Title: Meritocracy and its discontents : anxiety and the national college entrance exam in China /
Authors: Howlett, Zachary M., 1976-
Year: 2021
Subjects: Gaokao (Educational test) Social aspects.; Universities and colleges China Entrance examinations.; Achievement tests China.; Achievement tests; Universities and colleges Entrance examinations; China
Abstract: "An ethnography of the National College Entrance Examination, the Gaokao, in contemporary China. Discusses the exam as a fateful rite of passage that justifies and reinforces social inequality and the myth of meritocracy while enabling people to personify the cultural virtues of diligence, grit, composure, and divine favor or luck"--
Contents: Prologue : The Final Battle -- A Fateful Rite of Passage : The Gaokao and the Myth of Meritocracy-"Study Changes Fate" -- Mobility, Time, and Value : The High Stakes of Examination and the Ideology of Developmentalism-"Water Flows Downwards and People Move Upwards" -- Counterfeit Fairness : State Secrets and the False Confidence of Test Takers-"My Generation Was Raised on Poison Milk" -- Diligence versus Quality : Merit, Inequality, and Urban Hegemony-"The Way of Heaven Is to Reward Hard Work" -- Courage under Fire : The Paradoxical Role of Head Teachers and the Individualizing Moment of Examination-"Attitude Determines Knowledge" -- Magic and Meritocracy : Popular Religious Responses to Examination Anxiety-"If Your Faith Is Sincere, Your Prayer Will Be Effective" -- Epilogue : Lost and Confused.