坐在中國大陸一省的省長旁邊，他熱情的邀請我協助他們英語教育的執行。這是此趟來大陸參觀的第四個城市，也是第四個重量級人物，對我在台灣從事的英語教育產生高度興趣。他們告訴我他們政府當今政策，是要將下一代培育成為未來國際社會優秀人才。
才幾個月前我也是坐在官員身旁，只不過會議是由台灣教育部召開。會議中與會的專家學者嚴厲譴責英語學習造成幼兒身心傷害，強烈要求政府拿出強硬手段制止幼兒英語教育，其中的理由包括幼兒學習英文，造成英語兩極化，政府不應該加大城鄉差距及貧富差距。
聽到別人對自己工作的肯定與讚美當然令人開心，但我卻不確定是否應該接受邀請貢獻所知。這趟旅行有機會認識好幾位叱吒風雲的台商，雖然他們來自台灣，但在大陸發展成功的事業鋪天蓋地，他們也早已在大陸落地生根，他們歸納自己的成功來自於台灣的教育及工作經驗。中國像是一隻沉睡多年的獅子，好不容易醒來，牠的威力無法令人低估，我很難想像未來台灣孩子長大，他們如何和擁有良好雙語能力的中國人相競爭？
這幾年來台灣政府保守的心態，讓台灣逐漸喪失競爭優勢。這趟旅行中我所見到的大陸官員幾乎都是三、四十歲的年輕人，他們不但企圖心咄咄逼人，劍及履及而且充滿創意。他們告訴我們只要法規裡沒有明文規定禁止的事情，統統可以做。相較於台灣政府官員怕事心態，只要法規沒有明文規定可以做的事，統統不准做，更令人扼腕的是，我們的法規永遠沿用過去，永遠在時代之後。
培育一個孩子至少需要二十年的時光，我不知道當台灣孩子長大的時候將會如何，或許他們只能為大陸長大的人工作，因為他們的政府早已將他們準備好成為國際人才。
台灣加油！加油！加油！
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Taiwan, Go! Go! Go!
I was sitting next to a governor in a southern province in China. It was the forth city I visited on this trip and the forth person who showed interest in my work. They all asked me whether I could help them with English education for young children. They said that it is the goal for their government to prepare the young generation for the global village and learning English is necessary.
A few months ago, I was sitting in a meeting which was held by the Ministry of Education in Taipei. The professors they invited strongly voiced how much harm the young children would get if they started learning English at a young age. They urged the government to take strong steps to stop private schools teaching English to young children. One reason they added was that the gap between the disadvantaged students and the well-achieved students would be widen and the government shouldn’t let it happen.
I was flattered with the compliments the Chinese government officials made on my work, but I was not sure that I should take any offers. On this trip I met quite a few tycoons who came from Taiwan originally but now consider China their home. The business kingdoms they built in China are incredibly successful and their education and experience in Taiwan attributed to their success. China was like a sleeping lion in the past, but it is awake now. I can’t imagine where the Taiwanese people can stand one day when the young Chinese generation grows up with bilingual ability.
Taiwan is losing its competition while the government stifles. Most government officials I met on this trip were in their thirties or forties, they were ambitious and innovative. Most words I heard in the meetings were: ‘We are allowed to do anything as long as it is not forbidden in the law.’ On the contrary, in Taiwan we are not allowed to do anything if it is not written in the law, and the worst thing is the law hasn’t been up dated.
It takes 20 years to prepare a child for the future world. I can’t imagine what will happen when Taiwanese children grow up. They probably will only work for their Chinese counterparts because they will have the skills that the world citizens require.
Taiwan, Go! Go! Go!
爾嘉加油
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