中国留学生的年轻化趋势

Wan Pei is a mother of a girl who attends the first-grade class of a junior high school in Shanghai. Wan Pei said after school that her daughter also joins special classes arranged by EF, a world leader in international education and student travel.

By sending her daughter on "study abroad programs" and receiving language education there, Wan Pei is taking the necessary precautions for her girl to go abroad after graduation. She added that such decisions were made following careful comparisons she made between Chinese and international educational practices.

"I feel the examination-oriented education system in China has depressed her mind. Teachers in Chinese schools concentrate too much on academic scores, which puts a lot of pressure on the minds of both parents and children. We also learned that foreign schools encourage students to cultivate abilities, to spot and solve problems. I think these skills are more practical and necessary for children's futures."

Obviously, Wan Pei is not the only parent with such beliefs. Many others similarly hold the expectation that their kids can experience a totally different education system in order to achieve an all-encompassing development of moral, intellectual, physical, aesthetic and labor education.

On the part of kids, many previous reports showed that young students usually appear happy with their parents' plan to send them abroad for studies. A questionnaire survey conducted in November 2011 on 428 junior and senior high school students from 14 schools in Shanghai showed that almost half of the students were interested in overseas studies. And the rate of the interested junior high school students is higher than that of senior high school students.

However, there are some other students who opt to study abroad because Chinese schools exert too much pressure on their academic performance.

Yan Wenhua, associate professor with the School of Psychology and Cognitive Science of East China Normal University expresses opposition to the notion of studying abroad just for the less competitive environment.

"Some parents think the competition among students in China is fierce, and, as they find their kids to be less competitive, they are inclined to send their children to other nations where the education environment is relatively relaxed. This is a head in the sand approach, which won't solve the problem at the very root."

The associate professor also added that it's not proper that young students study alone in another country without the company of their parents.

"Acquiring an ability to live and study alone in a totally new environment should not be the task for the students at such a young age. It's too early for them to adapt. I think it's much better if parents accompany their children abroad, around elementary or junior high school."

A number of experts voiced support for her point of view, saying that studying abroad is just one of the choices, but forcing them to lead an independent life away from their parents at an early age may possibly leave a heavy burden on these young minds.

For CRI, I'm Xu Fei.