There has been a lot of fear-mongering surrounding this new “tutoring ban.” Last week the Ministry of Education sent down a new list of rules and regulations regarding after-school tutoring which were much more stringent than expected. There has been a lot of talk about how it is going to decimate a billion-dollar industry and financial markets are seeing an unprecedented devaluation of Chinese-owned education companies. It is true that this new slate of regulations which includes a ban on for-profit tutoring of core subjects, a block on tutoring over weekends and holidays, a ban on IPO’s of Chinese education companies, and foreign educators who are not currently in China is already having an economic effect on big businesses. But more importantly, it will have a personal effect on kids, parents, and educators. Here are just a few of the ways the new bans could affect the people of Beijing.
Saving the Chicken Babies: The term jiwa (or chicken baby) has grown in popularity recently. Our own Julia Wang wrote about this topic not too long ago. But the truth is that the stress of an unending workload with no time for rest or play is not a recipe for success in any culture. Yes, our kids should study hard but everyone, especially children, need a balanced life. Most programs and many parents won’t stop focusing on educational outcomes, but they might shift that focus now.
Focus on Holistic Education: Excellent education is not just about what is found in a book. Theatre, music, sports, PBL activities, and many, many other extracurriculars do not fall into the category of a core curriculum, which is the focus of the new laws. All of these activities are part of a well-balanced education and teach creative problem solving, cooperation, verbal skills, and a host of other cognitive, social and physical skills that aren’t learned behind a desk. Just as importantly, they are fun!
Beijing local student Leaf, age 8, had this to say when asked about what she would do without after-school tutoring classes “I will have more time to take my other classes like dancing, art, swimming, piano, and tennis.”
Local Economy: The argument has been made that many companies will be hurt by these new rules and that may be true. But parents won’t suddenly stop trying to give their kids an academic advantage. Leaf’s mom put it this way. “I don’t think Chinese parents will follow it. We fear that if our children don’t go for tutoring they’ll be left behind in school. There will always be parents who hire tutors for their kids. This just means we will need to … hire private tutors to come to our home. It’s one thing to issue a law, it’s a different thing to change generations of Chinese Tiger parent mentality.”
The likelihood that tutoring will disappear is slim to none. Yes, the new laws are bad news for teachers outside of the mainland and companies like VIPKid who employ them for virtual classes. But for those educators still, within China’s borders, it will probably mean they are even more in demand. That may or may not be a good thing.
Overworked Educators: Teaching is exhausting. That’s not a complaint, just a statement of fact. If you don’t believe me, think back to 12 months ago and recall what homeschooling one or two kids for a few hours each day was like. Now multiply that by 30 small impressionable humans for 8 hours. The new laws are going to put even more pressure on teachers living and working here. An anonymous educator posted “I can kind of see why the government is doing this, but some kids actually need extra help…And I read that schools will have to provide after-school tutoring instead, which means more work for the already overworked school teachers.”
I’m not completely naïve. I know that we are at a major inflection point in the educational industry and that the landscape will look dramatically different in ways none of us can predict yet because of these changes. But as I noted in a previous article, we have a toxic education culture. And maybe a shakeup, despite being momentarily painful, is exactly what we need to start changing it.
We would love to hear how these new laws are going to affect you directly. Please share your comments below.
KEEP READING: Toxic Education Culture: Laws Won’t Fix This
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