China's Test Prep Juggernaut

Test preparation company New Oriental Education is helping a rising generation of Chinese students to ace U.S. college entrance exams

On a Sunday afternoon in March, Morgan Meng, a broad-shouldered, mustachioed high school senior from Jinan in eastern China, wanders through an exhibit hall in Beijing, browsing tables stacked with brochures showing leafy campuses and smiling, multi-ethnic faces. Elsewhere at the "Colleges that Change Lives" fair, hundreds of Chinese parents and students overflow conference rooms where admissions representatives from the likes of Hendrix College in Conway, Ark., are promising small classes, mild winters, and Asian cuisine. For hundreds of American institutions, from obscure colleges to prominent universities, Chinese students, who typically pay full international tuition, have become highly desirable.

Meng has been admitted to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he plans to major in history. He's one of tens of thousands of Chinese undergraduates expected to attend stateside schools next year. Prosperous Chinese families see an American education as a sign of status that can help their children find jobs once they return home. In conversation, Meng responds to questions about his readiness for studying in America by saying, "Let me think." Then he waits for an interpreter to explain in Chinese. "I have the concern about English," he says haltingly. "I may read the textbook smoothly. I can't always catch up with the professor. Their speaking speed may be faster. There may be some"—he turns to the interpreter, who suggests the word "slang"—"that it is difficult to communicate with classmates."

Still, the language barrier didn't stop him from scoring 680 out of 800 in writing and 590 out of 800 in critical reading on the SAT, which is given in English, in addition to 770 on the math portion. Like thousands of other students in China, Meng learned to game the test, earning a score that belies how modest his language skills actually are. By taking an intensive two-month, six-days-a-week course offered by New Oriental Education & Technology Group—sponsor of the college fair—he raised his overall score on the SAT from 1670 to 2040 out of 2400, making him an attractive candidate for a whole new league of American colleges. His score on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), which measures proficiency in reading, writing, speaking, and listening and is one of two tests international students may take to demonstrate their grasp of English, soared from 65 to 90 out of 120. Many universities, including Illinois, require a minimum TOEFL score of 79.

这个同学录取了UIUC，不错，往年这个学校都不要SAT这么高的分数，现在水涨船高，越来越过分了。

A rising generation of Chinese students whose ambition for a U.S. education exceeds their English fluency is acing the entrance tests, thanks largely to New Oriental. The test preparation company, which was once fined for stealing test questions, is frustrating college officials and faculty members, not to mention the kids who end up unable to follow some of their courses. While New Oriental has undoubtedly helped plenty of Chinese students gain access to education and careers they'd otherwise miss out on, the company has a growing number of critics who question if it really serves the best interests of the kids it helps to go abroad.

"Do I agree with their educational principles? No," says Paul Kanarek, senior vice-president for international business at The Princeton Review, a New Oriental competitor. "Do I think what they're doing is healthy for the students they serve? No. Are they setting these kids up for failure at U.S. universities? Definitely."
这段话要看看。尤其是最后一句，他们在美国大学肯定失败吗？肯定。呵呵，好悲观。

Chinese undergraduates are flooding into American colleges, many of which are financially strapped. In 2009-2010, China passed South Korea to become America's largest source of international undergraduates, with 39,921. Because of China's one-child policy and increasing affluence, larger numbers of its students can afford U.S. colleges that cost far more than Chinese universities. In most cases, they aren't eligible for financial aid. They pay as much as $50,000 a year in tuition and room and board at private colleges and up to $35,000 at public ones. While their math skills are usually impressive, some can't follow a lecture or participate in a class discussion.

Not that it's stopping them. In the year ended Feb. 28, more than 200,000 students in New Oriental classrooms across China devoted weeks or months to cramming vocabulary words and learning shortcuts that help them respond with the accuracy of IBM's (IBM) Watson computer on English-language standardized tests—whether they understand the material or not. New Oriental delivers tiger test prep for tiger parents, dominating the fast-growing market for grooming Chinese students for U.S. entrance exams and fending off American competitors such as Washington Post's (WPO) Kaplan and The Princeton Review (REVU), which have been trying to elbow their way into the lucrative Chinese test preparation business. New Oriental's courses, which are taught primarily in Chinese, rely on exhaustive dissection of old test questions to help inflate students' scores. And because they're so superbly trained to beat the exams, New Oriental students with shaky English not only get into selective U.S. colleges but also test out of the transitional programs many schools have for foreign students who don't speak English well.

"New Oriental seems to have cracked the SAT code," says Phillip Muth, associate dean for admissions at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. Its 1,200 applicants from China this year had an average of 610 out of 800 on the SAT's reading section and 670 in writing, as opposed to 641 in reading and 650 in writing for U.S. applicants. In math, they achieved an average of 783, compared with 669 for U.S. students. When the students arrive on campus, Muth continues, "You can tell immediately that English isn't their first language."

新东方好像已经搞定了SAT考试。彻底征服。美国大学表示了很大的担忧。

Josh Ferchau, coordinator for international admission at Knox College in Galesburg, Ill., has seen Chinese applicants improve TOEFL scores 20 points in a month. "That's pretty incredible," he says. "I'm sure a lot of that can be attributed to how they prepare for tests."


Around scenic West Lake in Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang province in eastern China, the magnolias are budding. Young couples push strollers, while seniors limber up with tai chi poses or play traditional musical instruments. Over green tea and spicy scallops, Xie Jinzheng, one of New Oriental's star teachers, explains how to beat the TOEFL's oral section.

The company seeks bright, gregarious college students and recent graduates such as 24-year-old Xie and encourages them to approach their classes with humor and passion. New Oriental has its own inventory of jokes, and it urges teachers to search for others on the Internet or in books. New Oriental students post their favorites online, such as one teacher's quip that "PhD" stands for "permanent head damage," and "MBA" for "married but available." The company also motivates teachers to boost their students' scores by tying their compensation to student evaluations. Since the bonus is linked to class size, and some courses have as many as 300 students, popular teachers can earn more in incentives than in salaries. Students can also vote to banish teachers from their classes, à la Survivor, though it rarely happens.

2009-2001我在新东方上GRE课时，学生给老师打分，一般在中间6-7次课时做这个事情。现在按照分数来加入评判，更加助长了对高分的迷恋。

Xie has taught the oral section of the TOEFL for New Oriental for three years. Searching for patterns and clues, he's taken the test six times and pored over websites where Chinese students share test questions. His research enabled him to sort the questions used to measure English speaking ability into categories such as "People," "Places," and "Events." He then designed speeches that students can memorize and recite with minor variations in response to any question. For instance, a typical "Places" item might require students to describe their favorite park. Xie suggests the response: "You know, there is a river in the park. After dinner, I want to walk along the bank, and the breath of fresh air can really refresh my mind."

ETS看到这段话肯定痛心疾首，精心设计的SAT考试被人一眼看穿。这是好事情吗？这能测试出学生的基本学术技能吗？