探祕紐約頂尖幼兒園的入園考試(1)

Bribing toddlers can be counter-productive, according to Vanessa. Instead, the 28-year-old coaches her young charges how to play together – for $450 an hour. After all, play dates are no trivial matter. They can decide a child’s future.

瓦妮莎(Vanessa)認爲，“賄賂”幼兒可能會適得其反。這位28歲的老師會教孩子們如何一起玩遊戲，每小時收費450美元。畢竟，遊戲約定(play date)不是件小事。它可能會決定一個孩子的未來。

Vanessa, who declines to give her last name, is one of a new breed of play date experts that help children prepare for admission to New York’s elite kindergartens. As part of the admission process to these schools that charge up to $40,000 a year, four-year-olds must attend a playgroup where they are tested by teachers for academic ability and their social and emotional IQ.

瓦妮莎拒絕透露她的姓氏，她是一名新型遊戲約定專家，幫助孩子們準備紐約頂尖幼兒園的入園考試。這些每年收費最高可達4萬美元的幼兒園錄取程序中的一個必選環節是，讓那些4歲的孩子們參加一個小組遊戲，老師們會在遊戲過程中測試孩子們的學習能力、社交能力和情商。

Play date experts set up situations to see how children respond and then make suggestions for improvement. For example, if everyone has to write down his or her name but there are not enough pencils, they must wait their turn.

遊戲約定專家會設置情境，以考察孩子們如何反應，然後提出改進建議。例如，如果每個人都得寫下自己的名字，但又沒有足夠多的鉛筆，那麼他們就必須等輪到自己的時候再寫。

These New York children take a test at the age of four. The ERB – named after the Educational Records Bureau which administers it – determines if a child can get into the best private schools, such as Trinity which includes Lachlan Murdoch and Ivana Trump among its alumni.

這些紐約的孩子們會在4歲時參加一次考試。ERB考試——以負責此次考試的教育檔案局(Educational Records Bureau)的名字命名——會決定一個孩子能否進入那些最優秀的私立幼兒園，例如有拉克倫•默多克(Lachlan Murdoch)和伊萬娜•特朗普(Ivana Trump)等校友的聖三一學院幼兒園(Trinity)。

The exam lasts between 45 minutes and an hour, and evaluates vocabulary, ability to perform fine motor skills and simple maths. There is also an interview with the parents.

該考試的時間爲45分鐘至一小時，測試詞彙量、精細動作能力和進行簡單運算的能力。對家長的面試也是考試內容之一。

Suzanne Rheault, chief executive of Aristotle Circle, which began offering play date experts three years ago, says that some schools “have a 5 per cent acceptance rate, below Harvard at 6.9 per cent. It’s like a bloodbath getting into these schools.”

Aristotle Circle首席執行官蘇珊•羅特(Suzanne Rheault)表示，一些幼兒園的“錄取率爲5%，低於哈佛大學(Harvard) 6.9%的錄取率。進入這些幼兒園的過程就像是一場血淋淋的廝殺。”該公司3年前開始提供遊戲約定專家服務。

Parents are desperate for advice to help their children get into the schools that are seen as a ticket to an Ivy League university. “There’s a perfect storm – a lot of money, a lot of immigrants with a focus on education [and] a lot of educated parents keen on getting their child into the best school,” she says. “Parents are shameless – they want it so badly.”

父母們急於尋求建議，以幫助他們的孩子進入這些被視爲常青藤(Ivy League)大學門票的幼兒園。“這是一座最擁擠的獨木橋，許多有錢人、許多關注教育的移民，還有許多本身受過良好教育的父母，都盼望把孩子送進最優秀的幼兒園。”她表示，“父母們顧不上羞恥，他們太需要這些了。”

Aristotle Circle, the company that employs Vanessa and was co-founded by Ms Rheault in 2008, sells an ERB preparation workbook with sample test questions in it such as “Apples and oranges are both . . . ”. Children get two points for “fruit”, one for “sweet things I eat” and none for “yummy”.

Aristotle Circle出售ERM考試練習冊，裏面的考題很簡單，例如“蘋果和橘子都是……”。回答“水果”得兩分，回答“我吃的甜東西”得一分，回答“好吃的”得零分。該公司由羅特與他人在2008年創建，瓦妮莎就供職於這家公司。

The bulk of its business is providing tutors at $350 an hour, who prepare children for the tests, and admissions experts for parents desperate for information. But demand for play date instruction is increasing.

該公司的主要業務是提供兒童指導老師和錄取專家服務。前者每小時收費350美元，指導老師會幫助孩子們準備考試。後者會爲那些焦急的家長提供信息。不過，遊戲約定指導的需求正與日俱增。

Neither Sara, Aristotle Circle’s most sought-after expert, nor Vanessa wants to be identified publicly. Both are cautious about breaching clients’ confidentiality. But they are also nervous about the public’s perception of the work they do.

Aristotle Circle最受歡迎的專家薩拉(Sara)和瓦妮莎都不希望公開自己的身份信息。兩人都擔心這可能損害客戶隱私。不過，她們也擔心公衆對自己所從事工作的看法。