Rethinking Schooling for the 21st Century

In China, at the level of individual subjects, coding data suggest that discussion
of the environmental dimension of ‘sustainability’ hugely outweighs that of
the economic (by 73 references to 3). But environmental issues are discussed
primarily in terms of the scientific processes involved, or the threat posed by
the actions of insufficiently ‘moral’ individuals, rather than their implications for
economic strategy or state policy. Such a conclusion is suggested by the highly
selective discussion of the need to adapt economic development or consumption
in response to environmental threats. The Science curriculum (which features
most coverage of environmental issues) stipulates that, from Grades 3 to 6,
students should conduct a survey about white pollution and noise pollution in
public places and discuss solutions to these problems (Part III, Chapter 4). From
Grades 7 to 9, they should learn about the greenhouse effect and its impact on
humans. It is suggested that they investigate the use of plastics, rubber and
chemical fibres in modern industry, and offer solutions to the pollution caused
by such materials (Part III, Chapter 3). Meanwhile, the People’s Education Press
(PEP) Grade 6 primary textbook for ‘Morals and Society’ (pinde yu shehui)
features a unit entitled ‘The Garden of Humanity’ (renlei de jiayuan) which
stresses the pressure placed on the natural environment by over-population
(implicitly justifying the government’s population policies), illustrates ways in
which humans pollute their surroundings (with photographs of polluted Chinese
rivers), and exhorts students to promote water conservation and reduce littering.
However, what is missing here is material inviting students to reflect on, discuss
or critique the ways in which the state’s own vision and strategy for economic
development may have contributed to environmental damage. For example, the
troubling environmental implications of China’s Soviet-style program of dambuilding
are not acknowledged; 23 instead, Geography textbooks portray the
achievements of ‘New China’ in the ‘comprehensive management’ of rivers such
as the Yangtse (PEP, Geography Grade 8, Volume I. p. 47). Also absent from any
list of those topics that students are invited to investigate or debate are the risks
associated with nuclear power generation and disposal of the resulting waste, or
the sustainability of China’s massive expansion of car production and ownership
over the past twenty years. Overall, therefore, the message is that environmental
challenges, although real and substantial, can be addressed through technical
adjustments to the existing strategy for industrial development, without
fundamental reappraisal of its ethical basis or ecological implications.
Korean subject curricula also refrain from inviting any searching critique of
modern industrial processes or lifestyles, although specific environmental
challenges associated with industrial activity are highlighted. As in China,
discussion of environmental issues is mostly assigned to the Science curriculum,
especially at secondary (middle school) level, though it is also accorded some
treatment in Geography (pp. 66-73 of the Social Studies Curriculum, Grades
23 On the catastrophic environmental implications of Soviet attempts to reshape the natural
environment for purposes of rapid industrialisation, see Perkin (1996, p. 130).
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Chapter 3: East Asia