The “Shanghai Approach” to Math Going Global

Peoples Weekly Issue No. 7， 2018

An assessment of studentsmastery of the Chinese version of a multiplication table entered British primary schools in March this year. Around 7，000 grade-four pupils from 300 schools took the exam. Great Britain will make this version compulsory for primary school students from 2020.

Sino-British educational cooperation started 30 years ago， when China was primarily the one learning from Great Britain. In 1987， with the support of Deng Xiaoping， the Peoples Education Press introduced Longman companys textbooks. Today， China has become a major exporter of textbooks owing to its reform and opening-up policy， which has brought with it a surge of development.

In 2015， a practice book for students （as a supplement to math textbooks） was translated into English. It has been adopted by over 400 schools in Great Britain.

In 2016， British Prime Minister Teresa May established exchange programs between Chinese and British math teachers. In July， a four-year program backed by 41 million British pounds was announced by the British Department for Education to promote the“Shanghai approach” in math in 8，000 primary schools.

Sharing Traditions in Small Families

Oriental Outlook Issue No. 19， 2018

In China， family has always played an important role in daily life.

Family traditions are carried on from generation to generation. In the old patriarchal society where big families lived together， family traditions and rules were important for keeping order in the group and improving the family image. Now， three or four generations living together under one roof is a rare sight. Instead， people live in small families scattered across the country， which makes it difficult to create or recite family rules as a way of disciplining.

Yet today， its still important to carry on family traditions as many are beneficial to both our families and society.

In recent years， more and more small families are seeking out their roots. In their re-discovery of their family history， traditions are recalled， recognized， and carried forward.

The inheritance of family traditions is a good basis for discipline and education. They teach us what we can do and how to do it in society. Moreover， family traditions are inherited and built in a much more diversified， open， democratic， and law-abiding society， so more contemporary core values need to be infused.

A Battle for Top Talent in China

Caijing Magazine Issue No. 12， 2018

2017 saw a “talent scramble battle” among Chinese cities.

With an adjusting economy， human resources for new industries in China are badly needed in most cities. Many officials have realized that talents and innovation are the impetus to economic development. With this in mind， many cities began a fierce battle to attract the best and brightest among Chinese youth.

In fact， over the past four decades， several waves of battles for talents have been put on in the country. Early in the 1980s when Chinas policy of reform and opening-up was first introduced， talents from inland cities scrambled to special economic zones. In the 1990s， the east coast introduced favorable policies to attract talents， making the phrase “the peacock flies to the Southeast” a popular saying. But nothing compares to the talent battle of 2017. He Huichao， director of the service department in Wuhans recruitment bureau， said， “We wanted to make use of the second wave of Chinas demographic dividend to optimize our demographic structure.”

People， whether they are producers or consumers， are the basic elements of any great city. The battle to attract talents is to brace for the future development of a city， while making them stay still remains a challenge.

The Secret of“New Retail”

China Economic Weekly Issue No. 21， 2018

On October 13， 2016， at the Yunxi Conference， Alibaba founder and chairman Jack Ma raised the concept of “new retail”（the integration of online， offline， logistics， big data， and other new technologies） for the first time and predicted that e-commerce will be reduced to a traditional business and replaced by “new retail，” which will change the entire business world within 10 to 20 years.

Jack Mas remarks evoked many responses. In the 600 days that followed， the concept of new retail developed so fast in the retail industry that it is no exaggeration to say that literally everyone was talking about it.

“New retail” brings the potential to change life as we know it. The brand-new shopping experience is having an impact on our lifestyles， and forging what many think to be an ideal life. It has grown from a vague concept to something we can touch and feel， with retail sample rooms being built and effective retailing methods being practiced.

In 2017， when “new retail” was first introduced， statistics from the Department of Commerce showed that for the first time in five years， Chinas physical retail business saw a surge in business. This is an important statistic because this industry is linked with peoples lives， manufacturing， logistics， and peer-to-peer sales.