为什么亚洲人在学校里都很聪明
WHY ASIANS ARE SMART AT SCHOOL
译文简介
作为一个成年人，我真的很感激我的父母让我成长的方式—重视学习，努力工作
正文翻译
There’s the stereotype that Asians are smart at school, always doing very well and coming in top of the class. There’s the stereotype that Asians get straight A’s on their exams and are academically gifted.
有一种刻板印象认为亚洲人在学校里学习的时候都很聪明，总是表现很好，成绩在班上名列前茅，他们的考试成绩都是A，在学习上很有天赋。
It’s no secret school is competitive in Asian countries and it’s a race to the top of the class there. In Australia, students with Asian-born parents outperform students with Caucasian-born parents and get honorable mentions in school, doing very well in subjects like Maths, Chemistry and Physics, and English too.
在亚洲国家的学校里，竞争是非常激烈的，这是一场争夺班级第一名的比赛，这已经不是什么秘密了。在澳大利亚的学校，父母是亚洲人的学生也比父母是白人的学生表现更好，在学校里获得了更多的荣誉，在数学、化学、物理和英语等科目上都表现得很好。
在亚洲国家的学校里，竞争是非常激烈的，这是一场争夺班级第一名的比赛，这已经不是什么秘密了。在澳大利亚的学校，父母是亚洲人的学生也比父母是白人的学生表现更好，在学校里获得了更多的荣誉，在数学、化学、物理和英语等科目上都表现得很好。
Sometimes we’re pressured by our parents to do well at school, so we study hard and accumulate more knowledge in our minds. Chinese-American author Amy Chua exemplifies this in her book Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother which garnered quite a lot of backlash, documenting her strict typical Asian parenting rules that lead to her daughters doing well at school.
原因之一是他们受到了来自父母的压力，必须要在学校里表现的很好，所以只能努力学习，在头脑中积累更多的知识。美籍华裔作家蔡美儿在她的书《虎妈战歌》中举例说明了这一点，这本书引起了很多人的反感，因为她严格执行了典型的亚洲教育规则，并利用这些规则迫使她的女儿必须在学校表现出色。
原因之一是他们受到了来自父母的压力，必须要在学校里表现的很好，所以只能努力学习，在头脑中积累更多的知识。美籍华裔作家蔡美儿在她的书《虎妈战歌》中举例说明了这一点，这本书引起了很多人的反感，因为她严格执行了典型的亚洲教育规则，并利用这些规则迫使她的女儿必须在学校表现出色。
When I was younger, my dad said to me over and over again, “Everyone has a degree now. Everyone don’t want to get left behind.” I suppose what he meant was school goes some way in getting us somewhere: gets us a fairly good job to support yourself, and your parents in the later years. And so our Confucian, filial-piety ethics drive us to study hard and in a sense be clever at school. Achievement at school is like a duty that we owe to our parents for some of us.
当我还小的时候，我爸爸一遍又一遍地对我说:“现在每个人都有学位，每个人都不想落在后面。”我想他的意思是，上学在某种程度上能让我们出人头地，让我们找到一份相当不错的工作，在以后的日子里养活你自己和你的父母。因此，我们的儒家理念和孝道伦理驱使我们努力学习，在学校要表现的很聪明。对我们中的一些人来说，在学校里取得荣誉就像我们对父母的一种责任。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
当我还小的时候，我爸爸一遍又一遍地对我说:“现在每个人都有学位，每个人都不想落在后面。”我想他的意思是，上学在某种程度上能让我们出人头地，让我们找到一份相当不错的工作，在以后的日子里养活你自己和你的父母。因此，我们的儒家理念和孝道伦理驱使我们努力学习，在学校要表现的很聪明。对我们中的一些人来说，在学校里取得荣誉就像我们对父母的一种责任。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处
Longer school hours in many Asian countries means more time to learn and know the textbook back to front like the palm of our hand. I blearily blxed at the whiteboard in the classroom at 7.30am during high school days in Singapore and was always wide-awake at 2pm when school finished – just in time for remedial classes. There’s not forgetting evening tuition classes but my parents decided not to spend money on that, instead presenting me with the maths revision books when I came home from school.
在许多亚洲国家，较长的上课时间意味着有更多的时间来学习书本，直至对书本中的内容了如指掌。在新加坡读高中的时候，早上7点半，我就睡眼惺忪地开始盯着教室里的白板看，直到下午2点放学——这时我已经完全清醒了，也正好赶上了上补习班。其实晚上也有补习班，但我的父母决定不把钱花在这上面，而是让我回家后复习数学。
在许多亚洲国家，较长的上课时间意味着有更多的时间来学习书本，直至对书本中的内容了如指掌。在新加坡读高中的时候，早上7点半，我就睡眼惺忪地开始盯着教室里的白板看，直到下午2点放学——这时我已经完全清醒了，也正好赶上了上补习班。其实晚上也有补习班，但我的父母决定不把钱花在这上面，而是让我回家后复习数学。
Perhaps some of us are just naturally smart. Studies have shown that kids in Asian countries perform better at school and have higher IQs, though their parents might not have had much of an education back in their day. Then again, every research study is subjective.
也有可能是一些亚洲人天生就很聪明。研究表明，亚洲国家的孩子更聪明，在学校里表现的更好，尽管他们的父母可能没有受过多少教育。不过这些研究都带有一定的主观性。
也有可能是一些亚洲人天生就很聪明。研究表明，亚洲国家的孩子更聪明，在学校里表现的更好，尽管他们的父母可能没有受过多少教育。不过这些研究都带有一定的主观性。
Maybe formulaic chalk-and-talk teaching systems in many schools in Asia – we sit quietly in class listening to teachers repeat formulas and equations over and over again, and think it’s disrespectful to talk while the teacher’s talking. I remember nodding along in maths class in Singapore, memorising formulas without knowing how they came about and just scribbled them down in the exams. That actually got me the marks.
还有一个原因可能是许多亚洲学校的教学体系是程式化的讲课和写板书——而我们只需要安静地坐在教室里，听老师一遍又一遍地重复公式和方程式。亚洲人认为在老师讲课时说话是不尊重的，我记得在新加坡上数学课时，我只是不停的点头附和，却不知道公式是怎么来的。而在考试的时候，我就把这些公式代入进去，但这让我得到了分数。
还有一个原因可能是许多亚洲学校的教学体系是程式化的讲课和写板书——而我们只需要安静地坐在教室里，听老师一遍又一遍地重复公式和方程式。亚洲人认为在老师讲课时说话是不尊重的，我记得在新加坡上数学课时，我只是不停的点头附和，却不知道公式是怎么来的。而在考试的时候，我就把这些公式代入进去，但这让我得到了分数。
For most part, it seems that it’s not that we’re smart, but more so that we know the value of being hard-working and earning our slice of the pie.
在大多数情况下，这似乎并不是因为亚洲人更聪明，而是因为他们知道自己需要努力学习并争取得到属于自己的那份蛋糕。
在大多数情况下，这似乎并不是因为亚洲人更聪明，而是因为他们知道自己需要努力学习并争取得到属于自己的那份蛋糕。
There are different kinds of smart. There’s study smart, the lessons you learn in the classroom. Then there’s street smart, the lessons you learn outside of the classroom from life experiences. Whether Asian or not, we all love to travel, and these days parents gladly shell out thousands of dollars for their kids’ graduation trips abroad post-high school or university. Seems many of us agree that we learn from once-in-a-lifetime experiences traveling the world. As my dad asked me when I was halfway through university, “Do you want to travel? Experience something different? I pay.
聪明有不同的种类。你可以聪明的学习，掌握你在课堂上学到的内容。但也有一些是街头智慧，需要你从课堂外的生活经历中得到经验。不管是亚洲人还是非亚洲人，我们都喜欢旅行。如今，父母们很乐意为他们的孩子高中或大学毕业后的出国旅行支付数千美元。似乎我们中的许多人都认同我们可以从一次千载难逢的世界旅行中学习一些经验。比如当我读大学读到一半的时候，我的爸爸就问我:“你想去旅行吗?体验不同的东西?我会为你支付旅行的费用。”
聪明有不同的种类。你可以聪明的学习，掌握你在课堂上学到的内容。但也有一些是街头智慧，需要你从课堂外的生活经历中得到经验。不管是亚洲人还是非亚洲人，我们都喜欢旅行。如今，父母们很乐意为他们的孩子高中或大学毕业后的出国旅行支付数千美元。似乎我们中的许多人都认同我们可以从一次千载难逢的世界旅行中学习一些经验。比如当我读大学读到一半的时候，我的爸爸就问我:“你想去旅行吗?体验不同的东西?我会为你支付旅行的费用。”
Over the years, I’ve learnt that getting an education and distinctions at school doesn’t necessarily guarantee us a job; sometimes we can’t keep listening to others but need to listen to ourselves. Finding the answers to who we are, what we want to do with our life and finding time for all that we do.
这些年来，我认识到，在学校里接受教育和取得优异的成绩并不一定能保证我们找到工作。有时候我们不能一直听别人说，而需要自己去判断。找到自己的定位，想清楚我们在这一生中想要做什么，花时间去做我们想做的事情。
这些年来，我认识到，在学校里接受教育和取得优异的成绩并不一定能保证我们找到工作。有时候我们不能一直听别人说，而需要自己去判断。找到自己的定位，想清楚我们在这一生中想要做什么，花时间去做我们想做的事情。
Were/are you a hardworking student at school?
你在学校里是一个用功读书的学生吗?
你在学校里是一个用功读书的学生吗?
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I admire you. I wish I had taken school more seriously.
我很羡慕你。我多希望我当初在学校时能更认真地学习。
Thank you, Matt. It saddens me to hear you say that. Each one of us has different learning capacities, our own strengths and talents…so really, we are all smart in our own ways.
I admire you, too, especially how you draw so well and the fact that you have three books in print already. I wish I had more dedication like that as an artist.
谢谢你，马特。听你这么说我很惭愧。我们每个人都有不同的学习能力，我们有自己的长处和才能，所以，我们都有各自的优点。我也很羡慕你，尤其是你的画画得这么好，而且你已经出版了三本书了。作为一名艺术家，我多希望我能有你那么高的成就。
Thanks. Well, I wasn’t very serious or dedicated when I was younger. Not in school, anyway, It’s something I regret.
谢谢。我年轻的时候没有认真的学习，至少在学校里没有，这是我很后悔的事。
But I’m sure you learnt something at school…if not, discovered what you really loved doing back then. Not all successful people were academics, think Steve Jobs and Bill Gates who made a living doing what they love
但我相信你至少在学校学到了一些东西，即使没有，也发现了你真正喜欢做什么。并非所有的成功人士都是学霸，比如史蒂夫.乔布斯和比尔.盖茨，他们靠做自己喜欢的事情取得了成功
I think the different Asian and Western education and lifestyle, they educate children grow up performance and achievements are also different, as children can Westerners more flexible and adaptable to the pressure is relatively strong, while Oriental Education Children good test scores, excellent teachers that are very smart kid, but there are also some are creative enough, because I have two children of their own, so this is my opinion.
我觉得由于亚洲和西方的教育方式和生活方式不同，他们的孩子长大后的表现和成绩也不同。西方的孩子可能比较有创造力，对压力的适应能力也比较强，而东方的孩子学习成绩优秀，很聪明，但是也有一些是很有创意的，因为我自己也有两个孩子，所以这是我的看法。
Very good point. Our lifestyle and the way we are brought up usually has an impact on how well we do at school. The common Western mentality is “work hard, play harder”, and it could be one reason why their studious Asian classmates do better on graded tests.
That’s not to say Asians aren’t smart in the creative sense. In Asia, many of them are very dedicated to their extra-curricular activities like playing piano or dancing. But for a number of them, it’s at the insistence of their parents.
很好的观点。我们的生活方式和成长方式通常会影响我们在学校的表现。西方人普遍的心态是“努力学习，更要努力玩耍”，这可能是勤奋的亚洲学生在考试中表现更好的原因之一。但这并不是说亚洲人在创造力方面不强。在亚洲，他们中的许多人都致力于参加他们的课外活动，如弹钢琴或跳舞。但对他们中的许多人来说，这是由于父母的坚持。
I think Asians are taught to work harder, that is what I picked up as a child and the same values I tried to give to my children. Whatever we do, we are expected to do very well and these expectations get the best out of us, whether at school or work. High scores are a big deal and those who don’t come up to the expectations of their parents are reminded every single day that they must study well, which is made the top priority. Co-curricular activities and sports take a back seat. The curriculum is also frxd in such a manner that more emphasis is laid on learning, there is no flexibility at school level, rote learning is encouraged though latest changes focus on creativity too.
All these facts are very well illustrated by Asian students who enter top universities overseas and do so well! Apparently they are smarter! The western concept of getting a job of one’s choice does not occur to them as they can adjust very well in all kind of circumstances, as they are groomed in such a manner. So they are smarter even at work.
我认为亚洲人总是被教导要更努力地学习和工作，这是我小时候学到的，也是我试图教给我的孩子们的价值观。无论我们做什么，我们都被期望做得很好，这些期望让我们总是竭尽全力发挥出自己最好的一面，无论是在学校还是在工作中。得到高分是一件大事，那些没有达到父母期望的人每天都被提醒他们必须好好学习，这是重中之重，而课外活动和体育活动都退居到了次要地位。学校在课程的安排上也更加强调学习，在教学方式上缺乏灵活性，更鼓励死记硬背的学习。不过近年来亚洲的学校也越来越关注学生的创造力。所有的这些事实都很好地说明了为什么有那么多的亚洲学生都能进入海外的顶尖大学并取得如此优异的成绩!显然他们更聪明!“凭自己的努力得到一份工作”的观念并没有得到西方人的普遍认同，因为他们在各种情况下都能很好地适应，因为他们已经习惯了用这种方式培养自己的孩子，所以他们的孩子在工作中会表现的更灵活。
“Co-curricular activities and sports take a back seat.” You are so right, Balroop. Although extra-curricular activities in schools in Singapore take place on Saturday mornings, they are usually cut out from curriculum in the couple of weeks towards the end of semester. It’s so students can focus on exams. Getting top grades is always a priority for the student, their parents and their teachers.
“课外活动和体育活动都退居到了次要地位。”你说得太对了，巴鲁普。新加坡学校的课外活动都是在周六上午进行的，但这些活动通常在临近学期结束的几周内就会从课程中取消。这样学生就可以专注于考试了。取得好成绩一直是学生、家长和老师的首要任务。
Figuring out who we are and becoming our authentic self is what’s must important in this life….in my opinion. Academics are great….but happiness in what you do and who you are – are greater!
弄清楚我们是谁，做真实的自己才是生活中最重要的事情....这是我的看法。能成为学霸当然很棒....但能快乐的成为你想成为的人和做自己想做的事更重要！
Yes! Becoming our own authentic self is most important in life. When we are happy, then we can spread the happiness around and help others and make them happy too. No reason why you can’t make a difference without a school or graduation certificate. You are certainly smart!
是的!做真实的自己是生活中最重要的事情。当我们快乐的时候，我们可以把快乐传播出去，帮助别人，让他们也感到快乐。没有取得好成绩甚至毕业证书，不代表你不能有所作为，你看的很透彻!
I have often wondered why Asian children don’t rebel more against their parents. To have such pressure seems like it would be more common for rebellion.
我经常在想，为什么亚洲的孩子不会更多地反抗他们的父母，因为这样的来自父母的压力似乎通常会让孩子变得更叛逆。
That is such a good question – why Asian kids don’t rebel more against their parents. Maybe it’s fear, the fear of seeing their parents angry or sad or fear of letting their parents down. As kids, we rely on our parents for a living. We’re dependent on them for a living. So rebelling against our parents wouldn’t make for a happy household.
这是一个很好的问题——为什么亚洲的孩子不会更多地反抗他们的父母。也许是出于恐惧，也许是害怕看到父母生气或悲伤，也许是不想让父母感到失望。作为孩子，我们只能依靠父母来生活，我们需要他们来养活。所以反抗父母不会让我们的家庭变得更幸福。
We are dependent as well on our parents but for some reason we are feisty. I have a male asian friend who I’ve known for years and he is in his 50’s and never married because he never found an Asian girl to date and his mom would’ve been horrified if he did not marry an Asian girl. i used to ask him why does he care? He isn’t a child anymore. He could never really give me answer.
我们也需要依赖父母才能生活，但出于某些原因，我们会更有自己的想法。我有一个认识多年的亚洲男性朋友，他50多岁了，一直没有结婚，因为他始终没能找到一个亚洲女孩约会，如果他不娶一个亚洲女孩，他妈妈会很震惊的。我曾经问过他为什么这么在意他的妈妈的看法?他已经不再是个小孩子了，但他永远无法给我一个真正的答案。
That is sad to hear. Some Asian families til this day still want their kids to marry someone with brains or academic smarts. Then again, as you mention, we all have the right to make friends and fall in love with anyone we like.
I think it’s a pride thing, for the parents. For the kids, I don’t know. The best answer I can suggest is we don’t want to make our parents sad, which is worse than making them angry.
听起来真令人难过。直到今天，一些亚洲家庭仍然希望他们的孩子能有一个有头脑或学习成绩很好的伴侣。正如你提到的，我们都有权利和我们喜欢的人交朋友和谈恋爱。我觉得这对父母来说是值得自豪的事，但对孩子来说就不一定了。我能想到的答案是对他来说，他不想让父母感到伤心，这比让他们生气更糟糕。
Recently I was talking about teaching method in Indonesia with a friend of mine. He teaches at International School here in Jakarta. There are different ways of teaching he said. We are used to asked to sit and listen. Remember this and that, just like what you said. While outside, they are learning about how and why.
So if we are talking about smart or not, back again to the person itself, imho. Yes. I agree that Asian are told to work harder and I do also feel the same thing.
最近，我和我的一个朋友谈论了印度尼西亚的教学方法。他在雅加达的国际学校教书。他说，在那里有不同的教学方法。学生们习惯于被要求坐下来认真听讲，记住老师所说的，就像你说的那样。而出了学校，他们会学习如何和为了什么而生活。在我看来，我们要讨论一个人聪明与否，还是回到这个人本身。不过我同意亚洲的孩子总是被告知要更努力的学习，我也能感受到这一点
So true. Sitting down memorising formulas, we might learn persistence and dedication, while being closed-minded. Chatting in groups with classmates discussing projects, we might learn what teamwork is but might not come to stand on our own feet.
是的，习惯于坐下来背公式，我们可能会学到更加坚持的去做事，但同时思想也会僵化。在小组中与同学们边讨论边学习，我们可能会学到什么是团队合作，但同时我们也可能会变得更加没有主见。
Although I did not go to school overseas, I can totally relate just because I remember being young and being so competitive. Haha! As a student, I honestly didn’t have much social life because my time was filled with academics and co-curricular activities. Honestly, it didn’t feel weird at all, I grew up in a household where exceptional academic grades were expected, and where parents are their children’s most enthusiastic cheerleaders. As an adult, I really appreciate the way I was brought up – valuing school, hard work and education. I’ve gotten a bit more laid-back now, trying to pursue my passion (traveling and writing); but, at the same time, I’m in the middle of finishing post-grad, so maybe I’m not too laid back after all.
虽然我没有在西方上过学，但我完全能理解你所说的，因为我记得我自己年轻时就是个学霸，哈哈！作为一名学生，老实说，我没有太多的社交生活，因为我的时间都被学业和课外活动填满了。老实说，这一点也不奇怪，我成长在一个对优异成绩充满期待的家庭，父母是孩子们在学习上最热情的啦啦队长。作为一个成年人，我真的很感激我的父母让我成长的方式—重视学习，努力工作。我现在正试着让自己更放松一些，试着去做一些自己喜欢的事情(旅行和写作);但与此同时，我正在完成我的研究生学业，所以也许我还并没有太放松。