China to downgrade English section of college admissions test
Beijing education authorities plan to de-emphasise English scores on standardised tests, a sign that China's obsession with the language may be waning.
The Beijing municipal commission of education plans to reduce the English section of the all-important college admissions test, the Gaokao, from 150 points to 100 points in major cities by 2016, China's official newswire Xinhua reported.
It will boost the value of the Chinese section from 150 to 180 points. Currently, the test weighs English, Chinese and maths equally.
Officials have spun the proposal as both a practical decision and a matter of national pride. "The change highlights the fundamental importance of mother tongue in the curriculum," a representative from the commission told Xinhua.
Education authorities are also considering scrapping mandatory English lessons before the third grade. They currently begin on the first day of primary school.
Shandong and Jiangsu provinces, as well as Shanghai, may remove English from the Gaokao entirely. Public consultation on the proposal began on Monday, Xinhua reported.
Wu Mengran, a 19-year-old recent high-school graduate in northern China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, said the change would allow students to spend more time studying oral English rather than blindly copying grammar patterns in preparation for the test.
"In China, you can be really good at English tests but still not be able to use English to communicate," she said. "Very few people study English here just to study English."
Chinese schools currently mandate English classes until university, giving rise to a sprawling £3.1bn private English training industry. Even remote cities are full of test prep schools and tutoring agencies.
Xinhua called the proposals "no more than a minor tweak", emphasising that they would change the way that English is taught without diminishing its importance.
北京教育当局计划降低高考英语分值，中国的英语热也许就此降温。
据新华社报道，北京市教委将调整高考英语比重，由150分减为100分，这一政策将在2016年底前在各大城市开始实施。
高考改革还将语文一科由原来的150分增至180分。现行的高考制度中，语文、数学、英语三门考试分数相同。
中国官员称，此次高考改革方案既是一个切合实际的决定，也是关乎民族荣誉感的重大举措。教委发言人对新华社记者说，“此次改革强调了母语学习课程的基础性重要地位。”
北京市教委同时也在考虑取消小学三年级以前的英语课程。目前，从小学一年级起就已开设英语课。
山东、江苏和上海或将取消高考英语。据新华社报道，周一将针对这一改革方案征求公众意见。
今年19岁的吴梦然（音译）是一名来自中国内蒙古自治区的高中毕业生，她认为这次高考改革让学生有更多的时间来练习口语，而不是埋头抄写语法句型以应对考试。
她说，“在中国，即便在英语考试中名列前茅，也不代表可以用英语进行交流。这里很少有人单纯为了学英语而学英语。”
目前，中国直到大学还设置英语必修课程。英语学习热催生了高达31亿英镑（约合305.12亿人民币）规模的私立英语培训产业。甚至在一些偏远的城市里各种英语考试辅导班和家教补习机构也随处可见。
新华社称此次高考改革方案“不过是个微调”，并强调英语教育方式改革不会削减英语本身的重要性。
（译者 吲哚乙酸 编辑 丹妮）
