EDUCATION

	EDUCATION

	1. Discuss how educational system in Japan reflects its culture. In other words, discuss why Japanese think highly about education.

	A: From the educational system in Japan, we can understand what their views are. An educational system reflects the spirits of a nation. Therefore, the system reflects its culture.

	A: The reason why the educational system in Japan can reflect its culture is how the Japanese think. Japan is very strong because of their strong heart to develop their country. In other words, Japanese is a country where men and women both work very hard in search for the goal they should attain. Actually, Japanese think that education is the best way to make them become a strong country.

	A: Japanese think examination scores represent the success of a person. If their children earn high scores at school, the parents will be proud of their children. Therefore, there are many cram schools in Japan. The students in Japan live in a test hell.

	A: Japanese are regarded very strict in everything they do including education. Good education means they’ll find better jobs in the future. On the other hand, daily necessities cost high in Japan. People there want to make more money so that they can afford their needs. The situation is the same as ours in Taiwan.

	A: Japanese think highly of education because they know with higher education you can think twice before doing and judge things correctly. In addition, you can learn more professional knowledge which can fit your interest. Education makes your mind grow mature and sophisticated. Due to those factors, Japanese think highly about education.

	A: Japanese think higher education is important. Students study very hard to get into universities. However, their chance to get into a four-year university program is very rare. Most high school students can only go to a two-year university program to get a certificate, not a bachelor degree. If someone can graduate from a top university in Japan, he will be considered elite of the society and gain a lot of respect everywhere.

	A: The Japanese think highly about education. They think every person in the nation has his right to receive education. So before college, the tuition isn’t high. Every person can get education. But the education in Japan involves lots of exams, such as elementary school entrance exam, junior-high school entrance exam, etc. Even in some kindergartens, kids are required to take entrance exam in order to get in and study. But unlike Taiwan, vocational school is also thought highly as college is.

	2. Discuss advantages and disadvantages of a large class.

	A: In a large class, the classmates can discuss together and learn different opinions to enrich their knowledge. (purpose) The students who study and work hard can affect their classmates because it is easy to see many such good examples in a large class. (cause) However, the teacher cannot take care of everyone since there are a great number of students in a large class. (cause) In addition, the noise made by so many students is so loud that it can interfere in teaching and learning effect. (effect)

	A: I would like to point out several advantages of a large class. First, students have more chances to discuss with each other. Second, students can listen to different opinions. Finally, students can have more friends. However, a large class has also disadvantages. Since the class is large, many students are often absent. Last but not least, students may not very concentrate in class. They chat or do something else when the teacher is teaching. The class may become disordered.

	A: Advantages of a large class are many. I know two of them. First, a class is divided into many groups and the teacher takes turns to work with each group. When more students are in class, more ideas are exchanged. It benefits study since many ideas are developed. However, the situation can be changed when the teacher can not take care of every student. In a large class, students pay less concentration on their teacher.

	A: In a large class, we can know a lot of people and make friends with them. Besides, we are happy because the teacher in a large class explain lessons in detail. We can take notes from the teacher’s lecture to help us review after class and study for exams. In a large class, we learn more than in a small class. However, we cannot concentrate because many students are talking when disciplines cannot be maintained. Finally, the teacher cannot know every student. For instance, it is difficult for the teacher to pay attention to shy students because they do not ask questions or share opinions with others when in class.

	A: When a school offers many courses in large class, it does not need many teachers. It spends less money to hire teachers. However, students learn the same material since teachers are the same. This make students learn well since they will not be confused by different materials used by different teachers. However, the teacher 　 cannot give full attention to each student since there are so many students in one class. If many students have many questions, the teacher cannot solve all these students’ problems.