The past twenty years of education in China has been a period of constant change. There are forces internally and externally that drive these changes. Curriculum serves several masters so some aspects of the educational system are quite progressive while others remain virtually unchanged. Join presenter Kyle Tong at the Kennebunk Free Library on Wednesday, December 11 at 6:00 to learn about the Chinese educational system. Having worked closely with the one-million-student school system of Hefei for two decades has allowed Tong to have a fairly unique window into the soul of China through the education of their young. Tong will talk about the traditional systems, how they have been jerked into the 20th and 21st Centuries, and how simple demographics drive so much in education as well as societal thinking. He will attempt to get beyond the stereotypes and delve deeper into the mind of the Middle Kingdom.

Kyle Tong has been an educator for thirty-five years. Since graduating from Bowdoin in 1983 with a degree concentration in East Asian History, Kyle has been a teacher and administrator at Independent schools in Massachusetts, New Jersey, California, North Carolina, Ohio, and Maine, where he is currently the Assistant to the Head for Special Programs at Lincoln Academy. While at Columbus Academy in Ohio, he started the East Asia Institute which involved teacher and student exchanges in East Asia and teacher training in Hefei, China. An author of two textbooks on American Language and Culture for Chinese students and teachers, Kyle received the Columbus Council for World Affairs Award for Outstanding International Educator in 2007. In 2013, he was bestowed with the title of Honorary Citizen of Hefei, China for his work with the City schools.

This presentation is sponsored by the Camden Conference, held February 22-24, 2019 in Camden, Maine. The topic of this year’s conference is: “Is This China’s Century?” KFL is a participating library bringing an extension of this conference to our community.

This program is free and wheelchair accessible.  The Kennebunk Free Library is located at 112 Main Street in Kennebunk, Maine. For more information please call 207-985-2173 or email us at kfl@kennebunk.lib.me.us