| The number of Chinese attending the US American SAT examination is growing dramatically every year. Public discussions about this phenomena express mixed opinions about the desire of many Chinese to study (or to send their children to study) in the US, or, like this article, analyze the differences between the Chinese and the American systems.
日前发布的《2012中国SAT年度报告》显示，参加美国高考[1]SAT 的中国高中生[2]，只有不到7%达到申请美国大学的有效分数线[3]，达到美国优质大学[4]普遍要求的2000分以上的只占2%。有专家分析两国高考内容后指出，这是由于中国教育缺乏对批判性思维[5]的训练。
美国大学录取考生，除了SAT分数，还十分看重考生的"课外活动[6]"，更在乎考生的"实际能力"、"你是什么样的人，个性特征[7]是什么"，"梦想是什么？"这是许多美国大学拒绝录取SAT高分考生的重要原因。
中美高考不同，根源在于高考制度上的不同。中国主要是政府教育部门(ministry of education)主导的行政式[8]录取，而美国则是大学自主[9]录取；中国是分省划定名额[10]，而美国则是无户籍壁垒[11]的均等录取方式。美国SAT由民间自治[12]性质的"美国大学委员会"主办组织，而中国高考完全由教育行政部门组织。
The 'report of the 2012 annual Chinese SAT's' that has been published in recent days indicates that among Chinese high-school students that attend the SAT's, less than 7% achieve a grade that is high enough for application to US American universities. Only 2% of examinees achieve 2000 pts., which is the common minimum for entrance into top US universities. Experts who analyze the college entrance exams of both countries point out that these results derive from the fact that education in China doesn't train students in 'critical thinking'.
When US universities recruit students they do not only consider SAT scores but also students' 'extracurricular activities' and pay notice to candidates' 'practical abilities', 'what kind of person the candidate is and what are his/her characteristics' and 'what are one's aspirations'. These are important reasons for rejecting candidates of high SAT scores by many US universities.
The differences between the Chinese and US American college entrance exams lie in the differences between the systems of examinations in both countries. In China, the ministry of education guides the administrative recruitment, while in the US the universities manage this process independently; in China every province has a quota, while in the US there is no barrier of census registration. The US American system is civilly manages by the 'US American High-Education Committee', whereas in China the gaokao is entirely coordinated by the governmental administration of education.
Original article published by 半岛都市报
[1] 高考 gāokǎo - College entrance exam, gaokao
[2] 高中生 gāozhōngshēng - high school students
[3] 有效分数线 yǒuxiào fēnshù xiàn - effective grade cut-off point
[4] 优质大学 yōuzhì dàxué - top-class universities
[5] 批判性思维 pīpàn xìng sīwéi - critical thinking
[6]课外活动 kèwài huódòng - extracurricular activities
[7] 个性特征 gèxìng tèzhēng - personal characteristics
[8] 行政式 xíngzhèng shì - governmental
[9] 自主 zìzhǔ - one's own master, manages independently
[10] 名额 míngé - quota or people
[11] 户籍壁垒 hùjí bìlěi - barrier of census registration (a limit to the number of residents registered under a certain location)
[12] 民间自治 mínjiān zìzhì - civic self-government
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