Plug pulled on eagerly awaited 'gifted classes'

Programs for exceptional teens canceled despite strong support from parents

Education authorities in Hefei, Anhui province, have canceled two classes for gifted students run by local schools despite the public's enthusiastic response to the plan.

Hefei No 1 High School and Hefei No 8 Senior High School, two well-known schools in the provincial capital, announced at the beginning of July they would recruit academically talented youths for gifted classes, which would cut the years they would spend in middle and high school.

However, a recruiting teacher at Hefei No 1 High School who declined to give her name, told China Daily that the announced plan had been canceled last week.

"It was stopped by the education authorities, and I don't know why," she said.

Hefei No 1 High School was going to begin accepting online applications on July 15, according to its gifted class information webpage.

"We didn't get a chance to take applications," the teacher said.

Hefei No 1 High School's gifted class information webpage had 6,800 viewers in 10 days. The school had planned to enroll 40 students under 14 in 2012.

Those who were admitted would finish high school in two years, and the top graduates would be allowed to skip the first round of admission exams for the gifted youth program at the University of Science and Technology of China in Hefei.

Similarly, the recruitment announcement at Heifei No 8 Senior High School has already been removed from the website. Jianghuai Morning News reported on July 9 that hundreds of parents and students had flooded the admission office to ask about the gifted class.

The paper said that the school had planned to recruit 50 exceptionally talented primary school graduates who would finish middle school and high school in four years. They, too, would be preened for the gifted youth program at USTC.

Officials from the educational bureau and Heifei No 8 Senior High School could not be reached for comment on Sunday.

Gifted youth classes have long been well-received in China and the USTC program is widely regarded as a success. Since the gifted program was launched in 1978, 1,223 gifted youths have graduated, and many of them have achieved great success.

In the capital, Beijing No 8 Middle School has long been known for its gifted programs. Enrollment is very competitive. More than 1,000 students took examinations for the gifted class at the school on May 13, and only 30 would be admitted, according to China Youth Daily.

However, such programs have their critics.

"I don't consider these real gifted classes," said Xiong Bingqi, an education commentator and deputy director of the non-governmental policy research organization 21st Century Education Research Institute. "Students may have strengths in academic fields, or amazing grades, but grades remain the focal point, instead of encouraging individual development."

"Students need all-round development instead of a single focus," he said.

Xiong also said that the concept of gifted class in middle school is a breach of the Compulsory Education Law.

Under that law, no examination is allowed to select students during the nine-year compulsory education - the six-year primary school and three-year junior middle school.

"In high school education, all 'gifted classes' go against the required educational equality. Once these so-called gifted classes open, schools channel more resources to them, which definitely hurts the equality of education," Xiong said.

Chen Xi, a doctoral candidate at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and former gifted class student at a Chongqing high school, said if he could do it over, he would go to an ordinary instead of gifted class.

"My dad picked the class for me. I was lucky getting in - I had gold medals in math and physics competitions, and they thought I mist be talented," Chen said.

"All my classmates would bury themselves in competition and examinations. The only words that excited them were Peking University or Tsinghua University," he said, adding that he had a horrible time in high school.

"None of my high school classmates became my friends," Chen said.

Yang Di, a chemistry teacher at Beijing Chaoyang Foreign Language School, is no fan of gifted classes either.

"I have some very talented students, especially in science. They do better than me sometimes.

"But we don't have a gifted program in our school. We encourage all-round development," he said.

"Teenagers should do wild things too, other than just sitting and studying."

Street talk

"No matter how good the teaching quality and how fast the students can learn from the talent class, I think the program is crazy. I will not put so much pressure on my child to study. Personally I don't support this program. Students should grow and learn at a normal pace."

Chai Chunhui, 36, from Shanxi province, who has a 13-year-old son

"We have very successful programs in gifted youth education, such as at the Beijing No 8 Middle School. It has nurtured hundreds of gifted youth and made the best use of their time."

Zhang Ting, a high school teacher in Beijing

"School is not a place just for studying. You have to experience things in the normal way, it is not good for students to complete school life so quickly. There are so many things you cannot learn in just three or four years in school."

Wang Beibei, 20, student, major in finance in University of International Business and Economics

"I think the class for talented students is a good program. Every talented child must be good at something. If they are in the normal class it is hard for them to fully demonstrate their talents. The program is also great for their social networking skills. They can learn from each other because they all have different talents."

Wen Tong, 27, teacher, from Beijing

"Most of my classmates are working on their doctorates overseas and are achieving academic or career success. I believe that success is a result of our education."

Liang Su, a former student of a gifted class at Harbin No 3 Middle School

Su Zhou and Zhang Yue contributed to this story.

luowangshu@chinadaily.com.cn