Lost childhoods
By Lin Qi (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-12-29 09:52
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"Under the current education system, passing the 'gao kao' (the National College Entrance Exams) is still the ultimate goal for most people," says Xiao Lin, mother of a fourth-grade boy in Beijing.
"Parents always have boundless ambitions. They wish to send their children to key primary and secondary schools, to lay a solid foundation for entry into key high schools. And a competitive high school normally means excellent scores on the gao kao and one step into a prestigious university," she says.
When Xiao picks up her son, who attends a boarding school in Beijing, every Friday afternoon, she receives a dozen advertisements for private weekend schools that promise entry into the best secondary schools through their training.
Xiao usually throws those leaflets away. She says her son has learned a lot at school and deserves a weekend break. But many of her friends make sure the children have an equally busy weekend. One of them drives her third-grade daughter to English, dance, piano and math classes on Saturday and Sunday. She hopes her girl will become competent enough to be enrolled in key secondary schools three years later.
"I'm now considering sending my son to an English training institute in the coming winter holiday. He received low English marks recently and his teacher calls a lot to complain," Xiao says.
Meanwhile, money that parents spend on an elementary school education is growing and sometimes exceeds college tuition fees. Xiao has already paid 20,000 yuan in "sponsorship fees" to the school her son attends, as their hu kou is outside Beijing.
Song Xufei, father of a sixth- grader in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province, says he paid 30,000 yuan so his son can attend a key primary school, even though their hu kou is in the district the school is located.
Song has also spent a considerable amount over the past five years on painting and singing classes, as well as on extra classes in math and English, to boost his son's scores.
"The private math center charges each student 30 to 60 yuan an hour. But some teachers, who run after-school classes in violation of school rules, charge 100 to 200 yuan per person," he says.
"It is worthwhile. My son will face stiff competition next year if he wants to be admitted to a key secondary school nearby."
Even Xu Ming once thought about sending her son to a math training class. "But I believe that in addition to the schooling, what he needs most is adaptability and a positive attitude that will help him survive under any circumstance. Even if he grows up to be a farmer, he should be a happy and diligent one," she says.