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Abstract

Before embarking on my adventure to the other side of the world with my Arcadian classmates, I had already accumulated a curiosity for the education system in China and how it might interact with the culture of that country. Befriending students from Xi’an University, touring their campus, attending a lecture in the library’s American Culture Center, talking with faculty members of the nearby Training School, and doing some follow-up readings after I returned to the U.S. has given me the chance to evaluate this dynamic. My experiences in China and my supplementary research have helped illuminate the relationship between the values taught in school and the values held in a culture. The curriculum and subject emphasis in schools, combined with its testing standards and classroom experience, define a student’s experience. The Chinese cultural presence on teaching and learning is also noteworthy. Lastly, international influence is a two-way street, where Western models are adapted by schools in China and the U.S.A. is under pressure to compete with the test scores of the Chinese.

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