台灣補習教育經驗之研究 - 政大學術集成

全文

(1)國立政治大學亞太研究英語碩士學位學程碩 International Master’s Program in Asia-Pacific Studies College of Social Sciences National Chengchi University. 碩士論文 Master’s Thesis. 台灣補習教育經驗之研究. 學. ‧ 國. 立. 政治大. A Study of Cram School Experience in Taiwan. ‧. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. Student: Rebecca Emma Mary Gourrier 欣怡 Advisor: Dr Chuing Prudence Chou 周祝瑛. 中華民國 105 年 9 月 September 2016.

(2) 台灣補習教育經驗之研究 A Study of Cram School Experience in Taiwan. 研究生 : 欣怡. Student : Rebecca Emma Mary Gourrier. 指導教授 : 周祝瑛. 政治大. 學國立政治大學. ‧. io. y. sit. Nat. 亞太研究英語碩士學位學程碩碩士論文. n. al. er. ‧ 國. 立. Advisor : Dr Chuing Prudence Chou. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. A thesis Submitted to International Master’s Program In Asia Pacific Studies National Chengchi University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement For the degree of Master in Asia-Pacific Studies. 中華民國 105 年 9 月 September 2016.

(3) Acknowledgements The completion of this study could not have been possible without the expertise and guidance of my respected thesis advisor Dr. Chuing Prudence Chou. As well as being supportive and helpful, she is also a very generous and kind-hearted person that definitely enhanced my experience of writing this thesis. I would also like to express my appreciation towards my two-committee members Dr. Fong-Yee Nyeu and Dr. Da-Wei Kuan who took the time to read my thesis and provided great advice to improve my work. I have learned a lot throughout this Master’s degree and by working closely with my supervisor. Thank you to the academic staff of NCCU for helping out during the various steps before the thesis’ completion.. 政治大 I would also like to thank Marion Baudry, who was supportive and encouraging 立 during the good and hard times. I am glad to have worked with Marion as my. ‧ 國. 學. teammate throughout the course of this research work. I am also very grateful that my cousin Laurie was here, she supported me during the final and important stages of my. ‧. thesis and I would like to thank her for helping me proofread my thesis twice so as to have provided with great advices. Special thanks to my friend Pheobe who is a. y. Nat. sit. remarkable reliable person and who spent time reading through my thesis during the. al. er. io. final stage. I would like to thank all my friends for their help in participating to the. n. academic exploration and interview process, all of them have given greater value to this project.. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. Finally, I would like to thank Benjamin Chardron for his remarkable patience for helping and encouraging me everyday to fulfil this project. I am really grateful to have benefited from his valuable support and optimistic thinking. Lastly, I would like to thank my parents; my mum, my dad, my sister, my brother, my grandmothers, grandfathers and cousins who; from long distance helped me complete this important work with enthusiasm. I am deeply grateful that my family has always been of great support in my studies, especially my dad, who passed on his belief that education is highly valuable. Thank you for believing in me and guiding me in these studies.. i.

(4) 摘要一國如在教育上過度強調以學業為導向，就會出現具有雙刃劍角色的補習現象通常會，一方面幫助學生在學術能力測驗中取得高成就，另一方面限制了學生的創造性發展。部分學生因為在普通學校中無法取得足夠的知識和技能，故而轉向補習班為測驗做準備。尤其在英語科目成為主要考核科目之後，補習班的項目也因此更加多元。本研究旨在關注台灣補習教育何以在1990年代教改之後，依然擴張的現況，補習班如何從日常學習的補充角色，轉向台灣中學生. 政治大. 教育中的必要部分。研究者針對補習班英語教學方法進行探討，透過對補習班. 立. 經營者、教師和補習學生進行深度訪談，來瞭解他們的相關經驗。研究結果發. ‧ 國. 學. 現，補習班經營者意透多元與另類等途徑，聘請英語教師，來提升教學的創意。. ‧. 至於教師的訪談發現，英語教師通過嘗試新的教學方法來幫助學生在學業方面. sit. y. Nat. 取得更好的成績，但是這種方式存在一定的局限性。本研究印一步發現補習班. n. al. er. io. 教師包括來自英語國家的和非英語國家，即使某些補習班老師並未取得教師資. i n U. v. 格證書，但在學生看來比一般學校的英語任課老師更加優秀。值得注意的是，. Ch. engchi. 大多數學生認為補習班的教學方法與一般學校相差無幾，但是學生滿意度明顯高於主流學校英語教師。本研究進一步確認補習班因商業利益等考量，許多訊息備受保密，使得研究者難以獲得一套完整的教學方法和學生經驗。. 關鍵字：家庭教師，補習班英語教學，補習班經驗，文化現象，教學方法，台灣. ii.

(5) Abstract In an academically oriented nation, there is a realization that attending a cram school can be double-edged, as they often offer great outcomes in students’ academic achievements especially with their test scores but they can also limit students’ creative development. Unable to obtain sufficient knowledge and skills for tests in mainstream schools, students have commonly turned to cram schools for examination preparation. Educational reforms enforcing English as a main examination subject greatly diversified the possibilities for tutoring and in fact helped cram schools’ diversification. The study focuses on the phenomenon of the influx of cram schools, and how it’s no longer a supplement, but instead a necessity of a secondary student’s. 治政 phenomenon, as well as to discuss the teaching 大 methods used in English classes. Finally, data has been立 collected through in-depth interviews among cram school education in Taiwan. This study starts with investigating the cram school. ‧ 國. 學. owners, teachers and former attendees to look at their experience in cram school . The results of the study shows that the cram school owners approved the necessity to. ‧. enhance creative teaching through alternative methods so as hiring teachers with supplementary talents. The teacher interviews revealed that trying new approaches to. Nat. sit. y. teaching have helped students achieve better outcomes academically, but sometimes. io. er. only to a certain extent that is why cram schools can be double-edged. The paradox of this study is the cram school teachers’ qualifications for both native and English. n. al. Ch. i n U. v. speakers. In fact, even though they may not have any teaching qualifications, cram. engchi. school teachers are described by students as being better teachers compared to the ones in regular school. Significantly, the study discovered that a majority of students find cram school teaching methods in general so as the overall experience to be more satisfactory than with mainstream school The study finally showed that gaining information about cram schooling can be difficult as there is some secrecy surrounding it. This prevented the researcher from gaining a complete picture of cram school teaching methods and students’ experience. Keywords: private tutoring, English learning in cram school, cram school experience, cultural phenomenon, teaching methods, Taiwan. iii.

(6) Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGMENTS...........................................................................................i 摘要 ...........................................................................................................................ii ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ..........................................................................................iv CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................ 1 1.1 Research Background .................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Research Motivation .................................................................................................... 3 1.3 Research Purpose & Questions .................................................................................... 4 1.4 Methodology ................................................................................................................ 4 1.5 Theoretical Framework ................................................................................................ 7 1.6 Term Definition ........................................................................................................... 7. 政治大 2.1 Cram schools: A cultural phenomenon ........................................................................ 9 立. CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................ 9. ‧ 國. 學. 2.1.1 Impact of educational reforms on cram schools ............................................................... 13 2.1.2 Attempt of decreasing cram school .................................................................................. 15 2.1.3 New measures to improve teacher education ................................................................... 18. 2.2 Teaching methods and English language in Taiwan .................................................. 19. ‧. 2.2.1 Emerging trends and teaching methods ............................................................................ 19 2.2.2 Expanding the cram school teaching methods ................................................................. 22 2.2.3 Under-regulated aspects and quality teaching in debate ................................................... 24. 2.3 The impacts of cram schools and their teaching methods.......................................... 26. Nat. sit. y. 2.3.1 Learning in cram schools ................................................................................................. 26 2.3.2 Cram school function as both useful and problematic ...................................................... 28. er. io. CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY ......................................................................... 32 3.1 Methodology .............................................................................................................. 32 3.2 Data Collection .......................................................................................................... 32. al. n. v i n C hFINDINGS AND U CHAPTER 4 RESEARCH DISCUSSIONS .......................... 34 i e h n gc 4.1 Research Findings ...................................................................................................... 34 4.1.1 Question 1. Education reform on cram school ................................................................. 35 4.1.2 Question 2. Teaching methods and English language ...................................................... 36 4.1.3 Question 3. Learning outcomes and pros and cons .......................................................... 42 4.1.4 Case Study ........................................................................................................................ 45. 4.2 Discussion .................................................................................................................. 47. CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSION, LIMITATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS .............. 57 5.1 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 57 5.2 Limitations and Recommendations............................................................................ 59 REFERENCES............................................................................................................................. 61. APPENDIX A : Owner interview APPENDIX B : Teacher interview APPENDIX C : Student interview iv.

(7) APPENDIX D : Glossary Interviewee. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. v. i n U. v.

(8) CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION The purpose of this chapter is to provide background and motivation for conducting this research. The study will start by introducing the development of cram schools in Taiwan. The major outlines will be discussed as follows: the research purposes, research questions, research organization, and definition of key terms. The chapter will conclude by pointing out the significance of the study.. 1.1 Research Background. 政治大. With rapid changes in the educational system, the competitive environment, and exam-driven system, the private education sector took the opportunity to expand its. 立. possibilities in the opening of academic institutions, such as cram schools. In recent. ‧ 國. 學. years, cram schools have been taking a considerable position in Taiwan’s society, attracting a large number of Taiwanese secondary school students every year.. ‧. In Asia, there has been an increase in demand for remedial and supplementary. sit. y. Nat. education for children to guide the students’ progress in regular school and to pass. io. er. examinations. Private cram schools in Japan, Korea, Taiwan and many other countries have conducted such activities since the 1960s and Japan have long been known for. n. al. Ch. i n U. v. its juku (Roesgaard, 2006; Bray & Lykins, 2012); which operated alongside the. engchi. regular school system. South Korea has also been known for its hagwons (Bray & Lykins, 2012), whereas Taiwan embraced cram schools also known as buxiban (Chou, 2014; Bray & Lykins, 2012).. In South Korean elementary schools, approximately 90% of students receive some form of supplementary tutoring and Hong Kong and China closely follow with 85% of secondary school students taking supplementary lessons (Bray & Lykins, 2012). In the 2001 Taiwan Education Panel Surveyed, 20,000 high school students and 72.9% of the Grade 7 students surveyed received additional tutoring for an average of 6.5 hours per week. (Bray & Lykins, 2012, p.7).. 1.

(9) On a global level supplementary tutoring has increased and is becoming much more usual in many parts of the world. Cram school institutions have risen in many countries since their establishment, showing a shift from a “luxury” to an essential element in a child’s scholarly life. Cram schools are said to promise the enhancement of better academic achievement, offer better job opportunities and guarantee improved opportunities for its students. Although cram schools are still strongly present in Taiwan its impact on students academic achievement is generally positively related. (Academia Sinica) Yet, the full impact on students’ learning is still debated.. From the start, the researcher was interested in the cram school phenomenon in Taiwan and looking into them in more depth allowed the researcher to show the. 治政大 educational through the different. changes that occurred during the past few decades. The study also sought to examine its function and evolution. 立. policies, trends,. environmental changes, teaching methods and finally, the researcher conducted. ‧ 國. 學. research on the cram school experience in order to gather a proper perspective of the phenomenon from the “inside out”.. ‧. The researcher wished to discover how English became such an important aspect of. Nat. sit. y. Taiwanese society and the researcher chose to examine both the “English learning. al. er. io. fever” and “English online tutoring”, which brought such focus on English learning in. n. cram schools. However, today’s Taiwanese cram schools may fail in some ways to. Ch. i n U. v. assure full quality teaching for students even though it is perceived as the best option.. engchi. That is why cram schools are controversial for students’ learning experience and achievement.. Problem statement: Cram schools have been a double-edged sword Many scholars have argued that education plays a great role in the preparation of citizens for inclusive economic growth and social development of one’s nation. Also, supplementary education has been argued to be a permanent feature in education systems, which play a vital role in the students’ academic achievements and learning (Bray & Lykins, 2012). But as Bray & Lykins mentioned: “Education sometimes fails to provide opportunities for individuals to achieve their full learning potential and 2.

(10) acquire relevant knowledge and skills to effectively serve members of the society and to contribute to inclusive economic growth” (Bray & Lykins, 2012, vi; Mok, 2006).. Scholars have argued that some forms of private tutoring can be both useful and problematic, especially for students learning achievement (Bray & Lykins, 2012; Hsieh, 2001; Huang, 1993). Bray & Lykins (2012) found that supplementary education tends to focus on narrow domains of achievement, such as Japanese, South Korean and Taiwanese cram schools (Bray & Lykins, 2012, p.40).. Private tutoring is known to be an important avenue in helping students achieve better academic results, but we cannot assume that private tutoring always results in learning. 治政大understanding of the secondary changes in depth and this means there is no full 立 school students’ experience of cram schools in an era of globalization. This study gains (Bray & Lykins, 2012). Few researchers have looked at cram school trends and. ‧ 國. 學. hopes to bring a new understanding of cram schools in Taiwan, and the impacts on students’ experience and learning achievements in Taiwan.. ‧. 1.2 Research Motivation. sit. y. Nat. io. er. Living in an ever-changing world where education and learning are constantly evolving there is a realization that attending a cram school can be double-edged, as. n. al. Ch. i n U. v. they often offer great outcomes in student’s academic achievements but they can limit. engchi. a students’ creative development. In this research, the study considered students as the first ones affected by the testing standards thus, having to resort to cram school for examination preparation. The researcher’s belief refers to a main idea, the one of Chang & Yi (2004) who discusses cram schooling and academic achievements and argues, “If the majority of students attend cram school classes, then cram school should be de facto part of formal schooling.” This research’s main idea is that considering the rapid growth of cram school education, and its weighty influence, it is a necessity that cram school institutions provide quality education and as a result good learning outcomes.. 3.

(11) The qualitative research that has been conducted will add to the researcher’s understanding of the benefits and pitfalls of cram school and give an indication of the learning experiences of previous students. Looking at the cram school impacts on students helps discuss the useful and problematic aspects of cram schools in Taiwan. The research hopes to provide the new cram school attendee’s with a clearer scope of Taiwanese cram schools’ impacts in learning achievements.. 1.3 Research Purpose & Questions The purpose of this research is to investigate the cram school experience from both the teacher’s and students’ perspectives along with the positive and negative impacts of cram schools.. 立. 政治大. The research questions are as follows:. ‧ 國. 學. 1. Why has the educational reforms forced students to turn to cram schools?. ‧. 2. Why is the English language so heavily required by cram schools and the educational reforms?. Nat. sit. y. 3. What are the impacts of cram school and its teaching methods on the students’. io. er. learning experience?. n. a. l C 1.4 Methodology. hengchi. i n U. v. This section will discuss the methods used to conduct the research data collection, and will use a qualitative approach with up-to-date academic research and literature.. To assess the quality of cram school education, the researcher has used Kim and Bonk’s (2006) study in which they argue that academic achievement; students’ satisfaction in cram school; faculty training and support are all components of quality education of online education. The researcher chose this study on online education because online tutoring is the result of both the cram school phenomenon combined with the English language appeal in Taiwan. They are so closely linked that they are. 4.

(12) part of one same element. They show great similarities and allow this study to use such arguments as a base.. Firstly, the study has pictured and described the cram school phenomenon and its nature. Then looked at the English learning in cram school, the environment of study, including the teaching methods used. Finally, what kind of impact cram school have on students’ achievements and their learning experience. To enforce this research the study has focused on previous studies’ samples, which addressed the potential function of cram schools and their academic impacts for adolescents in Taiwan (Chang & Yin, 2004).. 治政大For that purpose, eight in-depth on teacher’s and students’ cram school experience. 立 interviews were conducted on former cram school attendees; the respondents were. Additionally, the study conducted in-depth interviews to have more genuine opinions. ‧ 國. 學. approached through personal and online contacts. In order to give a deeper understanding of the former attendee’s experience, the researcher wanted to target the. ‧. following elements: the level of satisfaction the students’ achieved through their schooling, they felt they received, and their opinion on the cram school teaching. y. Nat. er. io. sit. method as a whole.. Due to the number of English cram schools, teachers and students involved in English. n. al. Ch. i n U. v. teaching/learning, this study has focused on the English language appeal in Taiwan.. engchi. The study hopes to allow a deeper analysis of the users’ understanding of their cram school activity in the perspective of drawing out the positive and negative outcomes of that experience. Finally, it will grant an opportunity to explain the potential and limits of cram schools in the Taiwanese society.. Stephen Krashen (2003) argues on the stereotypes people have on language learning. His argument will help the study to better understand English learning in cram school. According to Krashen, the need of outdoor experience to learn a language is necessary because language classes can only help students reach the intermediate stage, but they can continue improving on their own.. 5.

(13) Professor Chou and Yuan (2011) have presented two categories of cram schools in Taiwan that will help support this study through its explanation of the cram school phenomenon; the academic cram schools and those offering non-academic subjects. As explained by both authors, “The academic ones include those who only focus on the core school subjects Chinese, English, Math and Sciences. Most academic cram schools require that teachers hold at least a bachelor degree even though they hold higher academic degrees” (Chou and Yuan, 2011). Bigger size cram schools might hold over 100 students. The teachers usually lecture these classes. It exists another sort of supplementary education institutions known as, “an-chinban, employs teachers or supervisors whose main duty is to look after a group of children. 治政大 teaching program is not linked and Yuan, 2011). Finally, non-academic cram schools 立 to the regular school curriculum and provides talent and skill classes in specific (usually primary school level) to help them with homework and assignments” (Chou. ‧ 國. 學. subjects or courses (foreign language, music, art, dance, sports and other talentoriented activities).. ‧. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. 6. i n U. v.

(14) 1.5 Theoretical Framework. 政治大. 立. ‧. ‧ 國. 學 er. io. sit. y. Nat. n. a lDefinition 1.6 Term Ch. engchi. i n U. v. This section will provide the definition of terms that will be relevant to this study. Firstly, it is important to define exactly what a cram school is and in what ways the term will be used in this paper. Student learning and the term “learning” is used in this study as being different from memorization, then, as a more meaningful process (Entwistle & Ramsden, 2015). Student learning is growth in subject-matter knowledge, understandings, and skill over time (National Board for Professionals and Teaching Standards). The cram school learning experience is defined by Elrich (2003) as the actual living through an event, the real life by contrast to the ideal or imaginary, in this case 7.

(15) in cram school. We usually speak one’s person “experience” in terms of what actually happened to the person (Elrich, pp. 1126). A cram school is by definition “a private institution that uses an accelerated curriculum to prepare students mainly for school or university entrance examinations” (Oxford dictionary). Dewey (1938) defined Learning experiences as “often created through interaction. Therefore it is essential to regard schooling experiences as an interactive process referring to the ability of each individual to communicate and express oneself outside.” The English learning fever is a term that has been used few authors, and Stephen Krashen (2003) discussed about English as the world’s second language and defined the English learning fever as “The overwhelming desire to acquire English, ensure. 政治大. that one’s children acquire English as a second or fogreign language”.. 立. Academic achievement represents performance outcomes of a person that has. ‧ 國. 學. accomplished specific goals that were the focus of a specific activity. In this study, we will consider academic achievement as a learning performance on an educational. ‧. achievement focusing on tests and grades, hence examining what the student actually learned (Oxford Bibliographies, 2015).. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. 8. i n U. v.

(16) CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW In Taiwan, educational reforms have opened the Taiwanese education system in order to develop new perceptions of education and to improve the quality of teaching along with creating an environment fit for study. This chapter will elaborate on the nature of the cram school phenomenon in Taiwan, explaining the impact of educational reforms on these institutions and the emerging trends.. 2.1 Cram schools: A cultural phenomenon When discussing a phenomenon such as cram schools, it is a priority to look at the nature of the latter. Cultural factors have often been associated with education and. 政治大. have influenced many aspects of education. Researchers have largely discussed the. 立. nature of the cram school phenomenon in Taiwan as a cultural phenomenon. ‧ 國. 學. (Courtenay, 2013); (Chou, 2011) (Liu, 2011) where the term “culture” expresses the values of the people. Mark Mason quoted Williams who used an anthropological definition to define Culture as a concept of shared values and meanings, which are. ‧. common to all individuals of the same group (Mason, 2007). According to the. y. Nat. definition of culture, the previous statement can be further examined by the manner. io. sit. this institution expanded not only “in” but also “out” of the country. In fact, a part of. er. Taiwan, Courtenay (2013) found that a high presence of buxiban exist in the United. al. n. v i n C h setting. As mentioned buxiban phenomenon in a foreign e n g c h i U by the author, this suggests. States, where a large community of Taiwanese immigrants have re-created the that “culture” is a strong element and that the cram school phenomenon is arguably a cultural phenomenon reflecting a culture in both education and parenting.. Additionally, Chinese cultures see education as having a high value which should be pursued, Liu (2011) expands on this idea with a Chinese “saying”, « all pursuits except studying are of little value.» To avoid the pitfalls of stereotypes and treating cultures as monolithic we should, however, avoid the risks associated with overgeneralization, Mark Mason argued, “Whenever values are discussed collectively, they have to be examined in the context of individual choices of values” (Mason, 2007). Since Confucian times, one’s educational background is seen as the most important standard in evaluating a person's’ social level, while occupation and income 9.

(17) are argued to be less important. The pursuit of educational studies is impregnated in the culture and has become a traditional value in Taiwanese society. The “accepted” presence of cram schools can then be easily explained by the role and value that education takes in one’s culture. As Yi and Wu (2004) argued “as long as families are strong supporters for the good college diploma value, cram schools will continue to enjoy its irreplaceable market (Yi and Wu, 2004, p.10-3); (Liu, 2011).. These private institutions have expanded tremendously mostly because of observed cultural patterns. In more recent years, parents have shown putting greater expectations on children’s intellectual growth and capacity building, for that purpose, cram schools have initiated new accelerated courses in various subject areas to. 治政 previously argued, cram schools’ evolution could大 have been influenced by cultural 立 values and social patterns that Taiwanese society embraces. Interestingly, the. specifically meet public demands for academic achievement (Chou, 2011). As. ‧ 國. 學. educational reforms took another important role in cram school expansion in Taiwan and will be discussed in the next section.. ‧. Scholars have used the broad cultural factor to explain why private tutoring has been. y. Nat. sit. stronger in some countries than others and the influence of Confucianism and the. al. er. io. forces of globalization have both shaped private tutoring in Taiwan and other. n. Southeast Asian countries (Bray & Lykins, 2012, p. 24). There is a typical vision and. Ch. i n U. v. belief that Asian students have to study for long hours at school. This vision is part of. engchi. the Asian educational philosophy and the influence of Confucianism where education, social structure, and human networking constitute meaningful values for its society (Chou, 2014). Taiwan’s society is still ruled by a strong examination system which enhances drills and practices that reward hard work and effort. As a consequence, Taiwanese schools have followed these patterns regarding valuing efforts, persistence, and rigidity (Chou, 2014).. The strong presence of private tutoring in Taiwan and other Asian countries developed for specific reasons and can be explained through historical economic and social factors. Since the lifting of martial law in 1987, along with the falling birth rate, Taiwan has been exposed to a strong demand for manpower, which made tertiary 10.

(18) education accessible to all secondary graduates who wished to attend. These factors have led both Japan and Taiwan to experience a drastic increase in the number of senior high schools and universities (Mok, 2006; Chou & Ching, 2012). Accordingly, to the previous factors, in a society like Taiwan where the socio-economic advancement is rapid, high school students attending cram schools in Taiwan was exposed to a 20 % increase in the late 1970s to 50 % in the late 1990s (Chang, Yi). Indeed, high schools faced a consequent increase of enrolment from 1968, with 152,877 students compared with 403,183 students in 2009 (Chou & Ching, 2012). It was in 2014 the enrolment rate of secondary school students reached the highest point with 95.86 % (MOE, Educational Statistical Indicators, 2015). The number of universities and colleges in Taiwan rose from 105 in 1999 to 162 in 2008 (Bray &. 治政大 In areas like Taiwan, Hong the demand for supplementary education has intensified. 立 Kong and China, where postsecondary education is highly stratified, supplementary Lykins, 2012, p.24), and because of the high stratification of postsecondary education,. ‧ 國. 學. tutoring during the secondary years of schooling is likely to remain intense (Bray & Lykins, 2012, p.24).. ‧. According to an online report, a recent trend appeared in the city of Hong Kong. Nat. sit. y. where tutors were being promoted in the streets as ‘celebrities’. In a place like Hong. al. er. io. Kong where consumer culture is strong, the physical appearance of a tutor seems to. n. matter greatly. Students are now not only demanding their tutors be experienced with. Ch. i n U. v. high levels of expertise, but also that they are “attractive”, this, goes some way to. engchi. explain the on-going enthusiasm for celebrity tutors who have both attributes. The BBC interviewed Kelly Mok as she worked in one of Hong Kong’s largest tutorial establishments and they emphasised that a tutor’s physical appearance greatly influences one’s career in a country where tutoring is a daily activity.. In addition, Mark Bray (2012) argued in his interview that tutorial schools use star tutors to attract even more students. In fact, private tutoring establishments have a large advantage in keeping those tutors and promoting them to attract even more students. According to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Mark Bray noted that in societies where success equals getting good results in school, parental anxiety was said to convert into a “steady stream of revenue” for private tutoring establishments 11.

(19) (BBC news report, 2012). The celebrity tutor phenomenon is a result of the acceptance for out-of-school private supplementary tutoring.. In South Korea, China, Hong Kong, the phenomenon has been clearly identified. In Taiwan, the issue hasn’t been largely spoken in academic findings. However, the study is willing to find some similarities to the one of Hong Kong in conducting its own in-depth interviews. Can the Star tutor phenomenon be applied to the Taiwan cram school phenomenon?. When comparing Hong Kong and Taiwan, we can see that Taiwanese cram schools star tutors are less demonstrative in promoting their teachers/tutors in the street.. 治政大 English language teachers platforms who suggest a large number of native-speaking 立 and tutors in Taiwan such as the websites Myu.com.tw or Tealit.com. The. However, tutors are effectively promoted on the Internet via special tutoring. ‧ 國. 學. particularity of these platforms is the way it promotes the best tutors according to the participant’s geographical area, to its needs and budget. While observing My.com.tw. ‧. platform, it is clear that the more experience and positive comments a tutor receives on their “profile page,” the better they will be promoted in the section “Top tutors” of. y. Nat. er. io. sit. the online platform (Website: my.com.tw).. The “Star tutor” phenomenon is the indirect outcome drawn out of the cram school. n. al. Ch. i n U. v. phenomenon and this study sought to interview six cram school teachers to. engchi. understand whether they had perceived this “star tutor” phenomenon. In fact, the three foreign English teachers out of six mentioned the importance of the appearance of the teachers when getting hired in a cram school. This feature is particularly common to Hong Kong and Taiwan English cram schools, by which the “profile type” of an English teacher must be Caucasian and the more attractive, the better. One of our teachers, who has been a cram school teacher for thirteen years, noted that the attitude towards the importance of one’s appearance was the same as when he began teaching thirteen years ago. Moreover, schools, parents and children praise the development of other skills such as; learning skills, having good interactions with students, maintaining discipline in class or Chinese ability.. 12.

(20) 2.1.1 Impact of educational reforms on cram schools Past educational reforms resulted in the expansion of cram schools in Taiwan and to a greater extent on the diversification of the breadth of these institutions. Here, we will discuss the educational reforms’ that occurred in Taiwan and their role in the cram school expansion period.. The 9 Year National Compulsory Education Act 1968 in which the central government had envisioned the foundation of the country’s education development and achievement was implemented using alternative methods (p.356, Chou & Ho, 2007); (Liu, 2011). These methods were used to help with entering senior high. 政治大. schools and universities, which had caused students to attend cram schools earlier in their childhood to gain new skills (Liu, 2011). The new policy caused great. 立. disagreements among Taiwanese citizens, as many believed it added extra pressure on. ‧ 國. 學. children and according to Liu (2001), some people in Taiwan felt displeasure and had anxiety towards cram schools, which hosted elementary and middle school teachers. ‧. and was thought of as « Evil cramming.» Since then, all levels of education institutions have experienced dramatic growth in student and school numbers. er. io. sit. y. Nat. including cram schools, in spite of the controversy.. So, how can we explain this shift in perceptions towards cram schooling? Are cram. n. al. i n U. v. schools offering the extra-learning expected along with, a quality learning. Ch. engchi. environment that results in better academic achievement? Also, how has the government shifted its plans to reduce the attraction of cram schools? Many researchers have argued that the Taiwanese educational reforms are greatly favoured by the cram school expansion.. In the 1990s, a national education plan was described by Chou & Ching (2012, p.72), as the most comprehensive education reform policy that Taiwan had ever encountered and faced numbers of complaints from the society bringing the education reform to re-organize its plans. In 1996, the council, led by Lee Yuan-Tze had the mission to create Taiwan’s future educational master plan to respond accordingly to the demand of the twenty-first century. Twelve mandates were planned and intended to “cultivate Taiwan’s outstanding talents, encourage lifelong learning, and enhance Taiwan 13.

(21) international competitiveness in an emerging “knowledge-based society” (Chou & Ho, 2007). In 1999, the so-called “New Thought, New Action and New Vision” was announced during a conference to develop a new perception over education (Chou and Ching, 2012), which was requested for revision. As a new attempt to meet with the society’s ideals, the Minister of Education (MOE) decided to undergo another conference promoting the creation of a happy, learning environment, “to inspire educational innovative motivating power, and nurture dynamic, creative and competitive new citizens of the E-Generation” (Chou & Ching, 2012). In the 1990s, the main goal was to promote “Diversity” and “Excellence” in the next education policy, meaning to. 治政 reform of primary and secondary courses, the大 expansion of high schools and 立 universities to a greater extent.. offer good quality education and valorising excellent performance which brought the. ‧ 國. 學. The core of the early 1990s reform plans included: “deregulating governmental. ‧. control over education, exempting education from unnecessary constraints, protecting children’s and student’s right to learn, respecting parent’s right to choose the. Nat. sit. y. education patterns and paths for their children and finally, guaranteeing teachers’. er. io. professional autonomy. Facilitate lifelong learning was expected to have that greatest impact on reducing students’ stress that resulted from exams (Chou & Ching, 2012).. n. al. Ch. i n U. v. The Educational reforms’ occurred in Taiwan in the 1990s intended to elevate more. engchi. innovative and creative citizens for their preparation in the twenty-first century but also attempted to decrease cram school demand.. The Taipei government Department of Education (DOE) launched a program to revise senior high school entrance exams (Entrance exam reform stirs controversy, 1992) which intended to terminate the city’s joint exam for senior high entrance and hoped to ease the trend by which local parents are sending their teenagers to cram schools seeking for better opportunities to enter the star schools. Since 1990, the program showed efficacy in its exercise, involving more than 800 Taipei junior high students after two years in action. Nonetheless, researchers have found that during that period a high number of registered wen-li buxiban (literature and science cram schools) 14.

(22) expanded from 1,844 in 1999 to 9,344 in 2008 in Taiwan (as cited in Bray & Lykins, 2012, p. 7); (Liu, 2012). Taiwan educational reform faced a controversial situation when the intentions to reduce the attraction of cram schools’ didn’t transpire. 2.1.2 Attempt of decreasing cram school Reducing the impact of cram school is not singular to Taiwan, it has also been observed in other East Asian countries such as in South Korea. The South Korean government first attempted a prohibition on private tutoring, in 1980 that was enforceable. The exercise to ban tutoring reflects the worries that tutoring puts too much pressure on students, this is reflected by the fact that teachers have observed. 政治大. pupils falling asleep during the class. The South Korean government adopted measures to limit the time spent in these centers to reduce childhood stress but also as. 立. mentioned in the BBC newspaper, as an attempt to “increase the level of creative. ‧ 國. 學. thinking” (Meet the tutor kings and queens, 2012). The impact of those policies has somehow only been limited in results as in the same way for Taiwan. Instead, it. ‧. greatly diversified the possibilities for tutoring. In fact, these reforms helped cram schools’ diversification rather than hindered. Now, cram schools have even allowed. sit. y. Nat. students to seek both academic subjects and non-academic subjects as a result (Bray. io. n. al. er. & Lykins, 2012).. i n U. v. As mentioned previously, the Taiwan education system has for a long time been. Ch. engchi. blamed for wrongdoing in its attempts to reduce cram schooling. By that, Taiwan has shown a more “laissez-faire” attitude (Bray & Kwo, p. 12) compared with the South Korean government, which explains why the reforms haven’t revealed success in action. Bray & Lykins (2012) discuss another interesting fact about why the Taiwan government reforms were aimed to discourage students from attending a cram school. The authors argue that the Taiwan government tried to reduce narrow and passive learning habits by opening new pathways and diversifying the education system. In fact, the authors discusses the shadow education and private tutoring and argues that they are encouraging such learning habits. Cram schools are a form of private tutoring according to Bray & Lykins, that tends to focus on narrow domains of achievement (Bray & Lykins, 2012). Throughout this argument, the Taiwan government has good reasons to wish to reduce cram schooling, even though its attempts have largely 15.

(23) demonstrated implicit concerns towards the cram school issue, it can be explained by the fact that cram school teaching methods can encourage narrow and passive learning habits.. Recently, the MOE argued about supplementary education and continuing education as “providing extensive and comprehensive learning opportunities for the general public” (Ministry of Education, 2013/2014 p.9). This statement shows a shift in the authorities’ plans previously trying to reduce cram school attraction to a more “accepting” attitude towards the cram school industry and its role as offering new learning opportunities for students. The government seems to have accepted cram schools to work in parallel for student’s learning achievement. This suggests that. 治政大(2011) mentioned, cram schools results in students’ academic achievements. As Liu 立 do help in the academic improvement of school children and cram schooling does cram schools may offer an attractive environment and set of subjects that guarantees. ‧ 國. 學. have a clear positive influence on students’ academic performance (Liu, p. 7). From that perspective, cram schools are well accepted in the society because they bring. ‧. greater results.. Nat. sit. y. Taiwan governments’ plans to improve the current educational system through major. al. er. io. educational reforms have shown results in considerable increase in school attendance. n. so as in private cram schools. By demonstrating implicitly his concern about reducing. Ch. i n U. v. cram school attendance, there is no doubt that the Taiwan government hasn’t shown a. engchi. clear or strong “enough” position towards that issue. As mentioned previously, there is a clear “laissez-faire” attitude by the authorities towards cram schools that has turned into a form of acceptance by default. Finally, we can say that educational reforms have had an unconsidered impact on cram schools’ expansion in Taiwan. When the subject matter is cram school and its expansion, there is a significant need to show the size of the industry and what it represents.To demonstrate the size of the industry in Taiwan, the study turned to look at previous research on registered buxibans and its attendance to give an overall vision of the phenomenon. According to Zeng (1999), the Taiwan Ministry of Education (MOE) calculated the income of the academic buxiban in 1992 and was equivalent to US$212 million, in comparison with Japan’s market size juku of US$13 million. Recent data showed an increase in 16.

(24) the number of registered buxibans from 1997 with 3076 establishments (MOE, 2012) and now reports more than 18,929 registered buxibans in 2011 (Courtenay, 2013) which 15,248 focuses on traditional school subjects such as Chinese, English and the Sciences (Bray & Kwo, 2014).. Supplementary tutoring including cram schooling duty takes effectively a large space in the students’ everyday agenda. According to Bray & Lykins’ findings, the educational panel survey in 2001, covered 20,000 high school students and indicated that 72.9 % of grade 7 students were receiving tutoring of an average of 6.5 hours a week (Bray & Lykins’s Box 1, 2012). Chou (2008) affirmed the average high-school student is said to spend half of his day on attending school and cram school. Also, the. 治政大the first part, it is clear that the junior high schools (Chou, 2014). As we argued in 立 perception towards tutoring from an early age has shifted to become more than. large majority of students (84 %) enrolled in cram schools are from elementary and. ‧ 國. 學. “accepted,” a normal element of the pupils’ daily school routine.. ‧. According to Yi (2013), since the compulsory education was upgraded to junior high level from 1968, cram schools have been highly upgraded to junior high level. Cram. y. Nat. sit. schooling in Taiwan is characterized by high attendance rates during junior and senior. al. er. io. high school (Yi said there were over 80% of students who have ever attended cram. n. school). The same author argued that around the year 2000, half of junior high. Ch. i n U. v. students attended cram school, and similarly with a local Taiwanese online newspaper. engchi. which showed the MOE’s survey results, more than 15 years later in 2016; in average more than half of senior high school students in Taiwan still attend a cram school. Among the 50%, around 80% came from the most prestigious high schools in Taiwan, which implies that cram schooling is highly oriented toward competition and remains prevalent in the society from early 2000 until nowadays (Focus Taiwan, 2016); (Yi, 2013).. The past thirty years have seen a rapid expansion of testing, exposing students worldwide to tests that are standardized and linked to high-stakes outcomes (Smith, 2016). The nature of testing can be described as the global testing culture, which is argued as shaping education policy, perceptions, and practice and is marked by large17.

(25) scale standardized tests in the global arena. The participation of countries in international assessments has largely contributed to the growth of the Global testing culture (Smith, 2016). In many educational systems, the major determinant by which students go to cram school is the final examination. The push-out stage is at the end of secondary education, and this is when parents invest the most in supplementary education (Bray & Lykins, 2012). 2.1.3 New measures to improve teacher education “Standards-based teacher education has become a crucial policy instrument to improve teacher quality” Keng & Huang. In 2005, the proposal for Improving. 政治大. Teacher Education, ROC launched the five dimensions of teacher education as a role to develop teacher education innovation. In 2012, the White Paper on Teacher. 立. Education released its main goals to build new standards. Also in the White paper on. ‧ 國. 學. Creative Education released in 2012 by the MOE argued about the necessity of teacher training programs (both pre-service or in-service) to emphasis on the. ‧. importance of cultivating creativity in the educational process. Additionally, to the teaching changes, the creativity curriculum and materials want to be “embedded and. sit. y. Nat. integrated into every subject matter and into everyday life, but designing curriculum to adapt to different situations and the needs of every educational stage or level”. io. n. al. er. (MOE, Creativity White Paper). This study’s reflection towards training teachers and. i n U. v. developing teacher education is crucial, especially if we are to understand the. Ch. engchi. remaining issues around teachers not being able to use creative methods to teach in Taiwan, which, slows down the development of creative citizens. Taiwan Ministry of Education recognizes “the need to implement educational reforms targeting international education for its primary and secondary schools. Providing educational opportunities and an integrated global curriculum will allow children to become familiar with the role that Taiwan plays on the international stage and within the international community. The goal for policy, educators and parents are to build a strong foundation for international education in primary and secondary levels, so as to empower our youth with useful and creative skills and methods to respond to the opportunities and the challenges that will come before them in the future.” (Developing 21st Competencies for Our Next Generation, 2012). 18.

(26) The global market has indeed brought more competitive mind-sets shifting from cost efficiency and mass production to fostering human resources and creativity for a stronger and workable foundation of 21st-century youth (White paper on International Education for Primary and Secondary Schools, 2012). According to the “White Paper for Cultivating Active Young People” published in 2012 by the MOE, there are concrete development strategies regarding the legal foundation, curricula, and instruction, physical fitness and regular exercise, leisuretime activities, healthier lifestyle, sports facilities, and the selection of training of talented activities.. 治政大 to resolve slow birth rate, a White paper in a 12-year curriculum for Basic Education 立 social changes, overextended colleges or universities, in Taiwanese elementary and According to Chen & Fan (2014), after the Taiwan’s Ministry of Education suggested. ‧ 國. 學. junior high schools, they examined the necessity of “empowering the learners to learn” based on the ideas of a “Learner-centred Education”. This way of teaching has been. ‧. described as being a source of larger changes and challenges in the teaching class environment. The new curriculum and challenges are titled “Facilitate Self–. Nat. sit. y. actualization, adaptive learning to individual fulfillment, and life long learning”, the. al. er. io. general guidelines should be implemented at the beginning of 2018 (Chen & Fan,. n. 2016). Also, there is a considerable effort from the Taiwan Ministry of Education to. Ch. i n U. v. enforce new ways of improving Taiwanese education, but until this day a “learner-. engchi. centred education” or “adaptive learning for individual fulfillment” in Taiwan can only be described as a slogan which hasn’t yet been implemented effectively in schools.. 2.2 Teaching methods and English language in Taiwan 2.2.1 Emerging trends and teaching methods There has been a huge increase in English immersion learning environment for the younger generation in Taiwan with the due so-called “English-learning fever” (Chen, 2004: 8). In 2002 in a bid to increase Taiwan’s competitiveness, the former premier DPP Yu Shyi-kun announced the Six-Year National Development Plan to form 19.

(27) Taiwan into an English-friendly environment. Taiwan government encouraged English learning by launching a variety of programs and by extending the education age group to both younger and older citizens. According to the Minister of Education Huang Jung-tsuen, who is highly dedicated to making English the second official language, he clearly stated that as a secondary goal (after encouraging the whole nation to learn English as a second language) there would be a “push for online English learning” as well (Taipei Times, English to be Made official). The Ministry affirmed that kindergarten curriculums should contain English as a small part of the instruction and emphasized that English learning should be an auxiliary subject and not part of the main objective of the children’s education.. 治政大age. Though, the policy ensured as their knowledge acquisition is only limited at that 立 that Chinese language education would not be undermined. Also, it was argued to be The MOE policy was then criticized as “inappropriate” for children in the first grade. ‧ 國. 學. overwhelming, and shown reluctance among certain pre-schools which did not provide English instruction in their kindergarten. The schools failing to adapt rapidly. ‧. to offer English in their curriculum were forced to close down as the English learning trend expanded among preschools in the country (Peng, 2004). Preschool educational. y. Nat. sit. experts have strongly advised that young children should not? be sent to cram schools. al. er. io. in order to learn English as the environments have so often been criticized as not. n. equally suitable compared with the ones in regulated kindergartens. According to the. Ch. i n U. v. Ministry of Education in 2004, the English Language Industry in Taiwan is estimated. engchi. between 20-25 billion New Taiwan Dollars (US$590-738 million). According to the Ministry of Education in collaboration with Research, Development and Evaluation Commission, and Executive Yuan agencies, a Plan for Enhancing National English Proficiency was implemented from 2010 to 2016. The total funding required for this plan is estimated to be around NT$600 million revealing the considerable importance for Taiwan to cultivate specialists with strong English language capabilities to “enhance market competitiveness and support the process of internationalization” (MOE, 2012). As Stephen Karshen (2003) argues on approaches to English fever, they often “offer English to very young children if not require it and provide a lot of it.” He then quotes Liu (2002) that said studying English in Taiwan was an “national obsession” and the 20.

(28) demand for students to begin English as early as possible, are high. He finally argued that English is a “popular subject in cram schools, where in 2000, about 29% of all primary school students were studying at cram schools.” This study is bringing into discussion the cram school teaching methods as they may largely affect the students’ learning experience, and as Liu mentioned: “Cram school does matter in students’ learning achievement” (Liu, 2011). It cannot be assumed that private tutoring always results in learning gains; both Bray & Lykins (2012) said much depends on the motivation, attitudes, and teaching styles of the tutors.. When discussing about teaching methods used, two main opposed features prevail;. 政治大. teacher-centred and student-centred teaching methods. In order to better understand the teaching methods in cram schools, the study will concisely describe both of them.. 立. Debeor argued about those features in a quest to find a sensible balance between both.. ‧ 國. 學. The first one is an emphasis on “rigor and accountability through high stakes testing, benchmarks, and national and state-developed performance standards”. And for the. ‧. other is “the effort to develop student-centred approaches to teaching and learning, what some would call constructive pedagogy” (Debeor, 2002, p. 2). According to. sit. y. Nat. Concordia Online Education’s (2016) article discussing on both teaching methods, the teacher-centred teaching method tends to focus on the teacher in which students. io. n. al. er. mainly listen to the teacher’s lecture. The advantages of such practice are diverse, it is. i n U. v. said to help classrooms to be kept in order, and teachers retains full control of. Ch. engchi. students in the classroom and during activities. As students learn by themselves, they become more independent as they make their own decisions, and there is a guarantee that students will not miss out important facts. As for conversation wise, they might suffer from a lack of practice in communicating. Also it does not allow students to express themselves fully or take the initiative to ask questions or direct their own learning. The instructions can be boring and lead students to wonder off and miss out on important facts (Concordia Online Education, 2016; Teacher-centred vs. learnercentred paradigms, 2000).. Concerning student-centred teaching methods, the main difference compared with the previous method is the sharing of the focus; group work is often encouraged to allow students to learn how to collaborate with one another. They learn to communicate 21.

(29) through group work; they learn how to direct their own learning, ask questions and complete tasks independently. Students will be more interested in learning through activities and by participating actively. However, the inconveniences of such methods as needing to remain in the environment, which can often be busy, noisy and sometimes chaotic. The teacher may then be challenged to manage all students working on different stages of the project, which can be difficult. Sometimes, the teacher might forget to deliver information to all students, and some may miss important facts. For the students that prefer to work alone, group work can be challenging for them (Concordia Online Education, 2016; Teacher-centred vs. learner-centred paradigms, 2000).. 治政大 Teachers, who have tried the teacher-centred for the most part (Goh & Khine, 2002). 立 student-centred method, argued that lecturing students are the most efficient way to. The Taiwanese Education system’s teaching method has been discussed as being. ‧ 國. 學. teach students; because of the current test-driven education system in Taiwan, using the teacher-centred method is more suitable for students to get better scores in the. ‧. examination. Like many of Taiwan’s Asian counterparts, students spend a large amount of time in schools and sometimes studying from early childhood to their early. y. Nat. sit. twenties (Chou, 2014). According to a BBC news report on Education, Chinese. er. io. students spend in average 12 hours in a school environment (Chinese schools ‘robbing young of individuality, October 2015). In Taiwan, students similarly attend. n. al. Ch. i n U. v. cram school classes around three to four hours per day in average (The China Post,. engchi. 2016). Students’ schedule is tight, and they work very hard at school, so teachers have to adapt their teaching methods according to fit the needs of the students. As mentioned in Creating positive environments in Taiwan, enhancing students’ to discussions during class is said to bring too much noise and adds difficulties for the teacher to control the class. Taiwan Education has been for decades an adept of the teacher-centred Education because argued as “the most practical way to cover the content in the given time frame” (p.225, Goh & Khine). 2.2.2 Expanding the cram school teaching methods Cram school teachers have used note taking and repetition as the main teaching method for decades. Despite the persistence of using such methods, the arrival of new 22.

(30) material, ways of teaching (online teaching) so as an acknowledgment towards the necessity of enhancing creative citizens, cram schools have experienced major developments.. While some popular cram school institutions are constantly trying out new ways of attracting students’ attention, the Taiwanese online tutoring market is expanding. Indeed, the Internet gathers many and various teaching/learning platforms designed for students who need tutoring, cram schools looking for teachers or teachers looking for an opportunity to teach. Nowadays, English tutors in Taiwan can be pitched through the different platforms available online.. 治政大 demand for tutoring to create advantage of the influence of the Internet, and the strong 立 what we call “e-learning” businesses. This new way of tutoring has not only improved Since the arrival of the Internet and new technology, cram schools have taken. ‧ 國. 學. the options for students who desire to improve their abilities in a subject but has also allowed them to access custom-designed material for students who request special. ‧. classes. To illustrate our argument, we found that the publication company, American Magazine Center (AMC) was established in 1979, and started from a single magazine. y. Nat. sit. but has now expanded to include English and online material for younger students and. al. er. io. adults. The AMC e-learning classes are designed to be an after-class support for the. n. student with a 45-minute online conversation. All material is edited from the. Ch. i n U. v. company’s monthly magazines and textbooks, which provides new content on a. engchi. regular basis. In the Language school, the students’ age group is expanding to include more adults than in the past. Now the language center offers different curriculum because the majority of their students are working class or students preparing for English-ability exams such as TOEFL, IELTS, etc. Cram schools have increasingly embraced online tutoring, and the students enrolled in distance programs are rapidly rising. There is a clear fact that online teaching/learning is getting more and more popular nationwide.. According to Kao (2010), E-learning platforms have indeed become an increasing trend. His research has shown that online tutoring is beneficial for the students’ language learning ability but also that it “helped students have more interaction with 23.

(31) teachers, can make them feel safe to ask questions and can help them understand the parts that they didn’t understand.” If online teaching is an efficient support to students’ motivation to learn, and it helps improve their English learning skills, the higher chances that cram schools continue to expand their afterschool learning classes providing online tutoring. 2.2.3 Under-regulated aspects and quality teaching in debate In Taiwanese cram schools, we often encounter different staff members working together or individually on certain tasks. In order to clarify the working positions in. 政治大. Cram schools, by explaining the different positions: teachers, teacher assistants, and tutors; will allow the study to look deeper into the quality teaching and teaching. 立. methods in Cram school.. ‧ 國. 學. Firstly, a teacher holds the position of the lecturer, gives recitation sessions and is the. ‧. one in charge of lecturing the lesson. A teacher assistant then helps the lecturer with tasks such as handing out papers, grading homework but doesn’t imply a significant. sit. y. Nat. lecturing responsibility. However, tutors have a slightly different role than that of. io. er. teachers. A tutor is, in fact, a private instructor who will provide additional or special instruction for students and is often outside of the classroom environment. Mark Bray. n. al. i n U. v. (2014) said that some of the tutors are students and teachers taking on additional work,. Ch. engchi. which requires no specific teaching certificate or even experience to complete the task, but preferably a strong knowledge on the subject of tutoring. Having no specific teaching certificate while teaching can be seen as illegal in certain countries or “accepted” in others. In Taiwan, one of the reasons cram schools employ uncertified English teachers is because of the high demand from parents and students to learn the English language.. It is a matter of fact that cram schools are the result of the mainstream education particularities as Bray argued, almost all societies put greater attention on the mainstream education rather than on its shadow. Much tutoring is provided one-toone, but other forms of tutoring include lessons with small groups, and tutoring in larger classes. For instance, Internet tutoring through recorded lessons are common in 24.

(32) some countries in Asia such as Hong Kong, however, from a regulation perspective, it is a challenge to control as it is received in the privacy of the participant.. On the other hand, it is interesting to note that from the perspective of cram schools providing quality education, much more could be regulated to provide a better teaching and learning environments. It is in fact, still problematic and unrealistic to talk about cram schools as providing quality teaching or quality learning environment. Bray stated that the governments have the obligation to ensure that their citizens receive good education from whatever source it is provided, the author meant by ensuring that “teaching staff, facilities, equipment, and materials are the best quality that can be provided with available funds” and some forms of regulations should be. 政治大. needed at least in terms of providing good-quality providers (p. 25, Bray).. 立. From this studies’ field research, the author has encountered a few local and foreign. ‧ 國. 學. cram school teachers and tutors in Taiwan who have never received any form of training prior teaching, nor have an official teaching certificate in hand. The fact that. ‧. some cram schools may not require teachers with such a degree of certification may reveal under regulated aspects of the institutions not only because they are teachers. y. Nat. sit. offering their knowledge but also because the individuals may not be reliable and may. al. er. io. cause security issues for the families. In each country or state, becoming a teacher. n. requires a certain number of requirements which are gained by completing a teacher. Ch. i n U. v. preparation program or alternative program. Even though the preparation for. engchi. becoming a teacher is different, obtaining a teaching certificate or license is a way to justify the teacher’s ability to teach students professionally on the teacher’s subject of expertise.. While the public sector is still failing and no solutions have been found, students are still largely attending these private institutions around 94,339 according to the China Post (July, 2016). It is a certainty that more careful attention to improving the education system is necessary before looking at the private sector would allow fewer students to look for private tutoring in the first place. The current situation makes cram schools more than often the student’s best and only option to gain the required knowledge to pass the examination. The quality teaching and learning in cram school 25.

(33) cannot be guaranteed, and it reveals that seeking for quality is not to become a priority. Even though cram schools may not assert to offer quality education, there is a real need to look deeper at how these institutions can impact students in terms of experience and learning outcomes to understand the impact of such a phenomenon.. 2.3 The impacts of cram schools and their teaching methods 2.3.1 Learning in cram schools Such class is often ruled by the “No Chinese” speaking rule during class, which does not allow students from speaking any Chinese language during the class and use. 政治大. English language. This way of learning is actually doubled-edged for two reasons; on first hand, speaking in the language taught during the class will bring students to. 立. practice a lot more their oral speaking and comprehension in order to gain. ‧ 國. 學. automatisms and fluid speaking habits. On the other hand, according to Hammond’s (2013) press article a former cram school teacher in Taiwan, students may also. ‧. develop bad habits from such way of learning. The author talked about establishing a fundamental framework before forcing kids to speak in English, as a way, that allow. y. Nat. students to properly invent and create their own sentences and prevent them from. io. sit. developing bad habits that can be hard to “unlearn” (Hammond, 2013). The author. n. al. er. argues that “the “No Chinese” rule expectation is reasonable and can reinforce good. i n U. v. speaking habits; the latter is also illogical and reinforces bad English” shows the. Ch. engchi. complexity by which researchers need to understand the different learning outcomes in order to legitimize the cram school learning methods.. The idea is to show that cram schools may promote their institute as enhancing greater learning abilities for children where parents believe putting their children in cram school is the right thing to do. The high attendance in cram school reveals the strong implementation of those institutions in one’s nation and yet its efficiency in attracting new students every year. Students’ intense schooling through rote learning, note taking and repetition is regarded as a normal effort to achieve academic success. Yet, the teaching method needs to be closely examined in order to understand the high utilization of rote-memorization/learning in Asian culture.. 26.

(34) Rote learning in Taiwanese schools is a common method “we agree that Taiwanese schools place too much emphasis on rote learning and not enough on creativity and independent thought” (China Post July, 2016).. According to Biggs (1987), how a student learns depends on presage factors related to both the person and the learning environment. Students learn to influence their academic performance. The education system where grades are an important element of their achievement often rewards superficial learning outcomes (having a good grade but without a proper understanding of the content). The more students are selfconfident, the more they will focus on deeper approaches to understanding. The paradox of the Asian learner that Biggs argues as a Western misperception of. 治政 learning outcomes than expected. When looking at大 students from Hong Kong, Japan, 立 Singapore, or Taiwan outperform, there is a realization especially in Maths and Confucian learning culture leads us to understand that rote learning can lead to better. ‧ 國. 學. science studies that our misperception over rote learning as being uniquely memorizing, is false. Memorizing and understanding are not seen as separate, both. y. Nat. Krashen (2003) argues about the. sit. Speaking of approaches to learning, Stephen. ‧. complement to each other and are required.. al. er. io. stereotypes people have of language learning. His argument will be outlined below. n. and helps the study better understand English learning in cram schools. Indeed, he. Ch. i n U. v. further explains that the role of language classes is not to produce error-free. engchi. performance and complete understanding of all rules of grammar (which implies that grades cannot be all the matter), but that it is a “a pure “skill-building” view of language acquisition. One can presume that direct instruction, exercises and drills are the only true path, and he predicts that use of the language outside the classroom is a “waste of time.” (Krashen, 2003). According to Krashen, as stated previously, the need of outdoor experience to learn a language is necessary as language classes will only help students reach the intermediate stage. Teachers cannot then assume their students to be fully fluent after they have only studied in classrooms.. The rote-learning method is part of the testing-oriented education in Asian culture and has shown its successful outcomes in certain domains. And this type of education 27.

(35) might have influenced the instruction styles and the way students think without the ability to read and think critically: “too much lecturing, not enough action” Chen & Fan (2014). “Taiwan students are among the most successful but their attitudes and levels of confidence are much lower than students’ in other areas such as Europe” (Chen & Fan, 2014).. From 1997 to now, Taiwan has conserved a monopole in sciences, where the knowledge of students is one of the highest. Taiwanese students keep ahead having high scores in Mathematics. However, the Chen and Fan (2014) argue about a space is needed for improvement such as in reasoning, identifying issues, and utilizing evidence: “It is said that one important function of schools is to connect the children. 治政 students to link what they have learned to their 大 environment”. Students may also 立 suffer from physical fatigue and pressure from an intense studying lifestyle: “In High to the real world. Often, test-oriented system, instruction and materials do not allow. ‧ 國. 學. schools, students reveal learning fatigue, lack of motivation to read, and lack of stamina” (Chen & Fan, 2016). The previous discussions have given us the opportunity. ‧. to understand rote learning as being an aspect of the Asian culture and of the testing-. sit. io. 2.3.2 Cram school function as both useful and problematic. n. al. er. Nat. y. oriented education.. i n U. v. The cram school teaching methods may largely affect the students’ learning and. Ch. engchi. experience as a whole, and as Liu mentioned: “Cram school does matter in students’ learning achievement” (Liu, 2011). But it cannot be assumed that private tutoring always results in learning gains. Both Bray & Lykins (2012) said much depends on the motivation, attitudes, and teaching styles of the tutors.. Education should not be used to integrate the young into the logic of the present system but to help them change it into something that is more consistent with their existential humanity” (Debeor, 1001, P. 2). The dimension of learning for the sake of taking tests has been very much discussed and throughout our interviews, we acknowledged that some students would like to receive the class’s content and be able to link with their own experience.. 28.