家長擔心太多中國留學生使學校喪失英式特色

Chinese students have tended to come to the UK at a younger age in recent years, which means they come to Britain not only for higher education, but also for high school or even primary school. Asian investors have followed this trend, and started to buy independent schools to serve this demand.

近年來，到英國留學的中國學生更加年輕化，這意味着，這些學生不再僅僅到英國追求高等教育，而是接受高中教育，甚至小學教育。亞洲的投資者們也追隨這一趨勢，併購買私立學校來滿足這一需求。

An article carried by the Times of London on October 17 reported that last year Chinese-owned company Achieve Education bought Chase Grammar, a boarding and day school in Cannock, Staffordshire. Chase Grammar includes a program that offers extra support for pupils from China.

十月十七日，《倫敦時報》的一篇報道稱，去年一家中資企業Achieve教育買下了切斯文法學校，一所位於斯塔福德郡坎諾克區，寄宿與非寄宿結合的學校。切斯文法學校有一個專門爲中國孩童提供額外幫助的項目。

More such sales are reportedly in the pipeline, as smaller private schools welcome foreign investment, and China wants a slice of British education.

據報道，更多的交易也在醞釀中，因爲小型私立學校歡迎外國投資，而中國也想在英國教育中分一杯羹。

"This trend is very good and I am not at all surprised," Barnaby Lenon, chairman of the Independent Schools Council and former headmaster of Harrow School, told the Global Times, adding that Chinese people like the English education system. "We welcome Chinese investors in British private education."

私立學校委員會主席，前哈羅學校校長巴納比·萊農告訴《環球時報》，“這個趨勢非常好，對此我豪不驚訝。”他補充道，中國人非常喜歡英國教育，“英國私立教育業歡迎中國投資者。”

"Chase Grammar School is small, with just over 300 students, and the classes are small, averaging 15 students ... It gives the school a family atmosphere," Jackie Medhurst, principal of Chase Grammar School, said in a welcome note on the school's website.

“切斯文法學校非常小，只有300多名學生，班制也很小，平均每個班15名學生……這使得學校有一種家庭的氛圍，”切斯學校校長傑基·梅德赫斯特在學校官網的歡迎辭中如此說道。

Small class sizes, personal care, good exam results, and entry to world famous universities are features that are most attractive to Chinese students. But many parents are also worried that foreign investors might expand the proportion of international students, and that might undermine the British tradition.

小規模的教學，對個人的關注，優秀的學業成績，和通往世界一流大學門檻成爲了最吸引中國學生的特色。但是很多家長也在擔憂，外國投資者將擴大留學生的比例，這將有損於英國傳統。

Chinese parent Jie Chen, a mother of three who has lived in Birmingham for 20 years, told the Global Times, "We would like to send our kids to independent schools which also take international students. But we would like to know that the school does not take too many students from one single country. Otherwise, it wouldn't be an English experience."

一位在伯明翰生活了20多年，有三個孩子的中國家長陳潔告訴《環球時報》，“我們想把孩子送到接收國際學生的私立學校，但是我們希望學校不要僅僅從某一個國家接收太多學生，否則的話這就不再是英式教育的體驗了。”

It seems that Chase Grammar does not intend to hide their attempts to attract Chinese families. It has set up a China office in Shanghai to facilitate Chinese parents' communication with the school. Tong Zhou, a director of Chase Grammar, told the media that the school does not intent to change the ratio of local students and international students.

切斯文法學校似乎並沒有停止嘗試吸引更多的中國學生。該學校已經在上海設立了駐中國辦公室，負責協助中國家長和學校進行溝通。切斯學校的負責人周同告訴媒體，學校並無意於調整本地學生和外國學生的比例。

Some international branches of British boarding schools are very popular in Asia. In recent years, the Chinese passion for the British boarding school system has led some of the best-known schools such as Harrow and Wellington to set up satellite schools in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong. And the trend continues.

英國寄宿制學校的國際分校在亞洲非常受歡迎。近年來，中國人對英國寄宿制學校的熱情出示一些非常有名的學校，比如哈羅和威靈頓在北京，上海和香港設立了分校。這個趨勢正在延續。

It seems that the rising wealthy class in Asia is not satisfied with international branches in their own countries. They want to send their kids to the original British boarding schools to be surrounded by English people and immersed in the British culture.

而亞洲正在崛起的中產階級似乎對自己國家的國際分校並不滿足。他們想把孩子送到原汁原味的英國寄宿制學校裏，讓孩子接觸英國人並沉浸在英國文化中。

To support their children studying in the UK, Chinese parents are buying properties in Britain. According to a survey by UK Property Weekly, properties near universities and outstanding primary and secondary schools are the most preferable location for Chinese buyers.

爲了支持孩子們在英國學習，中國父母在英國購買房產。據《英國財產週刊》報道，靠近知名大中小學的房產是中國買家最傾向的選擇。

Susan Hamlyn of the Good Schools Guide advice service told the Telegraph newspaper in May that foreign parents were attracted by a form of traditional British education that is now sometimes out of reach for middle-class British families.

好學校指導諮詢服務公司的蘇珊·哈姆萊恩五月份告訴《每日電訊報》，外國父母們被英式傳統教育吸引，而這樣的教育英國的中產家庭有時負擔不起。

Still, it's very difficult for foreign students to go to the best independent schools, because they don't have the academic background. And once they arrive, they need to overcome homesickness, culture shock and other difficulties.

然而，對於外國學生來說，上最好的私立學校非常難，因爲他們沒有這種學術背景。當他們到達英國，他們必須克服對家庭的思念，文化衝突和其他的困難。

Compared to the independent school system, universities are more open. It is reported that China remains the leading source of international students for London.

相比於私立學校制度，大學則相對更加開放。據報道，中國是倫敦留學生的主要來源地。

"China is the leading international student groups contributing to London's economy with ?407 million ($617 million) last year, followed by the US and India," Michele Mazza, economist at London and Partners, the city's promotional company, told the Global Times. The number of Chinese students in London has grown by 49 percent since the 2009-10 school year and 72 percent since the 2005-06 school year.

“中國是主要的留學生羣體，去年給倫敦經濟帶來了四億七百萬鎊（六億一千七百萬美元）收入，緊隨其後的是美國和印度，”倫敦城市推廣公司London and Partners的經濟學家邁克爾·莫扎告訴《環球時報》。09-10學年倫敦的中國留學生增長了49%，05-06學年則增長了72%。