Controversy over compulsory running after high school death

Danwei

Home

Syndication

RSS for Comments
Email Notifications
Go

Archives

The Beijing News
October 10, 2008

The Beijing News reported today that a senior at August First High School died during a 1,200 meter run yesterday. The run is a requirement at the school, which is located in Beijing's Haidian District. The cause of death has not yet been determined.

Last week, the Ministry of Education released its "Sunny Sports long-distance winter run" program (阳光体育冬季长跑), which requires the country's schools and universities to organize runs for students. The program is intended to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, which takes place one year from now on October 1, 2009, so students are supposed to run distances that are multiples of 60 kilometers: 120 km for elementary students, 180 km for junior high students, and 240 km for senior high and university students. This equates to 1,000, 1,500, and 2,000 meters per day, respectively.

Critics argue that the plan puts politics ahead of students' health, and that a one-size-fits-all training program is unlikely to benefit everyone because of individual physical differences. In response, the Ministry of Education told a press conference yesterday that the "Sunny Sports Run," is only a recommendation, not an order, and is intended to be a goal for students to accomplish. There is no time limit for how long the run should last, and students who are physically unfit for such exercise should not be compelled to participate.

The controversy should really come as no suprise, because the Ministry of Education has a history of issuing policy "recommendations" that at first glance appear to be compulsory. In June, 2007, a plan to bring coed dancing to school physical fitness programs raised an uproar before the Ministry emphasized that it was only voluntary, and earlier this year public opposition forced it to back down from a proposal to make Peking Opera part of the required curriculum.

The Beijing News quoted teachers at a city school who complained that there was no space to have all the students run. They also said that students are usually too tired to focus in class after running. Beijing has barred schools from allowing students to run in streets and alleys following reports of students involved in traffic accidents in other parts of the country.

Links and Sources