Some Chinese parents are placing their toddlers in line for admission to top British schools. Are they on the right track?

British private boarding schools - the more exclusive the better - have become the top choice for wealthy or newly-rich Chinese bent on giving their next generation a huge advantage, right from the start. "The youngest client we have is a 2-year-old," says William Vanbergen, founder and managing director of BE Education, an organization which provides consultancy services for students wishing to study at elite schools overseas.

"We are hoping to take on a 1-year-old very soon as we are in the middle of booking a position for her in a highly regarded primary school in Britain," says Vanbergen, who says he studied in Eton College and sat next to Prince William in Latin class.

Apparently, when it comes to education, it is never too early to start. And there is no compromise when it comes to quality. What else could be more befitting to these children's newly minted status as the heirs of their parents' business empires than to sit alongside young blue-blooded British?

By doing so, the parents hope the young scholars will not only rub shoulders with this privileged group, but also absorb some of their classy behavior - although Prince Harry's latest escapades at Las Vegas may make them consider the situation anew.

Sending the precious princelings and princesses abroad is not a new trend in China. Turn back the clock to 140 years ago. In 1872, a group of young aristocratics were sent to America by the then-ruling Qing court.

The decision represented China's very first effort to bring up its youngest and brightest in Western education, at a time when the country's future seemed more in danger than ever.

Many of the boys would eventually return to change the country's contemporary history. Today, that memory is most powerfully evoked by a black-and-white picture, taken right before the children's departure, that can be seen in Beijing's Palace Museum.

Nearly one and a half centuries later, the Chinese still regard the journey to the West as the best academic route. There are, however, some cosmetic changes.

Now, we have girls joining the league. But the pigtails and the hoof-cuffed magua are gone, together with the sense of loss and longing that was clearly registered on those youthful faces a different era ago.

The majority of modern-day children have been abroad before - on family vacations or at elite summer camps. They know what it's like on the other side.

Instead of having to seek companionship and consolation among themselves like their forefathers many years ago, they enjoy the luxury of having an entourage of family and friends, with perhaps even a bodyguard or two.

The most glaring difference is - the State is no longer the sponsor. Their parents pay the bill.

These are the children of China's emerging super-rich.

Britain remains one of the most cultured and respectable countries in the minds of most Chinese.

Perhaps, we have to thank Jane Austen and her latter-day devotees who had turned the taciturn Mr Darcy into an international heartthrob on the screen. Her books are still best-sellers on China's Amazon book site.

To some Chinese parents, the country is a land full of noble ladies and posh gentlemen who are prim and proper, and follow rules. And rules are what Chinese parents are looking for, according to a mother of a 13-year-old girl who is now in a private school in London.

"A child should be disciplined. What the majority of us want for our children is a healthy dose of freedom to allow for creative and critical thinking, but not too much as to turn these youngsters into little pumas at large," says the mother who only wants to be known as Mrs Wang.

According to Vanbergen, this typical view among Chinese parents has given British schools some real edge over their American counterparts, with the latter being associated with a more liberal, free-rein teaching style.

Vanbergen's previous interviews with the UK media painted a picture of the ultimate coach for "Britishness".

But in our interview, he has studiously avoided the word, possibly out of concern for cultural sensitivity.

Among the values Vanbergen believes to be the inherent characteristics of the upper crust of British society is "honesty" - although many of his countrymen are bound to disagree.

Another key value is "fair play", which Vanbergen described as "the essence of Britishness".

But the question is, who can guarantee that these children, born with silver spoons, will inherit these so-called noble characteristics?

Vanbergen, who claims to have "the richest father" among his schoolmates in Eton, offers his take on the matter.

"No one can choose their parents, so fair play would have to mean those lucky ones helping the less lucky ones by giving them a better start."

Citing an example, he says British schools impart the value of social responsibility by engaging children in charity work.

And Vanbergen believes that by immersing themselves in British culture from an early age, these children will acquire a genuine Western perspective that would be extremely helpful when they come back to China to join their homegrown entrepreneur parents.

He says the old-school tie will eventually come to good use in building an international business network.

Overall, Vanbergen views the trend as a win-win deal.

"These future leaders of China will certainly look favorably at us," he says.

But Xia Xueluan, professor of sociology at Peking University, thinks otherwise.

"Given the volatility of international economics and politics, this sounds to me more like lobby talk than practical, shrewd calculations," Xia says.

Elitist education, due to its nature, is prone to criticism. But it would be unfair to simply dismiss what BE Education and similar China-based education businesses do as merely helping pampered kids purchase a piece of intelligence at a stratospherically high price. Most of the parents have done in-depth research before making their informed decisions.

Mrs Wang, the mother of the 13-year-old girl, says both she and her daughter had made multiple trips to Britain before.

"Academically, my girl was among the top achievers at school in Beijing.

"But she really liked what she saw in London and wants to give it a try. What I want for her is to see the world and live a happy life."

Britain has been inundating the Chinese market with their paid education service for nearly two decades.

Now, with a new wave of demand cresting, the country has to make sure its most prized and historic institutions receive only the most qualified, and not fall into the trap of commercialization.

As for the wealthy Chinese parents, they may have to moderate their ambitions a little.

Our increasingly small world may not be able to offer that many leading roles for their Eton-trained, Imperial College-educated sons and daughters.

zhaoxu@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 09/28/2012 page24)