ABSTRACT
The United States' attempts to imitate China's education system lack understanding of the ancient world. In China, the exam-centric culture that served the purpose of selecting government officials is historic. Accountability's severe consequences in exam-centric countries cause particular hardship in China despite its long legacy of rote-based education. Analysis of key words in the eight sets of group documentation yielded the 'accountability' construct. Paradoxical aspirations in both China and the United States for global-minded entrepreneurial citizens are exacerbated by the competitive mind-set. Unsurprisingly, all teams chose the teacher as having the greatest responsibility for ensuring creative learning within an exam-centric system and thus for balancing the curriculum. The teacher education literature also yields a vision of a comprehensive infrastructure of education that includes, but goes beyond, high-quality collegial teaching in support of conditions for creativity and innovation. In terms of creativity, freedom of self-expression and freedom in learning were identified as the most important dimensions of learning.
