Learning Gap: Why Our Schools Are Failing and What We Can Learn from Japanese and Chinese Education [Paperback]

Harold Stevenson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 26, 1994 | ISBN-10: 0671880764 | ISBN-13: 978-0671880767 | Edition: 1st Touchstone

This urgent appeal to policymakers, educators, and parents "is a comprehensive report on five different studies . . . the authors explore the differences between Asian and American school systems and outline what the United States can learn from these cultures" (The Christian Science Monitor).

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Stevenson (psychology, Univ. of Michigan) and Stigler (psychology, Univ. of California, Los Angeles) offer a comparison between American (Chicago, Minneapolis) and Asian (Taiwan, China, Japan) elementary schools. Quantifiable variables include instruction time, test data, length of school year, curriculum studied, and instruction strategies. Another factor the authors consider is attitude (e.g., parental attitudes toward schooling, children toward learning, society toward educators, etc.). The writing style is informal, and sufficient statistical data is presented to support the findings. Some challenges are offered: "The American educational system as it currently exists is producing an educationally advantaged minority and a disadvantaged majority." The authors conclude that "Americans are proud of their individualism; Asians are proud of their group orientation." For large public and academic libraries.
- Lois F. Roets, Drake Univ., Des Moines
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; 1st Touchstone edition (January 26, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671880764
• ISBN-13: 978-0671880767
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #257,063 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Review by a Chinese American Psychologist, October 24, 2002

By 

Junlei Li (Pittsburgh, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Learning Gap: Why Our Schools Are Failing and What We Can Learn from Japanese and Chinese Education (Paperback)

Learning Gap is a thoroughly researched book highlighting concrete problems in America's education. It is of particular interest to me because I was brought up in the Chinese education system until I was 16 with two parents who were both Chinese teachers, and went through high school, college, and graduate school here in America. I, like the authors, also happen to be a psychologist whose research focuses on K-12 education. Reading both the Learning Gap and the Teaching Gap reminded me of my own experience growing up in Chinese classrooms, at home, moving to America, and now researching in American classrooms. Many of the phenomenon described in the book are prevalent in classrooms I have observed in Pennsylvania schools, even in award-winning teacher's classrooms. While I do believe the authors overstated the positives of the cultural and school environments in China (since I've been to many Chinese schools with lousy teachers and unmotivated kids), it did not understate the problem in American education today. Most imporantly, the book established that within-culture difference, while strong, is small compare to cross-culture differences. Its arguments are not based on hollow idealogy or fad, but data. That makes Learning Gap a rare gem of high academic integrity. It can serve as a good reference book for the evaluation of education for schools, parents, and students themselves. For an educator, a parent, or a concerned citizen, this book is very uplifting and energizing. Not because it highlighted problems (we hear problems every day just on the news), but because it narrowed down to the relevant, important, significant problems. The first step to saving education is to know which limited set of problems must we devote our limited resources towards. To quote a popular American slang, we need to "get the biggest bang for our buck" in education. I believe the Learning Gap and the Teaching Gap has done a marvelous job towards that end. My kudos to the authors for their research scholarship, for their strong stand based on data, and for a thoroughly well presented and uplifting book. I recommend this book for teachers, parents, concerned citizens, and even students themselves.

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How East Asian (but not U.S.) Education Works, June 5, 2000

By 

psychephile - See all my reviews

This review is from: Learning Gap: Why Our Schools Are Failing and What We Can Learn from Japanese and Chinese Education (Paperback)

As early as first grade, average East Asian children routinely outperform the best American children on every sort of test of mathematical knowledge. And-across the learning spectrum-American children not only fail to catch up, they fall further behind their East Asian peers in every year after first grade. As Stevenson and Stigler (S&S) note, this learning gap is not a matter of money, but can be seen no matter the amount or source (public or private) of funding. If money is not the cause of the learning gap, what is? Genetics? TV? Class sizes? Not so, show S&S. In this highly-readable, jargon-free book, S&S show that the fundamental source of the learning gap is *cultural*. That is, whereas East Asian educators, parents, and children believe that math success comes from a long-term effort to acquire a mathematical system of knowledge, their American counterparts believe that that success stems from innate math-smarts repetitively exposed to a set of math skills. These different beliefs, S&S show, result in sterotype-exploding differences in student motivation, teaching practices and teaching support, and parental standards and expectations. If you think that improving American schools can come from looking at successes within U.S. borders, then read this book and prepare to be amazed!

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is THE answer to America's education problems, April 10, 2002

By 

Gia "gia500" (Houston, TX United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Learning Gap: Why Our Schools Are Failing and What We Can Learn from Japanese and Chinese Education (Paperback)

This is the most amazing book I've ever read on education, and one of the most eye-opening books I've read period. Every day on the news you hear about 'education reform.' Politicians and administrators are refering to things like smaller classes, better equipment, and other non-issues. The reason American kids are doing so poorly compared to other countries is much deeper and fundamental than that. What makes this book so amazing is that it explores the issues from several angles. American parents' expectations are much lower than Asian parents'. They would rather the kids be well-rounded with extracuricular activities and a social life. School takes a lower priority. American society thinks natural ability is more important than effort. Asians think effort is much more important. American's way of thinking is a dead-end for students. They will not be motivated to keep trying, thinking they just don't have the ability. American teachers rate 'clarity of explanation' as among the least important qualities a teacher could have. They rate 'sensitivity' as the most important. In Asian society, teachers gave the opposite rating. How amazing, the quality of imparting knowledge is among the least important things considered by American teachers. The profession of teaching is much more respected in Asian societies. So Asian students do far better than ours, in spite of these facts: their societies are poorer; their parents are busier; they have a lot more time than American children for social interaction at school; they even watch more t.v. than American children.
If we as a society would read this book (and others like it), our eyes would be opened to the real problem with our schools, and we could take the first steps to transforming our society.