Education and Entertainment of Children

Here are questions from some Taiwanese students in the university:
1. If you had another chance to choose, do you still want to be a Northern European?

For me nationality doesn’t matter much since all cultures have their advantages and disadvantages…but yes, I’m happy to be North European.

2. Since the welfare of your country is so good, do you still want to study?

Of course I do. It would be rather boring and irresponsible to do nothing. I love studying, and I’ll never stop learning.

3. In Taiwan, if a child disobeyed his mother’s words, wandering along the street, the mother will blame on him and say“the police will come to catch you and put you into the prison!!”If the same thing happened, what will the elders do or say in your country?

Depends on the person. Some people would explain the dangers to the child, some would just be angry or give some sort of punishment.

4. What do you think about Taiwanese students (from seven to twelve grade) who have to learn every subject such as Math, Science, History, Geography...., whether they like it or not?

I don’t really understand this question. Most, if not all, countries have compulsory education. Therefore the situation is the same in Taiwan and in Finland.

I recommend rephrasing the question to make it clear what you exactly mean.

5. How do the elders describe to children about death and divorce?

Honestly, I think. About divorce, most Finns would emphasize that it is not the fault of children, just two adults who don’t get along.

6. What is the normal age for kids to start talking?

I don’t really know exactly or remember….but I think that in every country kids learn at the same age. It’s not dependent on general education level or such matters, just about how human brain works and how children generally learn.

7. Generally speaking, when we are teaching little kids new words, we often use reduplication, for example, “che”which means car, and we will say“che che”. How about you? Are there any special methods to teach children?

We don’t use reduplication. In general, I feel that people in Finland are not so worried (compared to East Asia where they have cram schools for little toddlers) about making young kids learn the language really fast. We let children be children, they will learn in school at the latest.

Again, I’m not sure what this entire survey is about so I don’t exactly know in what way you would like me to answer…

8. If a child makes mistakes, what would the elders do? For instance, stealing, being late, breaking something, and lying.

(see my answer to the third question)


Comments/answers by Jani Kohonen, also a journalist and ex-teacher, jani.kohonen@gmail.com