Letters | Why China’s private tutoring ban is a double-edged sword

Readers discuss the ban on private tutoring in China, the regulation of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, and India’s handling of Covid-19

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Senior students continue to study at school in the evening in Lianyungang city in Jiangsu province, China, in June 2020. Photo: Costfoto/Barcroft Media via Getty Images

Published: 6:50am, 9 Aug 2021Updated: 6:50am, 9 Aug 2021

China’s ban on private tutoring and weekend tutorial classes has been the source of much debate over the past few weeks. I believe this ban will have both favourable and unfavourable consequences.

This move could undoubtedly ease the pressure on schoolchildren who currently spend long hours studying. It is not a surprise to see children’s weekend schedules filled with private tutorials and homework, both assigned in school or from their private tutors.

The Chinese government believes that children spending their childhood hunched over workbooks is not healthy. Another reason for the government to implement this ban is that private tutoring was interfering with the schedules of in-class teachers. The ban could also prevent businesses profiting from the demand for private tuition by turning the tutoring companies into non-profits.

However, these tutors will not just disappear into thin air after this move. They might go underground and keep operating as the demand for private tuition will not diminish. This would make it even harder hard to monitor private tutors, including what and how they teach.

In general, this ban is a good start, helping alleviate the costs of raising a child and the pressure on youngsters. Should the Hong Kong government follow suit?

Jacky Wong, Kwun Tong