Primary and secondary school students from all over the country are starting a new semester today. But somewhere in Beijing, a student might have just handed in the exact same homework as a student somewhere in Guangzhou. Why? Well, a few desperate students have been searching online for their homework answers, which are openly for sale on the internet.
Why are students doing that? Let's follow our reporter shen ting to find out.
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Type in "holiday homework" in a search engine, and you'll see all kinds of postings asking for homework answers, with words such as "begging" and "kneeling down" to express their feeling of urgency. It costs around 50 to 160 yuan to buy the answers for one subject of homework.
For a long time, many primary and middle school students have had to complete holiday homework, most of which is the same from school to school. This makes it possible for one set of answers to be sold all over the internet.
Teachers say buying homework answers online is not predominant in schools, but an interview with school students shows only 10% are willing to finish their holiday homework independently. Their main complaint is that the homework is too much for them to finish.
"I began to do my homework right from the start of the holiday. And it took me many days to finish it."
"Our Chinese teacher asked us to write 30 pages of calligraphy during the holiday. I think it's too much."
One teacher concurs, saying students have too much to learn, even during holiday time.
"As far as I know, many of my students have to attend all kinds of training classes during the holiday. These take away much of their time for doing homework."
But as for the parents who are sending their children to these training classes, they also say they've got no choice. Here's one concerned parent's view.
"All the other kids in the neighborhood are learning extra things. You know parents sometimes tend to compare their kids. I'm afraid my kid will be less successful than the others in the future."
In order to cope with this situation of students copying each other's homework, some schools have stopped using standard homework printouts. Some schools have even dropped the idea of holiday homework altogether. Instead, they organize summer camps and other outdoor activities for the children.
Educational experts say students love to learn through games or activities that they can be a part of. They suggest schools drop the current homework format, and turn to homework that encourages kids to get involved and create. This way, they would no longer be tempted to copy from each other or buy answers through the internet.
China Drive is one of CRI's radio programs aired from Monday to Friday. We pick the most interesting life reports from China Drive. Stay tuned.
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Director: Liu Chi