Pros and cons

Comment on Kang Bing's Column "Time to revisit the exam system" (Nov 2, 2007)

I am an ordinary high school student and want to share my opinion with you.

The examination system has long been the source of controversy.

The majority of high school students, including me, and even some primary school students, complain about the pressure and catastrophic amount of homework they must do.

I remember the days when we faced the high school entrance examinations, and our teachers ordered us to stop studying subjects such as music and art. They also told us to stop reading all books except the textbooks.

That's horrible! I definitely agree with some of your opinions. The exams do hamper our creativity.

However, I think the examination system has some advantages. The textbooks have changed several times and now focus more on daily skills.

We are obliged to recite facts, but the ability to recall information precisely is very important, too.

Since we haven't found a better way to select intellectuals, maybe we should think about improving the examination system.

Cherrychicfly

via e-mail

Be faithful to reality

Comment on Li Xing's column "Fake photos tarnish the news media" (China Daily, Feb 21)

I have worked professionally as a photographer.

Even before digital photography, photographers faced many, many decisions about how to represent what they saw. An example: If I wanted to produce a good "lush" look, I might use one particular film.

It might seem that a "neutral" film should be used, but there is no film that is neutral in every way. A choice must be made. With digital photography, there are even more choices.

This is a philosophical problem: If someone told me: "Take a photo that tells nothing but the truth," I don't know what I would do. I would probably refuse the job.

But if somebody told me: "Take a photo that purposely distorts and misleads the viewer," well, I might say yes, if I believed the viewers later would not expect the truth.

The situation is not easy, even for the honest photographer.

Keith Richardson

via e-mail

Taking things slowly

Comment on Wang Hao's column "Slow down and smell the roses" (China Daily, Feb 1)

Your recent article "Slow down and smell the roses" touched my heart and inspired me to write.

In the past few years, I was one of those passive money machines driven by an unseen but powerful greed.

And one day, the machine collapsed. I learned to stare at the moon at night, knowing the different phases each have their own magic. Flowers and green grass in spring were more attractive than the symbol of US dollars. Suddenly, my life made a U-turn. Everything I ignored before jumped before my eyes, and my heart began to laugh.

All this was due to an article with the same title that I saw printed in a magazine. Later, I tried to avoid the chores and chaotic life in the city. And I understand that a good article can touch a person's soul and change a person's life attitude.

Betty Zhang

via e-mail

I particularly appreciated that comparison of changes that take place between countries.

My brother who lives in Tokyo recently went to our homeland in Australia and said everything was the same as five years ago.

So our experiences really confuse expats who work in a country like China and then come home and try to adapt.

The tendency of the fast life is that it becomes addictive - and only when we burn out, through illness, bankruptcy, etc, do we really stop to smell the breeze.

Brendan

via e-mail

Readers' comments are welcome. Please send mail to Letters to the Editor, China Daily, 15 Huixin Dongjie, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100029 China. Send faxes to (86-10) 6491-8377. Send e-mail to opinion@chinadaily.com.cn or letters@chinadaily.com.cn or to the individual columnists. China Daily reserves the right to edit all letters. Thank you.

(China Daily 02/28/2008 page9)