Toutiao News reported that Nanning Guiya Primary School in Guangxi Province (China) issued a rule at the end of March: “Students are not allowed to do homework after 9:30 p.m. Those who have not finished their homework will not be reprimanded by teachers. Please protect the health of our children.”
The above regulation aims to reduce the heavy burden of studying that students have to bear, as well as ensure that they will have a rest after school hours.
Children in China are under enormous academic pressure. (Illustration: SCMP)
Parents whose children study at Nanning Guiya School have expressed mixed views on the school's new regulations.
A mother whose daughter is studying at the school said the new regulation will not affect her child because she thinks the daily homework is light and usually finishes before 8pm.
However, another mother with an 8-year-old son said that fierce competition and academic pressure when entering secondary school would make the regulation difficult to enforce.
The father of another student said the idea, while well-intentioned, would cause problems for children and parents. “The latest my daughter finishes her homework is almost midnight,” he said, adding that his daughter has struggled with homework overload in recent years.
What he worries about most is how students with poor academic performance will catch up with other students, and he also wonders how the school proposes to support parents in helping their children complete homework before 9:30 p.m.
This story, after being spread, attracted attention and caused controversy on Chinese social networks.
Some say this is a great initiative, but some parents feel the school is trying to shift the pressure of students' studies onto parents.
Nanning Guiya Primary School is not the first school to introduce such a rule. In 2023, Ningbo City (Zhejiang Province, China) also banned primary school students from doing homework after 9 p.m.
China’s highly competitive education system puts enormous pressure on parents, who feel they must push their children to study hard to secure their future. Many parents set high expectations for their children without paying attention to their children’s academic strengths and weaknesses, leading to conflict.
In 2021, China passed a new law to reduce the “double pressure” of homework and extra classes outside of core subjects.
The new law puts the onus on local authorities and schools to ensure stress is reduced, while requiring parents to arrange time for their children to combine rest and exercise.
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