The first episode of BBC documentary series Are Our Kids Tough Enough ? (A screenshot from BBC website)
(ECNS) -- More than half of the Chinese people polled in a new survey prefer Western to Chinese style schooling during the basic education period, according to the China Youth Daily.
The survey, conducted by the newspaper and wenjuan.com, covered 3,000 participants, 69.1 percent of whom think the Chinese way of education is study/exam-oriented.
Only 44.8 percent agreed that Chinese basic education lays a solid foundation for comprehensive knowledge. Fewer participants, 42.3 percent, have chosen it for their children.
Words like "tension," "low profile" and "obedience" were used to describe Chinese education by 39.2 percent of participants, while 37.3 used "sense of competition."
Nearly 21 percent said that students feel less tension with increasing school years.
Western style education was preferred by 53.9 percent of participants, who said it will benefit children more.
As many as 66.4 percent praised the inspirational and encouraging practices of Western education. The ability to analyze and deal with problems, freedom, confidence, and innovation were cited by about 60 percent of respondents in regard to Western style education.
Cooperation and emphasis on sports were also noted by respondents.
