The Main Modes of Alternative Education in Mainland China and Their Impact on Traditional Education

曾弘揚

Even though the Chinese education system has been reformed constantly，the change seems to be ineffective and disappointing.An increasing number of dissatisfied parents want their children to experience a different mode of education instead of traditional formal schooling.Two forms of non-formal education（Farrell，2008），namely extracurricular classes and home schooling，stand out among all kinds of alternative education.Moreover，since the alternatives have become a widespread phenomenon，the formal education in public schools has also been affected.

Extracurricular Class

In most cases，the extracurricular classes in China are always held on weekends and holidays in a rented classroom in formal schools or governmental institutions.The trainings offered by extracurricular classes range from artistic，sporting to academic，and these various classes meet the parents expectation that their children can be talented and versatile.From my experience，extracurricular classes can bring both joy and pain for parents and students.

On one hand，extracurricular classes provide opportunities for students to discover their true passion by experiencing different things.Taking me as an example，the informal education has enriched my life，because I was exposed to different human civilizations through music，dance，sports and language.Moreover，socializing with other peers in the community is another benefit the extracurricular classes can offer.Interacting with other students freely without considering the rules and disciplines in formal schools can help learners gain skills，such as real-life communication.Most importantly，the features of this schooling mode，including small class size，certified and experienced teachers，and well-organized programs，result in the acceptance and favor of parents.In China，due to the “one child policy”，the family structure has been changed：mothers have fewer caregiver burdens，and enter the job market； consequently parents have to look for institutions for taking care of their children on holidays.With the supervision of reliable teachers，their children will be occupied with learning valuable knowledge and skills rather than wasting too much time on television and computer.

On the other hand，this alternative also leads to the suffering of parents and students.First，it brings them huge stress.To give their children a head start when competing with other children，parents always struggle to decide which classes they should sign their children up for.For learners，it even harder to let their parents realize that the reason for their poor performance is that their passions and interests are not in the class they are taking，not because they do not try hard enough.Second，academic remedial classes for subjects in formal schools，such as math，science and English are still based on the school curriculum and exam-oriented.Students who are made to attend these classes are apt to feel bored of schooling or even hate all kinds of schooling.Third，teachers in these alternative classes are less responsible than the ones in formal school，because they do not have the pressure of being evaluated.

Home Schooling

home schooling means that students are educated at home，often by parents，elder cousins or tutors.Compared to those extracurricular classes，home schooling shares same merits and challenges，for example both modes adopt child-centered pedagogy（Farrell，2008）and have to focus on passing on exam skills，but at the same time，it has its features and problems.

Students，who have access to home-schooling，can get more personal guidance.The one-on-one tutoring gives sufficient time for tutors to get a thorough understanding of the individuals learning style and cognition level，so they can make a targeted lesson plan focus on the learning difficulties of the student.For instance，a math tutor can give students careful selection of questions and the personal teaching methods resulted in efficient learning.In addition，this form of alternative schooling provides opportunities for access to non-trained teachers or partially trained teachers to get more hands-on teaching experience and to make connections with the community.

However，home-tutoring may cause students over-dependence on supervision； that is to say，children's self-reliance cannot be fostered if there is no space left for self-learning.But，home-schooling mainly emphasizes the acquisition of knowledge and overlooks the cultivation of learners ways of thinking.However，only by active learning（Farrell，2008），can students learn how to see the world with their own eyes and how to be a creative and critical thinker，otherwise teaching is just about copying views and perspectives.

Impacts on Formal Education

Owing to the popularity and scale expansion of the non-formal education，the formal education is somehow affected.

For one thing，some traditional schools begin to give credits to students，who take some extracurricular classes to develop their practical ability，artistic and athletic skills.For example，most schools hold a sports event and an artistic performance annually，where everyone in schools can enjoy a break during a busy year.More importantly，students talents，other than academic ones，will be noticed and appreciated by all teachers and peers.Also，these events will also contribute to the construction of diversity school culture，giving students in school some common values and special schooling experience.

For another，those alternatives also promote new reforms in formal education.First，the teachers and tutors in non-formal education are familiar with one or several learners learning styles，so they can do detailed case studies to give theoretical support for educational reform，as Emile； or，On Education written by Rousseau，who explores his teaching philosophy by studying the four learning stages of Emile（1762）.In China，thanks to the development of alternative schooling，students diversity is paid more attention to in formal schools，because these alternatives have proved that students do have different needs.More importantly，learner-centered pedagogy and various learning materials，such as radio，television and computer，are used by teachers in formal schools to meet different learning styles（Farrell，2008）.For example，in the new national curriculum reform in China，the existing subject-based curriculum is replaced by a three-level structure：“learning field，subjects，and modules”（Lee & Yin，2011，29），to give students more choices to explore their own interests.

However，it seems that the alternative education in China is just for the sake of enhancing and reviewing what has been taught in formal schools.Furthermore，in large classes in traditional schools，teachers do not have time for slow learners； consequently，if these learners want to catch up with the learning in formal classes，they have to depend on remedial classes.I think this widespread phenomenon may also cause social problems，such as inequity and limited social mobility.Parents even claim that alternative schooling is a “rich peoples game”（Li，2011，47）.

Suggestion

To promote the development of real alternative education in China，instead of letting alternatives become supplements for traditional education，it is necessary for the Chinese education system to provide different paths toward success.The community schools in Columbia，Bangladesh and Egypt have adopted not only pay attention to their local context but also combine traditional education form with modern pedagogy，such as local cycle，child-centered and active learning.However，“there is no one-size-fits-all recipe”（Farrell，2008），China need to learn from good examples from western and other developing countries； meanwhile，educators in China should create some new alternatives to support the development of education.

To sum up，the two forms of non-formal education， extracurricular classes and home schooling，have both positive and negative impacts on all stakeholders and formal schooling.Since “decentralizing the educational system”（Lee & Yin，2011，29）is a global trend and an important point in the new national curriculum reform，local governments can find different models for alternative schooling，to give more options to students and parents.

References：

[1]Farrell，J.（2008）.Teaching and learning to teach：Successful radical alternatives from the developing world.In Mundy.k.et al.（Eds.）.Comparative and international education：Issues for teachers.（pp.107-131）.Toronto：Canadian ScholarsPress Inc.

[2]Li.S.（2011）.Is China Ready for Home Schools？ Beijing Review.54（39）.46-47.

[3]Liu，Y.（2006）.Should Experiments With Home Schooling Be Allowed？ Beijing Review，49（36）.46-47.

[4]Lee，J.& Yin，H.（2011）.Teachers emotions and professional identity.in curriculum reform：A Chinese perspective.Journal of Educational Change.12.25-46.

[5]Rousseau.J.（1979）.Emile； or，on education.New York：Basic Books.