In Shanghai, anxiety remains as education choices narrow

A sharp decline in the number of students applying to private primary schools in Shanghai may indicate that the city's newly introduced regulations have cooled its long-standing ardor for the schools.

The number of applicants for kindergarten and primary slots at private schools in the metropolis dropped by half this year, according to registration figures from the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission.

Private schools have received only 19,900 applications, compared with 37,400 last year. The enrollment ratio - the ratio of applicants to available slots in private schools - dropped from around 3-to-1 in the past two years to 1.4-to-1 this year.