Learning from Shanghai

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xxv

   PDF

2. The Beginning: Shanghai, PISA and Globalisation

   • Charlene Tan

   Pages 1-18

3. The People

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 19-19

      PDF

   2. A Conversation with a Shanghai Principal

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 21-31

   3. The Chinese Teacher as a Chess Master

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 33-41

   4. ‘Education Is Filling a Bucket and Lighting a Fire’: The Shanghai Teacher

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 43-51

   5. Tiger Mothers, Dragon Children

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 53-65

4. The Policy

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 67-67

      PDF

   2. ‘Chinese-Style’ Education for All

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 69-78

   3. ‘To Develop Every Student’: Towards Quality-Oriented Education

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 79-87

   4. Balancing Decentralisation with Centralisation

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 89-98

   5. Autonomy and Accountability: The School Appraisal System

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 99-107

   6. Testing Times: Exams as Means of Central Control

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 109-117

   7. Examining the Exam Papers

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 119-131

   8. Taking Teacher Professional Development Seriously

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 133-142

5. The Practice

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 143-143

      PDF

   2. Towards Innovation and Application: Curriculum Changes in Shanghai Schools

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 145-152

   3. From Teacher Talk to Student Talk: Dialogue-Style Teaching

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 153-159

   4. The ‘Post-Tea House Teaching’ Approach

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 161-169

   5. Critical Thinking: The Chinese Way

      • Charlene Tan

      Pages 171-184

The Shanghai school system has attracted worldwide attention since its impressive performance in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in 2009. The system ranks as a ‘stunning success’ according to standards of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Shanghai also stands out for having the world’s highest percentage of ‘resilient students’ – students from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds who emerge as top performers. Learning From Shanghai: Lessons on Educational Success offers a close-up view of the people and the policies that have achieved such world-class performance. Based on research and personal observation gathered during the author’s recent field work with school principals, teachers and students, this book explores the factors that explain Shanghai’s exceptional success in education. The approach combines high standards of scholarly research and analysis with the author’s unique personal insights, as evidenced by chapters entitled Education is Filling a Bucket and Lighting a Fire and Tiger Mothers, Dragon Children. Drawing on her experience as an education professional and a teacher of teachers, Charlene Tan thoroughly examines and analyzes the people, the policies and the practices that distinguish Shanghai educators. The contents include comprehensive details on the Shanghai approach to quality education, from discussion of the balance between centralization and decentralization, to school autonomy and accountability, to testing policy and professional development for teachers. The book includes detailed tables on curriculum and school performance targets, sample appraisal forms for teachers and students, and dozens of photographs. The author is an Associate Professor at the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.

• Cultural Scripts
• Curriculum Reform
• Education in Shanghai
• Educational Policies
• Educational Practices
• Educational Success
• Frames for School Improvement
• Globalisation
• PISA
• Policy Borrowing
• Student Performance

• Nanyang Technological University, Policy and Leadership Studies, National Institute of Education, Singapore, Singapore

  Charlene Tan

Charlene TAN is an associate professor at the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University. She was a visiting research associate at the East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore. Since 2008, she has been teaching a Master’s course on educational policy making to Shanghai school leaders.

Policies and ethics