背誦有理！

當大家在抱怨香港的教育制度一塌糊塗時，《經濟學人》告訴我們，原來英國的基礎教育也不見得辦得很好──

The British government's latest crack at reforming schools is yet another step towards contentless learning (全文按此)

好一句 contentless learning (沒有內容的學習)，正正道出了時下教育制度的弊端！早幾年，各界猛烈評擊填鴨式教育制度的害處；從善如流的教育局官員便忘不迭的來個大改革，東找找、西抄抄，引入目標為本、全方位學習、評估等概念，又教學生要有批判思維 (critical thinking)，諸如此類。但他們忘了一個很根本的問題：若學生肚子裡沒半點知識、半點墨水，他們拿甚麼準則來思考？按甚麼來自學？

我支持要讓學生學會學習，但在實現這個理想以前，學校絕對有義務教學生一些實質的知識 (facts)，不是隨意寫一個題目，讓學生盲目地去找資料便可了事！撫心自問，專題研習真能引發學生興趣，讓他們有所得著？

至於死記硬背 (rote learning)，這當然不好，但一些優秀的文章，絕對值得讓學生背誦學習。如果不趁年輕時背多點，到老來想背便已經太遲了。讀書學習，絕對有黃金時期的。

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寫得好辛辣、好抵死的一段：

The report suggests that everything be mashed into six "learning areas". The titles alone appal. History will be part of "human, social and environmental understanding", where it will compete for airtime with geography and, no doubt, global warming (is it any wonder that Gordon Brown has to scrabble about for a recognisable definition of national identity?). Britain's increasingly fat children will presumably cut back what limited running around the playground they do now and sit, rapt, through lessons in "understanding physical health and well-being" (rumoured to include "happiness" lessons too).