Flunking gaokao not end of the world

It's that time of the year again, when about 9 million students will take the gaokao (college entrance examination) seeking the scores that will get them about 7 million undergraduate seats in universities. This is not a contest where all can be winners. Irrespective of how good the students are, about 2 million of them will not be able to enroll in a university. That adds to the huge pressure on the students to get the highest possible marks and get into a university of their choice.

Higher education is an important ladder to social and economic mobility in China, and for children of poorer parents it may be seen as their only chance. Many parents invest money in extra tuition for their children, who are under tremendous pressure not to disappoint their families. Failure, for them, is not an option.

It is thus not surprising that a recent report by the 21st Century Education Research Institute and the Social Sciences Academic Press identified links between examination pressure and suicides of students in China. At all levels, right through to the entry into a university, the scores obtained by students in exams under time constraints dominate their assessment.