Tell me about a time when you realized the importance of education.
Well, honestly, I think the first time I realized the importance of education was when I was bullied as a child. In those moments, I didn’t understand how people could be so cruel to me. What did this mean about how they looked at themselves? Why did they feel a need to make fun of or torment others? I was terrible at defending myself verbally, and I lacked in self-confidence. So, to me, it seemed the bullies needed to learn more empathy for others. While I needed to learn how to be more assertive. Throughout my university career, I studied the history of thinking and expressing through literature. This got me interested in why people think the way they do. Then once I got to my master’s thesis in the topic of ending violence against women, I took the viewpoint from people who were oppressed due to their identities. In short, the further I studied the way people thought, and their experiences, the more empathy I gained for others. So, my education taught me that the world is a complex place, and that we can’t judge a book by its cover.
In your opinion, what do you think of the significance of encouragement in the scope education?
I think encouragement is essential. For me, however, I will focus on the word “inspiration” which is another way to encourage others. As a child, I had male camp counselors who I thought were really cool. Friendly, nice, fun, and kind. They inspired me to work with children because I always wanted to ensure that the children I worked with felt inspired by me, like I did by my leaders when I was a child. When someone feels encouraged or inspired, there isn’t really much they cannot strive for. My parents were also very encouraging. They never stopped me from chasing after my best. This had a huge impression on me, and it still does.
ls there any personal anecdotes make you think so? What is that experience mean to you?
When I was a child, I would love to play sports, especially, baseball. My father would mostly be the pitcher and I would be the batter. I loved being the centre of attention as a child, haha. I likely still do. Anyway, my father would always say to me “knock it (the ball) out of the park, Mark!” When my father told me this, I knew that it wasn’t literal, but it made me feel that I could chase after my dreams, and that I could do something significant in my life. He believed in me, and encouraged me. That was huge for me.
We can see now there are way more Chinese international students all around the world, what do you think is the reason of this trend?
I have talked with different Chinese parents, and they have their own reasons for why they want their children to go to university abroad. One Chinese parent I spoke with said that he just wanted his kids to have a good education. Though I will add to this. I think that parents want their children to have more options in life, because, education is really about learning about different ways of thinking and doing things. More options increases the chances of people making better choices for themselves. I also think that Chinese parents, like most parents, want the best for their kids. And they know that some of the world’s top institutions are outside of China. So they send their kids abroad. But beyond the book learning, I think Chinese parents want their children to think more broadly, openly, through getting a cultural education. Because China can teach Chinese culture. But in order to learn about a culture from a different society, the best way is by showing up and immersing yourself in the different ways of thinking/living.
So you are the one who have experienced the Western education and the Chinese one, how different are these two?
I am going to oversimplify Western and Eastern education. While Western education is predicated on questioning and expanding one’s thinking, Eastern (Especially Chinese) education is based around structure, unity, and consistency. Both ways have their merits, and of course, this oversimplification of the two types of education systems breed more than what I just said. However, when individuals are able to experience and immerse themselves in the strengths of both education systems, individuals can then have more options, which again, can increase their chances of making better choices in life. You see, sometimes we require more structure and order in our lives, while other times, we require more innovation and free thinking. It really depends on the circumstances and the needs of that moment. So ultimately, we, as a society, need both Western and Eastern Education. Because sometimes we require more collectivist structure, and other times we require more individual thinking and innovation.
What can be improved about the education system, other than encouraging others to participate?
Integrating technology to humanize the learning process can encourage more learners in education. It should not be technology vs humanity. I would say that technology is a set of tools created by humans to serve the needs of humans, and of course, the universe around us. Technology enables humans and other living things to do more with less. Based on experience in both Canada and in China, our most simple technologies are commonly under-utilized in the education systems, both privately and publicly. For instance, excel is an extremely powerful tool that can be used to help students organize their lives better. They can use excel to create dynamic calendars, organizers, and check lists. However, I have never met a teacher that teaches their students how to use excel to increase self-management. But let’s pick a simpler example. WeChat. In China, almost every Chinese person who is of the proper age uses WeChat. As WeChat continues to have new features, why are we not using WeChat in the classroom so that students can use both relevant technology as tools as a medium of expression of their learning? These are just two examples, but I could keep going. My point is that technology in education is under-utilized. Even from the perspective of end users. Secondly, I think that teaching students coding should be attached to the maths curriculums so that humans can better understand how programming works. This would also help students to understand how excel works. Thus, organization, structure, and order, and rules. I think every learner can benefit from this thinking.
Mr. Henshaw is now a Senior early years educator in Wuhan, China.
Mark Henshaw 