Will Chinese writing be taught at public schools? VietNamNet Bridge - A debate has been raised among educators and scholars about whether to teach Chinese writing in the public school system. Vietnamese students and researchers in social sciences cannot understand the books by ancestors if the documents are not translated or transcribed in Latin characters. The idea was applauded by scholars Nguyen Dinh Chu, Nguyen Canh Toan and Le Van Quan.However, many experts and parents do not agree.“Chinese writing is just an instrument for us to learn about the past of the nation. And not knowing Chinese characters does not mean bad knowledge about the nation’s history,” Hao Hiep, a VietNamNet reader wrote from Australia.“It would be a great illusion to assume that students who learn Chinese at school would be able to read and understand documents that ancestors wrote hundreds or thousands of years ago,” he commented.Meanwhile, Nguyen Hong Con from the Hanoi National University believes that Vietnam should not make a break with the teaching of Chinese to students, but says it should also not be taught at all education levels.Con chooses a third way – teaching 300 characters to high school students as a compulsory subject for students majoring in social sciences and an optional subject for others.

Source: VietNamNet News September 13, 2016 02:15 UTC