(Mackenzie - 2000)LEARNING TO THINKAsians (I) prou

(Mackenzie - 2000)

LEARNING TO THINK

Asians (I) proud of how well they educate their children. Thanks to the prodding of their determined parents, Asians score highest in science and math in worldwide comparisons. But from Tokyo to Taipei and Singapore, governments are realizing their children are so overstressed and overtested that they are ill equipped for the Information Age, (II) thinking and creativity hold a premium. Reform-minded educators share a similar complaint: ask a Korean student to write a creative essay or a Japanese student to pose a challenging question and or a Hong Kong student to even ask a question and, more often than not, they will be unable to stray from the script.
Two years ago Kishore Mahbubani, a senior official in Singapore, posed a challenging question at a conference: "Can Asians think?" It was a remarkable moment of self-doubt. For years, Singapore's leaders had been 1crowing about the advantages of Asian values, the idea that order in schools and government alike works better in Asia than Western-style freedom. But across Asia, that approach (III) efficient, obedient workers (IV) let their bosses do the thinking for them. Governments merrily invested in production lines and gleaming skyscrapers, and even school buildings, but skimped on developing modern teaching methods and training teachers. The result: Asia's schools (V) so neglected that in many countries kids attend for half-day sessions in classrooms so crowded they are ready to bust. Asian students are too busy memorizing deadening answers to learn to think. In too many Asian classrooms, thinking actually 2gets in the way.

(Adapted from Newsweek. September 6, 1999.)

As lacunas I, III e V devem ser preenchidas, respectivamente, por: