Does No Exams Mean Better Education?

during this years two sessions - the fourth sessions of the 12th National committee of the chinese Peoples Political consultative conference （cPPcc）， chinas top political advisory body， and the 12th National Peoples congress， the nations top legislature - a proposal to scrap zhongkao， the high school entrance examination， captured widespread attention.

he shuifa， a member of the 12th cPPcc National committee， suggested abolishing zhongkao and making high school education part of the compulsory education for better education. At present， compulsory education means mandatory nine years of school - six years of primary education and three years in middle school. After this comes zhongkao and students who clear it then enroll in high school for three more years.

Another member of the 12th cPPcc Nation- al committee， author Guan Moye， who won the 2012 Nobel Prize for literature under the pen name Mo yan， made a similar proposal.“the current 12-year elementary and secondary education should be shortened to 10 years， during which entrance exams should be abolished so that students can grow soundly in an easy and happy environment，” he said.

some applaud the proposal as students will then be freed from the high pressure of various exams. the proposed system， they say， will help childrens all-round development and inspire their creativity. others， however， doubt it， saying that given chinas huge population and the relatively inadequate high school education resources， zhongkao is the best way to select students for high school. instead of abolishing the exam， the government should conduct it better， they argue.

PRO

Xu Dongqing Expert， Research Institute for Higher Education， Fudan University

Canceling zhongkao will promote the reform of gaokao（the college entrance exam） and widen the criteria for selecting qualified students.

It will also help compulsory education focus once again on nurturing students allround development. Zhongkao is causing the following negative impacts on Chinas compulsory education.

First， the premature selection of students with the best academic performance is hampering their overall development. With exams as the goal， many schools ignore middle school students real growth demands and teach only what will be tested in the exam.

Second， zhongkao is delaying elementary education reform. To stand out in zhongkao， students have to deal with great pressure even in primary school. The fierce competition in middle school requires too much energy and students may be overexhausted when they are in high school.

Due to physical reasons， boys are prone to lag behind girls in terms of academic performance in middle school. Therefore， zhongkao is especially bad for boys who may be frustrated by such failure. Besides， the majority of students have to spend most of their time bending over their desk and studying. They get no time to exercise， missing the best time to build a strong body.

Of course， cancelling zhongkao does not mean abolishing all tests and exams； it is only to stop the practice of using zhongkao as the only criterion for students to enroll in high school. Once it is scrapped， there should be a more reasonable and varied evaluation system where students academic performance， overall development and conduct in school are all taken into consideration.

PRO

Jiang Xing Student in Hebei Province

Changing the evaluation criteria in which the score determines everything will give students with ordinary academic performances like me more opportunities to pursue further education. Although we are not exam toppers， we stand out in some areas. I hope high schools will consider our advantages rather than scores during admission.

Besides， with no zhongkao， an exam so critical that it will determine our future， we students can have more time to develop skills we are really fond of or participate in extracurricular activities to put what we have learned into practice.

CON

Wang Ming Researcher， National Center for Education Research， Ministry of Education

Against the backdrop of low financial subsidy to high schools and lack of teaching facilities in some areas， it is still not the proper time to do away with zhongkao. Zhongkao sets the standards for high schools to enroll students. Compared with the practice of allocating seats by districts or other methods， the exam is fairer and more acceptable.

Besides， zhongkao is also a standard to test whether a middle school graduate is qualified for high school. There are similar qualification exams in countries like the United States， the United Kingdom， Japan and Russia.

Undeniably， there are problems in middle school education. Both teaching and studying are not totally focusing on improving students caliber. But zhongkao alone cannot be blamed for that. The job market recruiting system and the college entrance examination， or gaokao， are also contributing factors. Therefore， rather than simply abolishing zhongkao， we should reform and perfect it. On one hand， the exam should be made less difficult so that schools can focus on imparting fundamental knowledge and nurturing students all-round development instead of training them to solve unnecessarily tricky problems. On the other hand， we should explore a more suitable enrollment method for high schools which takes into account both studentsacademic performance and comprehensive development. The proposal to scrap zhongkao is based on one prerequisite： extending the current nine-year compulsory education period to 12 years. Objectively speaking， China is not financially capable of supporting free education for 12 years. There are still many areas in education calling out for government investment.

PRO

he Shuifa Member， 12th CPPCC National Committee

The period from middle school to high school is vital to young peoples growth. Going through puberty， some experience uneasiness brought by physical changes. Psychologically， their outlook on the world and life begin to be formed at this stage. However， the current compulsory education period ends after middle school and zhongkao pressures then force them to compete in a solely scorecentric education system. To enroll in the best high schools where the teachers and facilities are much better and the college admission rate is higher than in average schools， middle school students finish their three-year education six months earlier so that they get more time to prepare for zhongkao. After-class tuition centers make forays into the time students are supposed to relax or develop hobbies. Performances in subjects like music and art are ignored in zhongkao. All this goes against Chinas education principle and undermines students all-round growth.

On the other hand， given its economic development in recent years， China is now capable of supporting free compulsory education for 12 years. nceling zhongkao for better education quality will foster capable and creative students， promoting Chinas long-term education cause.

CON

Guo Wenbin Media commentator

There are many advantages in abolishing zhongkao but how to uphold fairness in the education system afterward？ The quality of high schools varies in different regions. If there were no zhongkao， what criteria should we use to enroll students？ If students are required to attend schools in their home town， the price of school district housing would surge up again. It would also be much more difficult to balance educational resources. Fairness would be jeopardized while enrolling high school students. There is no fairer criterion than scores. Without zhongkao， students from poor families would be forced into an even more disadvantageous position.

The zhongkao system is a reasonable one. What should be asked is how to conduct the exam， not scrap the system. Problems in the system can be corrected with reforms.

CON

Dai Xianren News commentator

I dont think cancelling zhongkao will relieve students from exam pressures. The abolishment of entrance exams for middle school doesnt change the fact that primary school education is still greatly influenced by exams. Also， as long as gaokao remains， exams will be vital at all stages of education. Abolishing zhongkao and extending the compulsory education period have no link with relieving students from exam-centered education. What needs to be changed is the whole evaluation system for students.

The real benefit of extending the compulsory education period is to enable citizens to enjoy free education for a longer period and in turn， help improve the overall level of Chinese cultural progress. But both citizens and the government have obligations. The government has to guarantee it will support and subsidize compulsory education while citizens have to finish high school. However， in reality， not every middle school graduate wants or is suitable to pursue further studies.