Monday, November 26, 2012

芬兰教育 ~ 世界第一的秘密

前几天到图书馆,被一本名为 <芬兰教育 ~ 世界第一的秘密> 的书所吸引,便借了回家。
为什么芬兰孩子上课时间少,素质却是世界顶尖?

芬兰提供免费九年义务教育,教科书、午餐、医疗等也免费。百分之九十九点七的孩子都完成义务教育,可能是中輟生最少的国家。九成四升学至高中职,午餐及学费仍全免,但得负担材料费。大学也免学费,但须付费加入学生会,以获得优惠膳食、医疗等福利。

芬兰不但希望达到「一个都不能少」的平等教育,更希望让每个人一生都不断成长,很多机构提供各种形式的成人教育。成人的基本技职教育是免费的,高中职及较专门技职教育则会收费,但工作满十年以上即可得到政府补助。

"好的社会福利让人愿意冒险;冒险,才能促进竞争力 。愈是靠知识吃饭,愈需要社会福利做后盾,让人民没有害怕失败的无形焦虑。在芬兰,失业后,有政府十八个月,七成薪水的保障。冒险,不会让你饿肚子。"

芬兰的福利制度是以众生平等为基础。不必要有富爸爸,也不必靠一次偶然的出生,芬兰人没有输在起跑点的压力。平等的代价并不便宜。芬兰所得税率 从35% 起跳,最高超过60%。国家将近一半的 GDP 是来自税 收 ,位居全球第六高。但是,同样是课重税 ,相较于其他北欧邻邦, 芬兰人似乎缴得更心甘情愿。

一位二十八岁的大学讲师 ,她每个月只能领到一半薪水,另外那一半,她连摸都没摸过,就直接扣税进国库。她从来没有抱怨过,为什么要用她 的薪水去养 不愿工作的人。“走在路上,我喜欢那种四周的人都过得很好的感觉。”

在芬兰,平等是一种生活态度,不是施舍的口号。

芬兰没有所谓的"资优班"(类似于大陆的快、实验班)、孩子满七岁才入学,学校没有制服、没有督学、毫不标榜精英培养、考试次数不多、学校不做排名、老师不作绩效考核等等。

世界各国教育体系和师生群体所拥有的多种焦虑、竞逐,在芬兰却都归于最根本的人性化思维,以行之自然、不急不徐、不争不抢的基本理念贯穿整个基础教育。在芬兰教育中,学校与学校,不会去做无谓的"竞赛"、"排名",学生与学生,老师与老师,更不会做原本起跑点就不公平的较劲;所有的评估与考试,都是为了让学生知道从哪里去自我改进,提供日后成长的基础与学习能力进步的空间,从来就不是要去挫折学生与老师的士气,和成为讥评他人落后、不长进的工具。

"世界上落差最小"的教育体制评量成就,让芬兰举世惊艳!




Thursday, November 22, 2012

LDL Cholesterol: “The Bad Cholesterol”

月头花了SGD380 (可以 claim 公司,haha) 到 Singapore Changi Hospital 做 Health Screening,今天下午回去拿报告。拿体检报告,肯定是抱着些许害怕的心情去的。报告结果是,everything looks ok, just that your LDL Cholesterol (so called Bad Cholesterol) is a bit higher (4.0 @_@)
Optimal : <2 .6=".6" p="p">Near Optimal: 2.6 - 3.3
Borderline high: 3.4 - 4.0 (corresponding to even higher rates for developing symptomatic cardiovascular disease events)
High: 4.1 - 4.8
Very High Risk: > 4.9

医生说,高 LDL 是可能因为吃了以下的食物 :
- Red Meat (But red meat is considered to be a member of one of these animal groups. Beef, pork, lamb, or venison. Poultry and fish are not considered red meat.)
- seafood (prawn, squid, crab, etc). Is ok to take fish.
- fried food (fried kuey teow, fried carrot cake)
- fast food
- saturated fat (These fats are derived from animal products such as meat, dairy and eggs. But they are also found in some plant-based sources such as coconut, palm and palm kernel oils. These fats are solid at room temperature. Saturated fats directly raise total and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. )
- too much egg yolks (advisable to take only 2 egg yolks/week, is ok to take egg white)

除了鸡蛋(应该有平均5~7粒 鸡蛋/week),我都很少吃 以上医生所列举能造成高 LDL 的食物。惨了,吃太多鸡蛋(蛋黄)了。

医生建议可以在半年或一年后到普通诊所再做 cholesterol 的检查。(前提当然是要减少 egg yolk 的 intake)

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

小豆豆 ~ 我想干什么

妈妈从来不对小豆豆说“应该去干什么”,小豆豆如果说“我想干什么”的时候,妈妈就会说“好啊”,然后并不多问什么,但她会把孩子们做不了的手续上的事情,帮助孩子做好。

Monday, November 19, 2012

9-week old Zi Yu

         从星期天起至昨晚,子豫都有些许伤风,不时也会咳嗽(尤其是哭闹的时候,可能也是因为不舒服而哭闹)。老婆有些许担心,提议带她去看医生。我却坚持再观察多一天,如果还没有好才去看医生(不希望子豫那么小就依赖药物)。幸好子豫在昨晚哭闹了一会儿后,突然间把痰给咳出来了。老婆看到了转忧为喜,说" 好咯,痰咳出来了,子豫应该会感觉舒服一点了"。果然,子豫向我们微笑,哈哈!
        昨天到了老朋友的家,找他吃午餐并闲聊。他问我是几月出生的,而我答复的问题后,便问他 “是不是老婆有喜了?"。果然让我猜对了,恭喜他们哦。之后,我们便聊关于老婆怀孕,生产,坐月的话题。他打算让他的 baby 在家乡长大(虽然他的老婆 prefer 将 baby 带出来新加坡)。他选择家乡的理由是 :
- 新加坡奶妈费用 SGD 700, 而家乡才 RM700
- 乡下长大的小孩会比城市长大的小孩多机会与人接触,不会像新加坡的小孩那样呆呆地,静静地玩 smart phone, ipad, etc (这只是他的观点,我不赞同,就算你让小孩呆在家乡,家人也可能会用 smart phone 来哄他;就算你把小孩留在新加坡,也会有很多机会让他与大自然,不同的人接触,就是看你如何与孩子共同成长)。
- 他一再强调他和他老婆的薪水不像我那么高,把孩子留在家乡,他的负担会相对减轻。

    而我坚持无论如何也要将孩子留在身边,与他一起成长。虽然家人,亲戚朋友担心我们会累坏了,可我认为那是值得的。而且那是身为父母应该尽的本份,不要给自己诸多理由,不将孩子留在身边。当你下班后见到活泼可爱的孩子,不管多么累,都会因为见到可爱的孩子后而将烦恼抛诸脑后。我要与我的子豫一起成长,见证她她呱呱堕地,学会听我们的声音,观察我们的表情动作,与我们的互动微笑,学转身,爬,走,甚至生病不舒服,哭闹,跌倒,受伤等。

注:2个月大的子豫已经开始向我对她发出的声音,表情报以微笑。且她也会发出一些声音,似乎要向我表达些什么。



Tuesday, November 13, 2012

When is it ideal to have Baby No. 2?

Mypaper 有以下的文章:(copy from mypaper newspaper)

The oft-asked question posed to most married couples with only one child must be this: So, when is No. 2 coming?
      Depending on how the couple feel about expanding their brood, that question can be seen as well-meaning, or simply rude.
      After all, having how many kids - if at all - is a personal matter. And there are many factors to consider: Can the family afford another child? Will mummy have to quit her job to take care of both kids? Is the flat big enough for two energetic tots?
      The rising cost of living, the stress that kids face in school, and the increasingly competitive world are other equally practical considerations. Many working mothers may also find it difficult to juggle a career and a growing family.
      Even if all the obstacles to having No. 2 are overcome, the next question of when ensues.
      So, what does research say?
      In terms of children's relationships with their parents, sibling rivalry and kids' self-esteem, the best time to have No. 2 is when the first-born is aged under a year or over four, studies have found.
      This is because kids aged under one do not have a sense of their exclusive status yet, so they are less likely to resent a sibling, according to Dr Jeannie Kidwell, a professor of family studies at the University of Tennessee.
      Children aged over four have had time to enjoy exclusive attention from their parents, so they are also less likely to reject a new baby, added Dr Kidwell. Besides, most kids of that age would have started to focus more on their own lives, after having formed friendships with peers.
      According to Heidi Murkoff, author of the best-selling pregnancy and parenting series, What To Expect, there are four fundamental questions a couple should ask themselves before taking the plunge for No. 2:
> Do you find yourself longing for kids close in age so that they can be each other's playmates?
> Would you rather have another round of diapering days and sleepless nights sooner than later?
> Would you prefer to space out your pregnancies so that you can enjoy each child's little-kid stage without distractions?
> Do you like the idea of spacing kids far enough apart in age, to minimise the risk of sibling rivalry and of them being at similar developmental stages?
      According to Murkoff, if the answers to the first two questions are "yes", then the couple are likely ready to take the leap. If they answer "yes" to the last two questions, then they should probably wait a little longer.
      Another vital factor that couples should consider is their age, especially for women. If, say, the woman is 38 and wants more than one child, then she probably does not have the luxury of spacing them three years apart, according to San Francisco-based parenting website BabyCenter.
      One other area that couples tend to neglect is whether both are on the same page when it comes to having another child. What if one party is not ready to have No. 2 so soon, if at all? The first step towards resolving that is to talk to each other about it.
      Of course, when to have No. 2 is not based only on science and practicality. Having another child is also about love - what does your heart say? Sure, most couples would weigh the pros and cons of having another baby but, admittedly, this is one decision that is led primarily by the heart.
      Whether the second pregnancy comes soon after the first or several years down the road, adding another bundle of joy is always a cause for celebration for a young family.

Sunday, November 11, 2012

窗边的小豆豆 ~ 韵律操

摘自窗边的小豆豆 ~ 韵律操

“过于依赖文字和语言的现代教育,恐怕会使孩子们用心去感受自然、倾听神灵之声、触摸灵感的能力渐渐衰退吧? ”
“‘绿蛙落古池,寂寂闻水声’......看到青蛙跳到池水中的,肯定不止松尾芭蕉一人。看到沸腾的水顶起铁壶盖、苹果落地的,也一定不止瓦特和牛顿。
世界上最可怕的事情,莫过于有眼睛却发祥不了美,又耳朵却不会欣赏音乐,有心灵却无法理解什么是真。不会感动,也不会充满激情......”

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

7周岁的子豫

子豫饿了 ~ 哭
子豫尿了 (如果是用普通尿布) ~ 哭
子豫大解了 (无论多寡) ~ 哭
子豫不爽 ~ 哭 (这是我自己多加的,please ignore)

7周岁的子豫,用 “哭” 来很好的诠释自己的 “不舒服”。而身为 daddy 的我,唯有多加观察,谅解,耐心地去了解这小宝宝,陪伴她一步一脚印地成长。


Monday, November 5, 2012

7-week old Zi Yu

眨眼间,girl girl 已经7个星期大了。老婆和 girl girl 都到了新加坡。可怜 girl girl 那么小就要长途跋涉,在车上喝了奶都吐出来了。还好经过了一天的调整期,昨天(在新加坡的第二天),她 back to normal 了。喝,睡,大,小,都很正常。

今天早上也带了 girl girl 到奶妈家,待会儿大概7点多再去抱她回来。希望奶妈能在我们的工作日好好地照顾她。
今天也到图书馆借了两本书:
<<窗边的小豆豆>>  - 这本书不仅带给全世界几千万读者无数的笑声和感动,而且为现代教育的发展注入了新的活力,成为20世纪全球最有影响的作品之一。

<<妈妈宝宝护理大全>> 

希望能从这两本书中受益,girl girl,我们一起加油。