Author Topic: Forever home decision between Taiwan and Cali  (Read 1617 times)

dkoldyahoo

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Forever home decision between Taiwan and Cali
« on: September 13, 2021, 05:16:46 PM »
Hi GCC!
Thank you so much for your blog! I've been a fan since my friend Andrew shared a few of your posts with me a few years ago. First time poster here, wanted to know, was education part of your decision in moving from Taiwan back to the US? I'm asking because every now and then, I wonder if we should move from Atlanta, Georgia, to Taiwan for our 3 year old, and I wanted to get your perspective. I was born in the States but spent 2nd to 9th grade in Taiwan(first Taipei, then Kaohsiung), and I feel like the public school education I received there was much better than what I see here in the States (just look at the menu https://class.kh.edu.tw/15011! :P). Then again, that was decades ago, and I understand schools vary widely here in the US as well. I simply wanted to see what your thoughts are on comparing the education system between the two. Thanks and welcome back!  :)

gocurrycracker

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Re: Forever home decision between Taiwan and Cali
« Reply #1 on: September 14, 2021, 08:56:20 AM »
Education was part of it, yes.

Generically speaking -
Taiwan schools follow a more Confucian education model - the teacher teaches, the kids listen. Don't ask questions. You will understand why later. Sit still. We will go to the bathroom at the scheduled break. Etc... Art, music, play time, are often pushed aside for more time to study. After school you can go to English cram school. Sleep, repeat.

The US has traditionally followed a liberal arts model - being a well rounded student is more important than your math score. Being able to figure out a solution to a general problem is more important than fact memorization. The "why" of something is sometimes more important than getting the right answer.

There are pros/cons to both models.

With a very high energy child, we felt the US might be a better fit.