English out, Xi Jinping thought in Shanghai schools

SHANGHAI – School children here who return to class next month will be delighted to find that they no longer need to remember the intricacies of English spelling. But not all will be fun and playful: “The Communist Party leads all forms of labor in China” is perhaps one of President Xi Jinping’s phrases that they are bound to memorize.

A new textbook on “Xi Jinping’s Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era” will be compulsory read in elementary, middle and secondary schools in Shanghai from September, for moral and state lessons. law in the lower classes and on ideology and politics for high school students. Students will likely be expected to memorize notable quotes from the president.

Meanwhile, the city announced last week that elementary schools should administer final exams only in math and Chinese for students in grades three to five, removing English from the list. City officials have also banned mid-term tests for those grades, limiting exams to year-end only.

The changes in Shanghai, China’s most cosmopolitan city, are likely a sign of things to come elsewhere. The central government is tackling the education sector to tackle inequalities and skyrocketing costs, and efforts to reduce the burden on children – like test cuts in Shanghai – also provide an opportunity to adjust what they learn.

China’s education ministry said last month that the Xi Jinping thought manual was to be introduced in schools across the country starting this fall.

Beijing on Monday announced a ban on the use of unapproved foreign textbooks in primary and secondary schools. With the ideological conflict between the United States and China likely to drag on for years to come, authorities apparently aim to instill positivity towards the Communist Party in young people, as well as nip any potential in the bud. of activism à la Hong Kong.

There are also more practical issues to deal with. Xi’s government expressed concern that the fierce exam competitions were robbing free time after school and putting enormous pressure on young students. The exorbitant costs of post-school secondary schools and tutoring discourage families from having more children.

Authorities have put the industry under stricter scrutiny. In June, 15 private tutoring companies were fined for misleading consumers.

Last month, the government suspended approvals for new tutoring firms and forced existing providers to register as nonprofits, and banned those firms from raising capital on the stock market. Going forward, authorities will set standard tuition rates and oversee prices.

The tighter surveillance aims not only to tackle stubbornly low birth rates, but also educational inequalities.

“I want my child to go to college in a big city like Beijing or Shanghai in the future, but in the current education system the costs are so high that it is impossible,” said a housewife from 29 years old with a child in third grade in Yichun City, Jiangxi Province.

“Families who have escaped rural poverty may be plunged back into poverty due to soaring education costs,” said Yao Yang, professor of economics at Peking University.

Yet the political news met with a frosty reception from many parents and guardians.

“Even if schools reduce the tests, it won’t make the entrance exam contest go away,” said a 38-year-old housewife surnamed Han living in Shanghai, where families are particularly focused on education. . “And even if high schools were regulated, it would just mean more time with home tutors.”

Han has a child in second grade and spends around 70,000 yuan ($ 11,000) a year on high schools and tutors. Last year, the average annual salary of an office worker in Beijing was around 120,000 yuan. Higher income families can afford a better quality education for their children, and it is not clear what the government can do to change this.

There are also fears that the planned reforms may undermine the education system that has helped boost China’s growth and active startup scene, and potentially weaken the country’s advantage in the global race to cultivate talent.