Win at the starting line
When it comes to their children, most Chinese parents believe it is necessary to "win at the starting line," a phrase coined to describe the obsession with obtaining the best educational resources starting from pre-school.
The pressure never lets up. Children are expected to always stay at least one level above grade, starting in preschool.
They spend endless hours doing homework assigned by teachers, private tutors and parents. They take extracurricular classes in "Olympic Math," languages and other subjects.
Throughout their young lives, students are evaluated according to test performance. For many people education becomes a grind and love of learning is often sacrificed.
Heavy academic work from a young age, emphasis on tests, uninspired subject matter and insufficient teaching of Chinese culture are among the reasons parents, usually well-educated people of means, place their children in alternative schools from a young age.
"Back in our day, going to college could change a person's life, but now, take a look at our university graduates today. What did they learn from school?" says Robert Wang, a former magazine editor and headmaster of a home school in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. Authorities there are much more relaxed about home schools than Shanghai educators.
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