awareness 2013 – University Category

BY JOYCE XU The University of Hong Kong Hong Kong "I am here to speak up for the right of education of every child. I want education for the sons and the daughters of all the extremists especially the Taliban…" The eloquent speech of 16year-old Pakistani girl Malala Yousafzai at the United Nation Youth Assembly went viral on Youtube and hit millions of retweets in July 2013, touching hearts from all over the world.

Her blog for BBC Urdu in 2009 also caught global attention when she recorded her dramatic life under the Taliban. Since then, Malala has been catapulted to fame. Advocating girls‘ right to education in the developing countries has become the focal point of world issues.

In today‘s globalizing world, we are increasingly bombarded with a myriad of social media tools: Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, Weibo, Tumblr, Google Plus, Instagram, blogs, forums, to name but a few. Social media has indeed made a profound impact on our personal lives that enables us to be closely interconnected in a ―global village‖. From the use of chemical weapons in Syria to the launch of iPhone 5s and 5c, from the power of Super Typhoon Usagi to the radiation crisis at Japan‘s Fukushima nuclear plant, we can always keep abreast with up to the minute news from around the world via different kinds of social media, which undoubtedly provides us with an interactive and cosmic platform through which we can create, discuss and exchange an avalanche of information and form social networks easily in the virtual world. With the escalating popularity of social media, our global awareness has been greatly enhanced regardless of geographical boundaries.

In fact, the booming advancement of Web 2.0 technology has brought us boundless benefits. Everything we want to know can be done with just a few clicks on a screen. News in the format of text, picture, video and audio is circulated online at such a rapid pace that is beyond our imagination. We can gain access to a great deal of information and get in touch with abundant

friends from various cultures and backgrounds conveniently. We can freely express our opinions and comment on others‘ posts. We can also become citizen journalists by using hashtags and sharing any breaking news stories with the global audience. Apart from search engines, the proliferation of various social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter has really widened our horizons on world affairs and built international understanding to a large extent.

Day after day, we are inundated with a massive amount of news from social media. You can find out how the 9/11 plane crash occurred or learn how South Africans live in dire poverty by watching the videos on Youtube anytime. When the ruthless earthquake rocked Japan in 2011, immediate status updates and graphic photos were disseminated on Facebook and Twitter.

"We use Facebook to schedule the protests, Twitter to coordinate and Youtube to tell the world," the remarks from an Egyptian activist during the Arab Spring also sheds light on the tremendous power of information sharing on social media sites, which help to mobilize a raft of like-minded people together to initiate momentous social movements, toppling autocratic regimes in Arab nations like Egypt, Tunisia and Yemen.

In China, we can acquire first-hand news from micro-blogging sites especially Sina Weibo, a Twitter equivalent. In the latest fallen political star Bo Xilai case, people across the world can obtain updated news of his bribery trial from the official Weibo account of Jinan court. In recent years, unprecedented whistle-blowing movement against social injustice has been waged on China‘s social media network, triggering numerous environmental protests as well as exposing dozens of corrupt high-ranking government officials such as the illicit sex scandal of former Chongqing Beibei District Party Secretary Lei Zhengfu in November 2012. Recognizing the potential threats, the Chinese government has begun a

nationwide crackdown against online rumor-mongering.

On top of that, thanks to social media, we get to know a wide range of economic, political, social, environmental and cultural problems affecting the globe today. We can even spread influential message to the extent of turning vision into action. On the other hand, the less underprivileged in the developing world can also make good use of social media technologies to draw attention to their imminent plights and make their voices heard on a global scale. For instance, Twestival, a worldwide charity campaign attended by more than 34 countries, is aimed at empowering the world to organize offline events and raise funds for impoverished people through social media like Twitter, raising awareness on global issues such as climate change and clean water. This brings people living in other corners of the world who are experiencing similar situations together to thrash out effective strategies. Hence, social media helps to inspire people to understand their roles and make a difference for the greater good of the community.

All in all, our world is evolving constantly in the digital age. Social media is really a revolutionary tool that alters the way we communicate and reshapes the way we look at the world. It helps to bring us closer together and feeds us with things happening around the globe.

As a global citizen, we should care more about the earth we are living in and capitalize on every social media channel to get acquainted with the wider world so as to prepare for any future challenges ahead.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

Thank you!

We would like to give a special thanks to all the teachers and students who took part in this year‟s Writing Competition. Without any of your great support, the competition would not have been such a success.

Meet the Judges

(in alphabetical order)

Jim Hollander Copy Editor

Joe Ritchie Copy Editor

Philip Traynor Copy Editor

For Education Offer, Please Contact: Ms. Mandy Lam

Ms. Cherry Ho

Head of Education

Circulation Business Development Director

mlam@nytimes.com

cherry.ho@nytimes.com

+852 2922 1172

+852 2922 1169

Please note that all the published articles are original and not subjected to any modification.

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―Word (World) of Yours‖ Competition 2015

i

Milton Friedman, ―The Promise of Vouchers‖, Wall Street Journal, December 5, 2005, http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB113374845791113764 ii

―Charter School Growth and Replication‖, Center for Research on Educational Outcomes, January 30, 2013, https://credo.stanford.edu/pdfs/CGAR%20Growth%20Executive%20Summary.pdf iii

Paul Buchheit, ―4 ways privatization is ruining our education system‖, Salon, February 19, 2014, http://www.salon.com/2014/02/19/4_ways_privatization_is_ruining_our_education_system_partner/ iv

Noam Chomsky, Because We Say So, (Hamish Hamilton, 2015), pages 38-39

v

―A-level results day: Class of 2015 has 'fallen victim to education cuts', say headteachers‖, The Independent, August 13, 2015, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/alevel-results-day-class-of-2015-has-fallen-victim-to-educationcuts-say-headteachers-10454242.html vi

Van Thompson, ―How Tuition Increases Affect College Students‖, Global Post, http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/tuitionincreases-affect-college-students-7007.html

Printed in February 2016