Parents, teachers learn hard social media lessons

Too serious

Lin Lei, 35, whose daughter has received kindergarten and primary school education in China and the United States, said he feels that Chinese parents take life too seriously.

"After we returned to Beijing from the US when I decided to start my business in China, my wife spent much more time on our daughter's school studies," he said.

"I think it's a systematic problem and that many parties, including teachers, parents, schools and education authorities, need to make some changes.

"There are no WeChat teacher-parent groups in the US. I believe the growing popularity of new communication tools such as these groups has reshaped the way parents and teachers interact and has exacerbated their feelings of anxiety.

"Teachers are already overworked and don't want to spend their free time being pestered by parents. Everyone feels exhausted, and no one has actually achieved anything."

Xiong Bingqi, deputy head of the 21st Century Education Research Institute in Beijing, said there should be a boundary line between schooling and parenting.

China should also accelerate education assessment reform and school management to bring parent-teacher relations "back to normal", he said.