China to rectify all after-school institutions by the end of 2018

BEIJING - China will complete the rectification of issues at all after-school education institutions by the end of this year, addressing areas including giving lessons above normal level, exam-oriented training and increasing student pressure, according to the the Ministry of Education (MOE) Thursday.

"The country has examined 382,000 after-school education institutions across the country as of Aug. 20, among which 45,000 have been rectified," Lv Yugang, an official with MOE, said at a press conference.

A guideline has recently been issued by the State Council General Office to strengthen the regulation on institutions providing extracurricular classes or off-campus trainings. The guideline was issued as many of the institutions had been found to be putting undue pressure on students.

"Local education authorities must follow the guideline and set and improve standards of setting up after-school education institutions as soon as possible, and make clear the schedule, blueprint and tasks of the rectification," Lv said.

The MOE will guide local authorities to provide after-school services for primary and middle-school students as an alternative to extracurricular training, and deepen the teaching reform to promote the efficiency and quality of class teaching, according to the ministry.