The first episode of BBC documentary series Are Our Kids Tough Enough ? Chinese School made its debut on Tuesday.(A screenshot from BBC website)
"Once the series has finished, we will be looking at what we might learn from the series and I'm sure the Chinese teachers will do the same."
A BBC spokesperson said: "For several years some of the East Asian countries have beaten the UK on core subjects in international league tables, and we wanted to explore if their approach could be transferred to the UK classroom.
"This bold project explores the differences not just in curriculum and teaching style, but in culture. This series has delivered thought-provoking content and has started a discussion about education practice in the UK."
Britain's Open University, which is monitoring reaction, has received mixed responses from people eager to comment on the experiment.
Ian Smith wrote: "One of the words on the gates of this school is "respect" and this was sadly lacking, as shown by the behavior of many pupils. The head teacher clearly wants the Chinese method to fail when he should be taking a more objective approach ... I'm infuriated over the lack of respect."
Newly qualified teacher Rachael Wade commented: "This program is about highlighting the differences between attitudes and culture rather than the education systems. I am quite concerned about the attitude of the head teacher of the school to suggest the reason for the failing of the Chinese school lies solely with the method and delivery. This is clearly a very successful method in China where students not only respect elders from a young age, but also the importance of education and knowledge, and this is something that has to be taught in the home as well as in school. Ultimate responsibility for a child's welfare, attitudes, behavior, and discipline lies with parents."
An infuriated Jo Quman said: "The reason why Chinese students excel is not because of the Chinese method of teaching. They would excel with any method of teaching. The reason is because their parents, family, and society has taught them to be ambitious and put as much effort as possible into being the best. It's this effort that helps them excel. If the British method of teaching was applied to Chinese and British kids, the British wouldn't stand a chance."
In the final episode next week, the students sit tests, with the results showing whether Chinese or English teaching methods produced the best results.
