The mainland education system has put too much emphasis on English education at the expense of other subjects and disciplines, according to a university head.
Xie Kechang , president of Taiyuan Technical University in Shanxi province , said too much time, money and effort was being spent on English education by schools, parents and students on the mainland. He said it was wrong to rate a student's ability solely on his or her English-language skills.
'We are not discussing whether we should study English, but rather how much and how many people should study,' said Professor Xie in an article published in the People's Daily yesterday.
He said the system of forcing all mainland students to study English throughout their primary education was not the best use of teaching resources because some students needed more technical training, not language skills, to be productive.
'Too many of those being educated have placed [too much emphasis on] English as the tool for communication. English is a skill, not a branch of knowledge,' said Professor Xie, who is also a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
'We should be clear about this: English is only one element of our national education and should not be treated as the sole criterion for more advanced education and training.' He added that this emphasis on English skills - such as scoring well in the Test of English as Foreign Language and the Graduate Requirement Exams - was absorbing resources that could be used for scientific and social science education.
