#103 Why China still believes in the power of rote memorisation

Why China still believes in the power of rote memorisation Thomas Hale Published: JUL 13 2026 More than simply a building, Yueyang Tower in China’s Hunan province is remembered for a text. The Memorial to Yueyang Tower, drafted by Song dynasty scholar and official Fan Zhongyan in the 11th century, is a reflection on the art of governance. A mainstay of the curriculum for Chinese middle schoolers, it is best known for the line: “Worry before the rest of the world worries, be joyous only after the rest of the world knows joy.” As I discovered on visiting the tower last winter, it is difficult to overestimate how seriously such texts are taken in China, even accounting for the intensity of the country’s education system. Within the fort itself, a large group of early-primary school aged students were in the middle of reciting the entire essay. At the front a teacher, waving her arms like a conductor, led them as they chanted their way, cheerfully and uncomprehendingly, through all 368 syllables. Such a scene would come as little surprise to many who grew up in China. Throughout decades of political, economic and technological transformation, an ancient embrace of rote memorisation has persisted. ...