Education mill saps students of their motivation

Fulfill basis demands of university eduation

Minister of Education Chen Baosheng recently signaled a change in college education, which has "reasonably increased students' academic burden" with the aim to motivate them to study hard and improve their knowledge and skill levels, because at present it is too easy for a college student to get a diploma.

In the United States, colleges put great emphasis on improving the quality of both education and students, for which they keep the students under competitive pressure by assigning them challenging tasks. The students who excel in these tasks are rewarded, while those who fail to meet the academic criteria could be kicked out by the schools. As such, the graduation and retention rates of students are important yardsticks to measure the teaching quality and standard of a college.

However, given the existing conditions in China, colleges seldom expel nonperforming students, as that would probably end their academic career and leave them helpless for the rest of their lives.

That's why, compared with their foreign counterparts, Chinese students care more about getting admitted to a "good" university than what kind of college education they want. In fact, quite a few of them have no specific academic goal after they pass gaokao and get admitted to a college. As a result, many college graduates lack individuality and creativity.

Still, to increase "students' academic burden" doesn't mean to put extra pressure on college students. Instead, it means fulfilling the basic requirements of university education by highlighting the importance of teaching. Besides, the reform of the grade-oriented examination system, the establishment of a peer-review system for teachers' contribution to education, and giving universities greater say in the admission process can also help improve the quality of China's college education.

Xiong Bingqi, deputy director of the 21st Century Education Research Institute