OPINION> Commentary
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OPINION> Commentary
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Rural kids give up college fight
(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-04-01 07:55
The college diploma now has lost its attraction for many rural students, says an article in the Wuhan Evening Post. Following is an excerpt: Three reasons are behind the fact many senior high school students in rural areas choose to give up on the national college entrance examination. First, the distribution of educational resources is unfair. It's already a well-known fact in China that urban kids enjoy better learning resources than their rural counterparts. According to statistics, urbanites, who account for just 40 percent of the population, absorbed 77 percent of educational investment while rural people used just 23 percent. With this disadvantage in mind, many rural students have abandoned the competition. Second, colleges tend to charge expensive fees for college education. Currently, annual tuition fees plus living expenditures for an undergraduate student stand at around 10,000 yuan, too expensive for many rural students. Third, the job market is touch and go. A college diploma can't guarantee a job anymore, which makes college study lose its luster for many rural kids. In addition, college students now face a tight job market, especially after the financial crisis. To land jobs, students sometimes have to resort to social connections through their parents and sometimes even resort to bribery. But rural kids usually lack even these dubious resources. So urgent measures should be taken.
(China Daily 04/01/2009 page8) |
