As I read the article about cram schools in the September issue ("After-School School: The Experience of Taiwan's Youth"), I was overcome with sadness at how our children expend all of their lives, energy, effort, and achievements in sole pursuit of educational advancement, exam preparation, and cramming. For someone who works in the education field, this was especially dismaying.

Nowadays, Taiwanese children's greatest accomplishments just come from educational advancement. In order to attain this goal, they need to become good test-takers, and to become good test-takers, they need to attend after-school cram schools where they engage in repetitive drills in all sorts of test-taking techniques. Under the guidance of star teachers, children master tricks in answering exam questions and improve their grades. For the parents and children who regard getting into an elite school as a life accomplishment, it is only natural that they get a great sense of achievement from these results.

Kids already spend eight hours a day in school. The time after school should be a "family time" where parents and children share their lives with each other. This is a crucial opportunity for parents to engage in life education.

These days, this precious time has been replaced by cram school classes. Children's lives have also been completely constricted. Cram schools can certainly produce kids who excel at taking tests and getting high grades. However, there is still a question mark as to how many of them know how to plan out their lives and live happily.

It's not that cram schools should be eliminated. When children wish to explore their interests in areas such as language, music, or logic, cram schools can be a form of extension class. Kids need an appetite in order to consume. However, it is abnormal if they are being forced to consume just for the sake of tests, even if they do manage to absorb the material.

During these past three years, we have attempted to cultivate a proactive spirit of learning in children through the publicly established, privately managed Humanities Primary and High School. Our kids must, of course, also face the Basic Competency Tests as well as take the initiative in studying. However, their after-school time is engaged in activities such as camping, costume parties, and unicycle riding. They live rich and abundant lives.

Our lower-level kids do not take tests. Instead, they have "self-driven evaluations." These evaluations do not have clearly defined parameters and are not scored. We do not wish for children to engage in rote memorization or repetitive practice of specific materials just to pass a test. That is not an indicator of their true ability. Instead, it only causes children to start worrying about scores from a young age. Their characters would be constricted as a result.

There are many different types of accomplishment in life. Some are limited to the short-term, while others' influence is deep and far-reaching.

We teach the children how to knit. When they master this skill, they have a great sense of achievement. As to whether they will continue to develop this skill, we'll leave that for later.

Upon learning test-taking techniques and successfully getting into an elite school, will children be able to adjust to school life and find a way forward? We'll leave that for later.

Does obtaining a high-salary job mean one understands how to manage his life and obtain happiness? We'll leave that for later.

The place kids go after they get out of school is where we can see their value system and that of their parents. Do they enter a constricting world of cram schools and after-school classes where they do homework, take exams, and practice test-taking techniques? Or do they get close to nature, go back home to their families, and share their lives with others? What kind of lives do you hope for children to have? Do you want them to learn how to take tests, or would you rather they learn knowledge that they can take with them throughout their lives? Elite schools and high salaries will not necessarily create a happy life. Learning should not just be for the sake of exams!