Monday, August 15, 2011

Term 3 Week 4 (Blogging Assignment)

Read the following Newsweek article, How to Raise a Global Kid, byLisa Miller (July 18, 2011)

http://www.newsweek.com/2011/07/17/american-kids-immersed-in-chinese-asian-education.print.html

What is the main argument Jim Rogers is trying to make in this article? Do you agree with his argument? Justify.


I think the main argument that Jim Rogers is trying to make is the importance of cultivating a global perspective in children from young. Hence, the best way he thinks to do so is to put the child in a country abroad, where the child can mix with other people and learn different languages and cultures (in this case, Singapore). This prepares them for the future.


Asia is rising with superpowers like China. China's economy has been skyrocketing and is expected to overtake that of the current superpower, America, in just a matter of years. Rogers has placed his child in Nanyang Primary School, arguably one of the best primary schools in the country, so that she can learn a 2nd language, Mandarin. Mandarin would be extremely useful as China's economy develops even further. In the article, Rogers seems very firm in his belief of the importance of learning Mandarin. His house has no TV, has a maid and a nanny who only speaks Mandarin to the kids, and a karaoke machine for the children to learn Mandarin songs. One problem that he continuously mentions is that America does not raise "global kids". Statistics show that only 37% of American citizens have passports, less than 2% of students go abroad during their undergraduate years, and the number of schools which teach Mandarin is practically non-existent.


I totally agree with Rogers' argument. This is because China is rapidly growing and will become the next global superpower. In the future, learning Mandarin would almost become a must. Working with a country like China can provide many opportunities, in terms of business partners, profits etc. Besides China, many other countries can be beneficial for our careers when we work with them. For example, business trips with other countries like France. By making partners abroad, one can expand his business, but first we need to learn their native language.


I think that Rogers' moving to Singapore is a great choice, especially because of our bilingualism policy. This policy can pretty much teach us the things necessary for a future where the ever-rising China becomes the most powerful country in the world and the stagnating America falls behind. English is taught and reinforced because generally it is the medium of communication worldwide. Chinese would be ever-so useful to have in the future.


In conclusion, I agree with Rogers and that Chinese should be a must for anyone who wishes to be successful in the future. Singapore is a cosmopolitan city where the majority of the citizens have an opportunity to learn these 2 languages and their different cultures. We, as students, should treasure this opportunity and do our best to learn these 2 languages as best as we possibly can.

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