Đề thi tuyển sinh vào lớp 10 môn tiếng Anh (Chuyên) năm học 2015-2016 trường THPT Chuyên Sư Phạm, Hà Nội

There is a strange paradox to the success of the Asian education model. On the one hand, class sizes are huge by western standards with on average between 30 and 40 students per class in countries like Japan and Korea. On the other hand, school children in developed Asian economies rank among the highest in the world for academic achievement in the areas of science and mathematics, especially on standardised tests. Meanwhile, British secondary school students fail to shine in conditions most educational researchers would say are far more likely to help them succeed.

Why do Asian students seem to perform so well then? Is it their legendary discipline? Certainly, classroom management seems to be a whole lot easier in places like Korea, and perhaps lessons are more effective as a direct consequence. After all, we are only too aware of the decline in discipline standards in our own schools; belligerent and disrespectful students appear to be the norm these days. Teachers in Britain seem powerless to control what happens any more. Surely this situation cannot create a very effective learning environment, so perhaps the number of students is far less relevant than is the manner in which they conduct themselves.

But there are other factors to consider, too. Korean students spend a lot more time with their teachers. It seems logical to suggest, therefore, that they might form stronger bonds and greater trust, and that Korean teachers, in understanding their pupils better, might be able to offer them a more effective learning programme. Of course, trust and understanding leads to greater respect as well, so Korean students are probably less likely to ignore their teachers’ advice.

Then there is the home environment. The traditional family unit still remains relatively intact in Korea. Few children come from broken homes, so there is a sense of security, safety and trust both at home and at school. In Britain meanwhile, one in every two marriages fails and divorce rates are sky-high. Perhaps children struggle to cope with unstable family conditions and their only way to express their frustration is by misbehaving at school. Maybe all this delinquent behaviour we are complaining about is just a cry for help and a plea for attention.

But while the Japanese, Korean and Asian models generally do seem to produce excellent results, the statistics don’t tell the truth. Asian sludents tend to put their education before literally everything else. They do very few extracurricular activities and devote far more time to their studies than their British peers. And this begs the question: is all that extra effort justified for a few extra percentage points in some meaningless international student performance survey? So Asian students are on average 3-5% better at maths than Britons – big deal! What is their qualily of life like? Remember, school days are supposed to be the best, are they not?

There has been a lot of attention and praise given to these Asian models and their impressive statistics of late. And without question, some of this praise is justified, but it seems to be a case of two extremes in operation here. At one end, there is the discipline and unbelievably hard work ethic of the Asian students success in education before all else. At the other end, Brilish students at times appear careless and extremely undisciplined by comparison, but at least they DO have the free time to enjoy their youth and explore their interests. Is either system better outright? Or is it perhaps about time we stopped comparing and started trying to combine the best bits of both, so that we can finally offer our students a balanced, worthwhile education? We are not just dealing with statistics; never forget that every statistic is a little human being somewhere who desperately needs our help and guidance - who deserves it.

When Pamela Janett left university to become a primary school teacher, it was by no (31)...... easy to find a job. She therefore decided to go abroad as a volunteer teacher for a year. When she realized she would be teaching deaf and blind children, she was a (32)...... taken aback. But after a month's training she felt more confident that she would be able to cope with the situation. The basic living conditions also (33)...... as something of a shock. Pamela's school was situated in a remote Ethiopian village, where her accommodation (34) ...... of one room and a shared bathroom. Not only was the space cramped, but there was no electricity, Internet or telephone access, so she felt totally cut (35)...... from the outside world. Now back home in Britain, Pamela has used her (36) ...... experience to set up a similar school for the deaf and blind which has made a huge (37)...... to dozens of children who would (38)...... find themselves struggling to learn. She is now concentrating her efforts on (39)...... her school to cater for children with other learning difficulties, too. It seems as if the more people get to know her, the (40)..... the demand is for her skills.

Last summer I took a three-week survival course. The purpose of the course was (41. teach) ..... us how to survive outdoors, where there are no shops, no houses and no electricity. I had never slept outdoors before the course, and here I was (42. learn) ..... to make a fire, navigate and find food in the forest. The part that I (43. like) ..... the most was catching our own fish and cooking them over a fire. While (44. do) ..... the course, I realised how much people (45. depend) .....on modern technology. They think that they can't survive without it. but they can if they (46. learn) ..... how. I did! I (47. never forget) .....that course - it was the greatest experience I (48. ever have) ..... so far. Now I think if I (49. not take).....the survival course, I (50. not be) ..... able to deal with so many difficult situations in life.

When people talk about contemporary culture they are just as likely to be talking about fast cars, trainers or high heels as they are to be talking about Shostakovich or Shakespeare.

Goods have become as (51. MEAN) ..... a measure and marker of culture as the Great and the Good. The word "culture" can now cover just about anything. Culture is no longer merely the beautiful and (52. SINGLE) ….... until the late twentieth century that a (53. SCHOLAR)....interest in objects began to (54. PLACE)…....the traditional interest in -isms, with historians, (55. LITERATE).... critics and philosophers all suddenly becoming fascinated by the meaning of objects, large and small. Is this a sign, perhaps, of a society cracking under the strain of too many things?

Our current (56. OBSESSIVE)......with material culture, one might argue, is simply a (57. RESPOND) to the Western crisis of abundance. There are obvious problems with this (58. MATERIAL) ....conception of culture. If our experience of everyday life is so (59 SATISFY) ......, then how much more so is the (60. SPECTATOR)... of our everyday things under scrutiny.

When presented with the idea of international boarding school, parents are (61) ...... to baulk of emptying their bank (62) .....to send their darlings to live a life permeated by blackboards, bunk beds and Bovril. (63) ...... conversely, will feel overjoyed at the prospect of signing (64) ..... for a literally fantastic life at Hogwarts. Such misconceptions neatly miss the point of internalional boarding education, sidestepping its capacity to (65) ....... solid foundations for students' academic and professional success in today’s increasingly global society.

Parents, understandably, require justification for (66) ..... a considerate amount of money in their offspring's education. Their offspring, on the other hand, should be made (67) ..... of the huge number of opportunities provided by boarding school life. Most of the world's leading boarding schools offer stimulating, progressive (68) .....which prioritizes their students' needs, thus consistently produce graduates (69) ..... are confident learners, critical thinkers and self starters.

Therefore, the time has come for parents and students (70) ..... to discover the unique, intellectually challenging experiences offered by internalional boarding schools worldwide.