Scotland has been such a cradle of modern thought and practice, but under Britain it fell into a distant second class status. Scotland is trying to re-assert independence, and China is interested in helping out.
Allan made the remarks at a reception at the Scottish Parliament held here for the two-week "Scotland in Conversation with China" under the theme of "Defining Scotland's Distinctive Identity in an Era of Globalization The Chinese Perspective".
Hmmmm... Is this an awkward translation? I wonder if this means "how China views Scotland" or "Scotland in relation to China"? Anyway, a big theme is education.
"The quality of Scottish education is internationally recognized and the school teachers are changing the student assessment models to encourage personality and innovation," she told Xinhua.
This is not encouraging. Internationally recognized for what? When we think of excellence in education, do we think of Scotland? If recognized for excellence, then why change anything? If personality and innovation quotients need changing, then how pray tell, does changing "assessments models" (eduspeek for testing) improve matters? (I dinna ken, mayhaps we'll call cac bonnie and give de fairbairns a hug).
With an opening ceremony held on Monday in Glasgow, Scotland's largest city, the two-week event is expected to bring Chinese guests including professors and scholars to six cities and towns in Scotland to deliver speeches about Chinese perspectives on the EU and implications for policy, entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurship practice in China among others.
Entrepreneurship is a human activity, known in every culture. Like many human activities the powers that be sometimes suppress that activity. Scotland transmitted (from scholastic Spain to France to Scotland) laissez faire to Hong Kong where it incubated while the Qing fell and Communist struggle eventually yielded to a system that is more traditionally Chinese to day.
Donald Tsang says (note his first name):
You need look no further than Hong Kong to see the truth of this statement. There has been Scottish influence in Hong Kong since the 1840s, and you will find Scottish connections all around our city.
We have an Edinburgh Place right in the heart of town. You can go sightseeing in Aberdeen. Or you can walk along the scenic MacLehose Trail, which is named after one of a number of former Hong Kong governors from Scotland. And whenever there is an important celebration in Hong Kong, you are likely to find the Hong Kong Police Pipe Band in their splendid Mackintosh Tartan.
Jardine Matheson, South China Morning Post and Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank (HSBC) are all Scottish companies in Hong Kong, although each has grown to where "ownership" is a flexible term.
The part Scotland is playing in this is not encouraging. The people who ran Scotland into the ground are still in power, in spite of a shift from UK hegemony to some self-rule. Their response to the opportunity is to change school testing. I say Scotland needs to recall its roots and its days of glory and study what free markets can do. No state involved. Just look at the results they had in Hong Kong.
Feel free to forward this by email to three of your friends.
Allan made the remarks at a reception at the Scottish Parliament held here for the two-week "Scotland in Conversation with China" under the theme of "Defining Scotland's Distinctive Identity in an Era of Globalization The Chinese Perspective".
Hmmmm... Is this an awkward translation? I wonder if this means "how China views Scotland" or "Scotland in relation to China"? Anyway, a big theme is education.
"The quality of Scottish education is internationally recognized and the school teachers are changing the student assessment models to encourage personality and innovation," she told Xinhua.
This is not encouraging. Internationally recognized for what? When we think of excellence in education, do we think of Scotland? If recognized for excellence, then why change anything? If personality and innovation quotients need changing, then how pray tell, does changing "assessments models" (eduspeek for testing) improve matters? (I dinna ken, mayhaps we'll call cac bonnie and give de fairbairns a hug).
With an opening ceremony held on Monday in Glasgow, Scotland's largest city, the two-week event is expected to bring Chinese guests including professors and scholars to six cities and towns in Scotland to deliver speeches about Chinese perspectives on the EU and implications for policy, entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurship practice in China among others.
Entrepreneurship is a human activity, known in every culture. Like many human activities the powers that be sometimes suppress that activity. Scotland transmitted (from scholastic Spain to France to Scotland) laissez faire to Hong Kong where it incubated while the Qing fell and Communist struggle eventually yielded to a system that is more traditionally Chinese to day.
Donald Tsang says (note his first name):
You need look no further than Hong Kong to see the truth of this statement. There has been Scottish influence in Hong Kong since the 1840s, and you will find Scottish connections all around our city.
We have an Edinburgh Place right in the heart of town. You can go sightseeing in Aberdeen. Or you can walk along the scenic MacLehose Trail, which is named after one of a number of former Hong Kong governors from Scotland. And whenever there is an important celebration in Hong Kong, you are likely to find the Hong Kong Police Pipe Band in their splendid Mackintosh Tartan.
Jardine Matheson, South China Morning Post and Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank (HSBC) are all Scottish companies in Hong Kong, although each has grown to where "ownership" is a flexible term.
The part Scotland is playing in this is not encouraging. The people who ran Scotland into the ground are still in power, in spite of a shift from UK hegemony to some self-rule. Their response to the opportunity is to change school testing. I say Scotland needs to recall its roots and its days of glory and study what free markets can do. No state involved. Just look at the results they had in Hong Kong.
Feel free to forward this by email to three of your friends.
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