Students and foreign teachers unite at last!

[Lotus Eater]

They may not have included us, but we are certainly on their side. Great to see the studenn finally saying - it's not just the bit of paper!

Uni riot over fake diplomas
October 27, 2006
DUNHUANG: Thousands of university students, furious about fake diplomas, rampaged through an eastern Chinese city for two days this week, unnerving the nation's leaders who have grown mistrustful of campus unrest since the Tiananmen Square uprising in 1989.

The violence in Nanchang, capital of the southeastern province of Jiangxi, reflects growing unrest among students under pressure from higher school fees and corruption among officials, who see education as an opportunity to make money.

As many as 10,000 students from the Jiangxi Clothing Vocational College marched through their campus after reports in the state-run media that the college had deceived new students about their eventual qualification and had issued fake diplomas.

Students said they were not to blame for wrecking classrooms and smashing computers. They said hooligans from the city took advantage of the chaos to wreak havoc.

State television aired an investigative report on how the privately run college had recruited about 20,000 students - above approved quotas - in the past three years by promising them diplomas it was not qualified to award.

Private colleges have boomed in the past decade to accommodate those who fail the fiercely competitive entrance exams for state universities. But private colleges are badly regulated and highly commercial and their falling standards make it difficult for the students to find jobs.

The Times

[Crippler]

There need to be major changes in the system right down to the basics. Less rote learning and more experimentation, more emphasis on overall student participation and less on "the mark."

[The G-Stringed Avenger]

No, parents need to be told in no uncertain terms that:

If your kid fails, it's his fault, not the teacher's/school's - maybe if he slept less, played basketball/soccer less, studied harder and stopped expecting to cruise through and be automatically awarded a diploma at the end, he might get somewhere at school.

Payment earns tuition but not a diploma. Only hard work earns the piece of paper.

They have to support the school and help to maintain its standards... meaning that you don't come barging into the school yelling and screaming in typical "Chinese problem-solving" fashion for two hours when you don't get your own way, you don't try to pay bribes and you don't call on your connections to get your lazy little bastard out of his own mess. You accept that your kid screwed up and that the school has made a fair judgement that he should not pass, according to its academic standards.

These might go some way to relieving the problem... fixing the entitlement mindset of the customers.

[Ruth]

Avenger, you are correct, of course. However, until the school leaders, and even teachers, STOP ACCEPTING THE PAYMENTS OFFERED the parents won't stop offering. It IS possible to buy a diploma in this country. It IS possible for someone else to sit your exams. It IS possible to use your cell phone during an exam to call for outside help. Of course, none of these actions are legal or moral, but they still work in this country.

I say, good for those students in Nanchang. I have junior middle school private students who are absolutely irrate when their classmates cheat (buy the answers ahead of time). More than one has expressed to me how unfair it is for the good students who study and do the exams honestly. These kids know what is going on and they don't like it. However, they see no way to make it change. I'm just glad 'my' kids are angry about it and don't buy into it.

[acjade]

One of my mates lives with a university teacher of traditional dance. His students give him amazing 'gifts' some of which he has passed on to my mate such as a coffee machine because he doesn't like coffee and grinder and a pure bred Husky puppy worth about five thousand kwai because he didn't want the responsibility of looking after a dog. Nor did my friend but he takes wonderful care of it while trying to find it a good home.

My Chinese son once rang me in an exam and asked me for the answers. So I gave him the wrong ones. Afterall I had already made my position clear on the matter. No study, no pass Go!

[George61]

Not only China........

"We pay, you pay: bullying students turn on academics

Hannah Edwards and Chantal Rumble
November 12, 2006


STUDENTS angry that they have failed exams and assignments are bullying university academics, the National Tertiary Education Union says.

Standover tactics, emotional blackmail and emails are the most common forms of bullying, but some academics have been stalked and forced to take out apprehended violence orders to protect themselves from enraged students, the union says.

Union policy and research officer Andrew Nette said the increase in staff bullying was no surprise given the growing pressures on students. "We are treating students increasingly like customers and they are acting increasingly like customers, and when a customer pays for something they expect to get it," Mr Nette said.

Falling Federal Government funding and a reduction in services following the introduction of voluntary student unionism was adding to the pressure, he said.

A senior Sydney academic, who did not want to be named, said fears for her safety meant she did not have one-on-one meetings with some students who were contesting their mark.

"Students can become very aggressive and disgruntled about their results," she said.

"The notion that you can actually fail something has become … anathema. It's very high stakes. The financial pressures are so great. If they fail a course and have to redo it they can be up for several thousands more and they may not be able to progress to the next level."

One source said the problem was particularly bad with foreign students, who were under more pressure to pass due to much higher course fees.

Following several serious incidents overseas, a survey will soon be launched in Britain to gauge the extent of the problem."