Authorities should ensure fairness by curbing 'gaokao immigration'

THE EDUCATION BUREAU in Shenzhen announced on Sunday that 32 students would not be allowed to sit this year's gaokao, or national college entrance exam, in the city because they were "gaokao immigrants". A China Youth Daily article commented:

A notice published on the bureau's official website said that the 32 students from Shenzhen Fuyuan School used dishonest means to be qualified to take the gaokao in Shenzhen, and the school is required to severely punish those responsible and will have its high school enrollment quota cut by half in 2019.

"Gaokao immigrants" refers to students who lack a hukou (household registration) or student status in a province but who still sit the college entrance exams in the province. Because of the education development and enrollment quota differences among the provinces, some families from provinces with more students and fewer places for high-quality universities always try to have their children take the college entrance exam in provinces with relatively loose admission conditions, where the competition is not that fierce.