京剧成中小学必修课引发热议

“今日痛饮庆功酒，壮志未酬誓不休。来日方长显身手，甘洒热血写春秋。”您可能会感到惊奇，这首《智取威虎山》中的选段《甘洒热血写春秋》，将成为小学三年级的京剧课堂教学曲目。教育部上周公布京剧将正式进入中小学课堂。消息传出可谓一石激起千层浪：传承民族文化为何独尊京剧？15首曲目中为何过半是文革样板戏的曲目？师资力量不足又将如何推广？

The Ministry of Education announced last week a pilot* program to teach students in primary and secondary schools traditional Beijing opera.

As one of the nation’s unique cultural treasures, the opera will be added to music courses for 200 schools in 10 provinces, municipalities* and autonomous regions* throughout China.

The move immediately drew heated reaction from the public.

“I support this project whole-heartedly,” said Zhu Shihui, a renowned Beijing opera performer. “Interest should be fostered* from childhood. I myself began to become fascinated* with Beijing opera while in primary school. It eventually became my career,” he said.

The general public, however, is not as enthusiastic. In a survey by Netease, a news portal in China, nearly 70 percent of voters were against the project.

In another opinion poll of more than 21,000 respondents by China’s leading web portal Sina.com, only 27 percent believed setting up the courses would help promote traditional Chinese culture.

Nearly 38 percent thought the course should not be compulsory* as student choice should be respected. The remaining 35 percent suggested different local operas be taught in different areas since China had a huge reservoir* of local operas.

“Is Beijing roast duck considered a delicacy in every corner of China?” asked one Internet user in an online forum.

“Tastes differ from place to place. Our Yue opera is more popular in Zhejiang and should be put into the course here,” said the Netizen from East China’s Zhejiang Province.

“Such courses should be optional*. If the students are forced to learn, it might backfire* and make them lose interest,” said another Netizen nicknamed “Little Monkey.”

Another respondent Li Hui worried whether there were enough qualified teachers for the task. “Beijing opera is a centuries-old, sophisticated art form which requires years of professional training for one to excel. Music teachers in primary and secondary schools might not be able to cope with such challenges.”

Mei Demei, a music teacher in Wuhan, capital of Hubei Province, said that from the perspective of passing down traditional culture, it was necessary to promote Beijing opera. But for students, whether they could work up interest was more important.

“From my years of experience teaching, it might be more workable and beneficial to the children if we select some well-known Beijing opera pieces to show in class and teach them how to appreciate it. They might be better audiences than performers,” Mei said.

(SD-Agencies)

Help

controversy n. 争议

pilot adj. 试点的

municipality n. 直辖市

autonomous region

自治区

foster v. 培养

fascinate v. 使入迷

compulsory adj. 必修的

reservoir n. 贮存

optional adj. 选修的

backfire v. 产生逆反