Cram School Culture
Main article: Education in Taiwan See also: Gaokao and SuneungTaiwan, like its neighbors in East Asia, is well-known for its buxiban (補習班), often translated as cram school, and literally meaning "make-up class" or "catch-up class" or to learn more advanced classes. Nearly all students attend some sort of buxiban, whether for mathematics, computer skills, English, other foreign languages, or exam preparation (college, graduate school, TOEFL, GRE, SAT, etc.). This is perpetuated by a meritocratic culture that measures merit through testing, with entrance into college, graduate school, and government service decided entirely on testing. This has also led to a remarkable respect for degrees, including PhDs and overseas Western degrees (US and Great Britain).
English teaching is a big business in Taiwan, with Taiwan, as part of its project to reinvigorate the Taiwan miracle, aiming to become a trilingual country—fluent in Mandarin, Taiwanese, and English. Many teachers come from English-speaking countries, such as the U.S., Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand, and enjoy salaries of about $30,000–$50,000 per year at a low cost of living, with opportunities to manage or open one's own school and make several times that amount a year.
Read more about this topic: Culture Of Taiwan
Famous quotes containing the words cram, school and/or culture:
“You cram these words into mine ears against
The stomach of my sense.”
—William Shakespeare (15641616)
“It is not that the Englishman cant feelit is that he is afraid to feel. He has been taught at his public school that feeling is bad form. He must not express great joy or sorrow, or even open his mouth too wide when he talkshis pipe might fall out if he did.”
—E.M. (Edward Morgan)
“Asia is rich in people, rich in culture and rich in resources. It is also rich in trouble.”
—Hubert H. Humphrey (19111978)