If indians are crazy over their children's education, chinese are crazier.
"More than nine million students packed exam halls across China for the opening day of the country's university entrance exam on Friday. Some excerpts; link at the end.
"Around 9.12 million high school students were registered across China to sit the crucially important two-day exam, known as the gaokao.
"The southern city of Guangzhou introduced dedicated lanes for vehicles taking students to the gaokao, local media said, while parents in China's business hub of Shanghai booked taxis a week in advance for their children.
"Alternatively, families rent rooms in nearby hotels to avoid wasting valuable study time commuting to exam halls.
"Some parents paid as much as 5,000 yuan ($815) a night for five-star accommodation in Shanghai, after facilities close to schools dubbing themselves "gaokao hotels" sold out of rooms, the report said.
"Parents across the country visited temples to make offerings for their children's success, the Global Times said, while photos showed others waiting outside exam rooms with food and drink specially prepared for their children.
"Questions can be bizarre. "If Thomas Edison returned to the 21st century, what would he think of cellphones?" one province asked this year, requiring an 800-character answer.
"The test has come under fierce criticism on China for putting enormous pressure on students, and as a symbol of educational inequality, with many low-income students whose parents have migrated to cities barred from taking the exam in their new homes.
"Authorities have become increasingly concerned about the risk of examinees using devices such as smartphones — some of which have become smaller and easier to hide — as an illicit aid during tests.
"Students in the northeastern province of Jilin were banned from wearing clothing with metal parts and education authorities installed metal detectors in exam centres to clamp down on "wireless cheating devices", with attempts to stop cheating even leading to bans on metal bra clasps.
Bra ban ahead of crucial Chinese exam - The Times of India
"More than nine million students packed exam halls across China for the opening day of the country's university entrance exam on Friday. Some excerpts; link at the end.
"Around 9.12 million high school students were registered across China to sit the crucially important two-day exam, known as the gaokao.
"The southern city of Guangzhou introduced dedicated lanes for vehicles taking students to the gaokao, local media said, while parents in China's business hub of Shanghai booked taxis a week in advance for their children.
"Alternatively, families rent rooms in nearby hotels to avoid wasting valuable study time commuting to exam halls.
"Some parents paid as much as 5,000 yuan ($815) a night for five-star accommodation in Shanghai, after facilities close to schools dubbing themselves "gaokao hotels" sold out of rooms, the report said.
"Parents across the country visited temples to make offerings for their children's success, the Global Times said, while photos showed others waiting outside exam rooms with food and drink specially prepared for their children.
"Questions can be bizarre. "If Thomas Edison returned to the 21st century, what would he think of cellphones?" one province asked this year, requiring an 800-character answer.
"The test has come under fierce criticism on China for putting enormous pressure on students, and as a symbol of educational inequality, with many low-income students whose parents have migrated to cities barred from taking the exam in their new homes.
"Authorities have become increasingly concerned about the risk of examinees using devices such as smartphones — some of which have become smaller and easier to hide — as an illicit aid during tests.
"Students in the northeastern province of Jilin were banned from wearing clothing with metal parts and education authorities installed metal detectors in exam centres to clamp down on "wireless cheating devices", with attempts to stop cheating even leading to bans on metal bra clasps.
Bra ban ahead of crucial Chinese exam - The Times of India
