|
Kids: Less study, more time for life
By Xiao Liang (China Daily)
Updated: 2004-05-25 22:27
School kids in Shanghai say they've had enough of the extraordinary pressures
being placed on them when it comes to their studies.
At the city's Fifth Conference of Young Pioneers, China's boy scout
organization of sorts, children voiced demands that parents and school officials
start listening to the experts and let up when it comes to pressures long driven
by too many college applicants for too few seats.
In fact, of 320 proposals out of the total about 1,570 filed by the
participating kids, children expressed their desire for an easier environment
for study and life, in other words, to allow kids to have a childhood.
Altogether some 1,400 young pioneers are present at the congress,
representing the city's about 1.27 million juveniles.
Zhu Shunjie, a fourth-grade student who is 10, complained about the early
start of school in his district. School there starts at 7:40 am.
"As a result, some of us often get late for school in wintertime and easily
fall asleep during class in spring," he said, adding that he'd expect classes
starting at 8:30 am would be more reasonable so students could gain one more
precious hour of slumber.
"We really have no weekends since our parents always expect us to learn
something else during that time... they just don't want us to lose ground
against other kids," said Jiang Lin, a third-grade girl from the city's Putuo
District.
To Chen Lei, a fourth-grade girl, enjoyable extra-curricular activities have
now and then been sacrificed for "endless" exams, after-class instruction and
piled up homework assigned by teachers.
In her proposal, third-grader Wen Tianyu of Putuo District suggested a "No
Homework Day" could be set up so that students would have a little more time to
enjoy life and to read extracurricular books they are interested in. Wen also
said physical exercise or playing for fun -- often skipped because of homework
-- would be nice.
Apart from such appeal for less pressure brought by schools and parents, some
kids have called for society to create a healthier environment for their growth.
Lu Haizhong, a third-grade student in Zhabei District, noticed that operators
of quite a few local Children's Palaces, venues built for children to enjoy
after-class activities, have changed such sites into places where they can hold
money-making training classes that target adults.
"Children in general, as we see, are happy (in their studies and lives),
despite some worries they may have during their growth," said Mao Li, director
of the juvenile department under the Shanghai Committee of the Communist Youth
League of China.
There is still a long way to go for the society, parents and schools to unite
their efforts to foster an environment beneficial for kids' development, she
said.
| |
 |
|
|
|
|
Today's
Top News |
|
|
|
Top China
News |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
