Education reform is undeniably a global phenomenon. Fueled by the need to respond to stunningly rapid changes occurring along with the globalization of economies and the technological revolution, education reform has become a top priority for many Asian countries.
As we step into the 21st century, curriculum reform in particular is capturing the attention of educators in Asian countries. Recently, I attended the Second International Forum on Education Reform, which was held in Bangkok, Thailand. Participants from 20 countries, representatives from the World Bank and UNESCO, and diplomats from some of the participating countries convened to review the major trends and processes of education reform initiated in different countries, with particular emphasis on selected countries in East and Southeast Asia.
Seeking Broader Growth
Today, many of these countries are not only struggling to find new platforms for growth but are also "reinventing themselves" with unprecedented plans for education reform. From Singapore to Thailand to Hong Kong and beyond, the education landscape in Asia is changing. But Professor Yin Cheong Cheng, director of the Center for Research and International Collaboration of the Hong Kong Institute of Education, cautions that "how to ensure the relevance of school reforms to students' effective learning is a major concern in implementation." To facilitate students' achievement of high-value-added competencies, the teaching approaches, educational pedagogy, and school leadership and management must also change.
Throughout Asia, countries have identified education reform as a bridge to sustainable political, economic, and social development. In Thailand, education reform emerged officially with the passage of the National Education Act in 1999. The act aims for education reforms, especially learning reforms, that focus on student-centered and lifelong learning.
The Hong Kong Curriculum Development Council disseminated its Learning to Learn consultation document in 2000. Learning to Learn states that the school curriculum should "provide all students with essential lifelong learning experiences for whole-person development . . . so that all students become active, responsible, and contributing members of society, the nation, and the world."
The Ministry of Education in Japan introduced education reforms in its Course of Study for 2002. Tomomi Saeki, a Japanese educator, noted that "in the current reform, the ministry has attempted to improve pupils' positive attitudes to learning mathematics by widening the range of teaching methods adopted in mathematics classes." The ministry recommended "the introduction of activity-based learning, provision of opportunities for peer interaction, and the practical use of computers in addition to those teaching methods traditionally adopted by teachers."
Fostering Adaptable Leaders
In Singapore, leadership development at the school level has moved away from skills and competencies training into an exciting new world of knowledge creation. According to Lee Sing Kong of the National Institute of Education and Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, "its essence is to prepare school leaders, not for [requirements of] the past or the present, but for an unknowable future."
Thus, it is clear that in some Asian countries the education reform policy initiative has been strongly focused at the national level while others have opted for comprehensive implementation at the school and community levels. However, all these approaches share a critical emphasis on shaping common strategies such as knowledge building, social participation, effective evaluation, networking with stakeholders and other educators, and forming cooperative alliances.
The approaches discussed at the Bangkok conference can be valuable to all educators seeking to improve the learning environment.