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"Is there a (developed, or developing) country in the world right now with a healthy respect for education and intellectualism?" Both India and China would fit

"Is there a (developed, or developing) country in the world right now with a healthy respect for education and intellectualism?" Both India and China would fit I think. As would Japan. Large chunks of Asia certainly.

tokenadult 17y ago
Both India and China would fit I think. I think China's intellectuals need to show more spine in demanding intellectual freedom in discussions of national policy before I would credit China with a healthy respect for education and intellectualism. It's still not clear whether authority and stability or truth and freedom are the paramount values in China. I think all people everywhere ultimately learn to cherish freedom, but some places have more grass-roots demand for freedom at present. In this regard, India compares very favorably to China at the moment.
eru 17y ago
Turkey also seems to have some respect for education.
- eru 17y ago
  (At least people seemed to be quite keen on sending their offspring to university when I lived there for a few months in 2008. I guess it could also be more of a status symbol, though.)
- btilly 17y ago
  Turkey's respect for education ends when you talk about some basic historical facts, or the reality of the opinions of certain ethnic groups in Turkey. It is kind of like how in the USA we respect science until it challenges the Bible. Except that the Turkish objections are to more recent events, and is more likely to result in things like jail time.
  - eru 17y ago
    You may be right. And I am glad that I visited Turkey in 2008 and not 10 years earlier. They have made huge strides but there's still a lot of progress left to achieve. While I was there they banned youtube several times for showing silly (Greek) videos that claimed Attaturk (the republics founder) was gay. However --- what I wanted to say in the first place --- people who can afford it, delight in sending their children to university. `Hard' (sciencey) subjects are appreciated.
sundae79 17y ago
In India it has become the other extreme. Meaning, if you are a graduate from a top university, you are good. Otherwise, you are considered pretty much a loser. That doesn't help majority of the people. It has become a skewed system of status symbol than respect for education.
teeja 17y ago
China's "healthy" respect for education boils down to one standardized test which it uses to assign people to what they'll get to do for the rest of their lives. And censorship of facts because they're inconvenient isn't healthy either. Just like we do here in the US. As for India: what percentage of Indian kids get a full education?
- plinkplonk 17y ago
  "As for India: what percentage of Indian kids get a full education?" An increasing percentage over time. The question at hand was about aspiration and what a society works towards, not the measure of success achieved to date. By this logic, unless you've conquered intergalactic space travel already, you can't aspire to a space program. How many people in India aspire to give their kids a full scientific education? Practically everyone, even the desperately poor. Has the number of kids getting an education been increasing or decreasing over time? Teh former. Does India deliver a high quality education to every kid born in the country? Not at all. But we are working towards it. There are huge problems to be solved and progress is slow. And it varies over India too. In my home state of Kerala we have 100 % literacy and almost every kid goes to school till 15 years or so. (No evolution phobia either btw ;-)). In Bihar,(say) many kids drop out due to poverty and remain illiterate or barely literate. The original question was "Is there a (developed, or developing) country in the world right now with a healthy respect for education and intellectualism?" Respect for learning and intellectuals is the issue. A country could have a great educational system and still disdain intellectuals - the United States say? The question was about societies that respected education.In India (and China I dare say) an uneducated man respects the educated man, vs disdaining him as an intellectual snob. We are proud that our Prime Minister is a PhD from Oxford. He doesn't have to face accusations of "elitism" like Obama does. We are proud that our last President was a rocket scientist.
  - thaumaturgy 17y ago
    Thank you for your answer; it's exactly what I was looking for. One last question: how's religious tolerance in India? Assuming that a foreigner doesn't go around proselytizing, does religion come up often as a point of discussion?

tokenadult 17y ago

Both India and China would fit I think. I think China's intellectuals need to show more spine in demanding intellectual freedom in discussions of national policy before I would credit China with a healthy respect for education and intellectualism. It's still not clear whether authority and stability or truth and freedom are the paramount values in China. I think all people everywhere ultimately learn to cherish freedom, but some places have more grass-roots demand for freedom at present. In this regard, India compares very favorably to China at the moment.

eru 17y ago

Turkey also seems to have some respect for education.

eru 17y ago
(At least people seemed to be quite keen on sending their offspring to university when I lived there for a few months in 2008. I guess it could also be more of a status symbol, though.)
btilly 17y ago
Turkey's respect for education ends when you talk about some basic historical facts, or the reality of the opinions of certain ethnic groups in Turkey. It is kind of like how in the USA we respect science until it challenges the Bible. Except that the Turkish objections are to more recent events, and is more likely to result in things like jail time.
- eru 17y ago
  You may be right. And I am glad that I visited Turkey in 2008 and not 10 years earlier. They have made huge strides but there's still a lot of progress left to achieve. While I was there they banned youtube several times for showing silly (Greek) videos that claimed Attaturk (the republics founder) was gay. However --- what I wanted to say in the first place --- people who can afford it, delight in sending their children to university. `Hard' (sciencey) subjects are appreciated.

sundae79 17y ago

In India it has become the other extreme. Meaning, if you are a graduate from a top university, you are good. Otherwise, you are considered pretty much a loser. That doesn't help majority of the people. It has become a skewed system of status symbol than respect for education.

teeja 17y ago

China's "healthy" respect for education boils down to one standardized test which it uses to assign people to what they'll get to do for the rest of their lives. And censorship of facts because they're inconvenient isn't healthy either. Just like we do here in the US. As for India: what percentage of Indian kids get a full education?

plinkplonk 17y ago
"As for India: what percentage of Indian kids get a full education?" An increasing percentage over time. The question at hand was about aspiration and what a society works towards, not the measure of success achieved to date. By this logic, unless you've conquered intergalactic space travel already, you can't aspire to a space program. How many people in India aspire to give their kids a full scientific education? Practically everyone, even the desperately poor. Has the number of kids getting an education been increasing or decreasing over time? Teh former. Does India deliver a high quality education to every kid born in the country? Not at all. But we are working towards it. There are huge problems to be solved and progress is slow. And it varies over India too. In my home state of Kerala we have 100 % literacy and almost every kid goes to school till 15 years or so. (No evolution phobia either btw ;-)). In Bihar,(say) many kids drop out due to poverty and remain illiterate or barely literate. The original question was "Is there a (developed, or developing) country in the world right now with a healthy respect for education and intellectualism?" Respect for learning and intellectuals is the issue. A country could have a great educational system and still disdain intellectuals - the United States say? The question was about societies that respected education.In India (and China I dare say) an uneducated man respects the educated man, vs disdaining him as an intellectual snob. We are proud that our Prime Minister is a PhD from Oxford. He doesn't have to face accusations of "elitism" like Obama does. We are proud that our last President was a rocket scientist.
- thaumaturgy 17y ago
  Thank you for your answer; it's exactly what I was looking for. One last question: how's religious tolerance in India? Assuming that a foreigner doesn't go around proselytizing, does religion come up often as a point of discussion?