英闻天下——463 Beijing Homework Rule Put in Practice

 　　Eight new measures introduced to ease the burden on primary and middle school students in Beijing have been rolled out as the spring semester began. According to the policy, students in Beijing's primary and middle schools will have much less homework to do, and first and second grade pupils are exempted¹ from homework altogether.

 

　　Schools are already a month into the spring semester, but has the new policy been put in place? Parents picking up their children at primary schools say that the policy is being effectively carried out.

 

　　"Homework's gone. It's gone for real."

 

　　"It's true that there's no more homework on weekends. Really! There's no homework even on a Friday night."

 

　　No student would say no to less homework and more play time, so this new policy has definitely made students happy. But with the stereotype² of Chinese parents being that of control freaks who hold high hopes for their children's test scores, the real question to ask is whether the parents are glad about these changes?

 

　　Anna's daughter is now in her first year in primary school. She said she supports removing homework.

 

　　"I agree with the measures to reduce the burden on the students, since I believe children don't have enough time for themselves. Now, with more spare time, my daughter can learn to play the Er' Hu at her school. She picked it up by herself and she loves it. And she can have more time to play with her friends. "

 

　　Anna says she only helps her daughter review and preview lessons everyday before bed, and that should be enough for her daughter during her primary school years.

 

　　Li Yuyan, mother of an 8 year-old boy, is also happy about the measures. She says her son is more proactive towards doing the homework that he does receive and seems less stressed as a result.

 

　　"He now actively³ does his homework as soon as he gets home. And now the school will give us some English learning DVDs, my son loves singing English songs and speaking along English. And I obviously feel that he's less stressed than before when doing these things. I'm happy to see that he can play and spend some time chatting with us after his homework, and he's even started to do housework for us. That's amazing. "

 

　　However, some other parents think Anna and Li are being too optimistic. One father who asked to remain anonymous⁴ says a large amount of homework and extra-curricular training is necessary for when their children face the burden of high school and the college entrance examination.

 

　　"It's still the test score that decides one's future in the college entrance exam. If the exam exists, parents will eventually put the load and burden back on their children's shoulders again. It's the same when it comes to high school entrance exams."

 

　　Liu Shuyan, a second grade teacher at one key primary school in west Beijing says the school is also trying to remedy the worries that some parents may have.

 

　　"We try to do more research into teaching, to make our teaching methods more efficient, to keep things concise⁵ and spare more time for in-school practice. Practice allows knowledge to be consolidated⁶. And we carry our more frequent communication with parents through our parent-school text message platform. Everyday we inform parents of their child's learning progress."

 

　　Besides banning mid-term examinations for primary school students, the eight measures also dictate⁷ that junior high schools keep class time below 34 hours a week and limit homework to a maximum of one and half hours. Paid remedial teaching and preference towards academic certificates during enrollment⁸ are also forbidden.

 

　　For CRI, I'm Wang Wei.

1 exempted   

使免除[豁免]( exempt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• His bad eyesight exempted him from military service. 他因视力不好而免服兵役。
• Her illness exempted her from the examination. 她因病而免试。

2 stereotype   

n.固定的形象，陈规，老套，旧框框

参考例句：

• He's my stereotype of a schoolteacher.他是我心目中的典型教师。
• There's always been a stereotype about successful businessmen.人们对于成功商人一直都有一种固定印象。

3 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

4 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

5 concise   

adj.简洁的，简明的

参考例句：

• The explanation in this dictionary is concise and to the point.这部词典里的释义简明扼要。
• I gave a concise answer about this.我对于此事给了一个简要的答复。

6 consolidated   

a.联合的

参考例句：

• With this new movie he has consolidated his position as the country's leading director. 他新执导的影片巩固了他作为全国最佳导演的地位。
• Those two banks have consolidated and formed a single large bank. 那两家银行已合并成一家大银行。

7 dictate   

v.口授；(使)听写；指令，指示，命令

参考例句：

• It took him a long time to dictate this letter.口述这封信花了他很长时间。
• What right have you to dictate to others?你有什么资格向别人发号施令？

8 enrollment   

n.注册或登记的人数；登记

参考例句：

• You will be given a reading list at enrollment.注册时你会收到一份阅读书目。
• I just got the enrollment notice from Fudan University.我刚刚接到复旦大学的入学通知书。