#gaokao

China’s National College Entrance Examination— or gaokao, as the test is known in Mandarin, takes place this Sunday and Monday. These two days will decide the destiny for over 10 million Chinese high school students ready to graduate.

In USA, when you apply to colleges you write essays, send your grades, send your test scores, tell them about your extracurriculars. The colleges look at many different things about you to see if you are a good fit. In China, is all about this test. The reading and math classes your parents put you in at age 5, the night classes and weekend classes you have been attending for years, your inability to take a vacation because you always had to study, even during the summer, this is where you see if it all pays off. In a Times article they quoted a Chinese exam tutor who said, “The gaokao is about the most pressure-packed examination in the World, given the numbers, the repercussions, and the stress involved.”

I remember when I was applying to colleges. I was so stressed sometimes I couldn’t eat and there were many tears. I can’t even imagine what all of these students go through here and have so much respect for their hard work and ability to deal with pressure. But many students can’t deal with the pressure. The Globalist states, “Although suicide is the fifth-leading cause of death in China, it has become the leading cause of death among young people. It is estimated that 287,000 people commit suicide every year in China.” This article also stated “The high number of suicides among Chinese adolescents result mostly from the extreme pressure from their families to perform well in school and excel in their studies. In addition to those pressures, teenagers experience feelings of isolation and loneliness which make them prone to attempt suicide.”

Many of these students wake up at 6am to get to school and then stay at school until it’s over at 6pm and then go to more classes or go home and stay up late and do homework. I believe that the way this school system is set up makes it very difficult for students to make great friendships with each other. So, when a student is stressed by the pressure of his or her family, it is hard to reach out and find someone to help them through. My students complain to me almost every day that they have too much homework and at first I was just thinking they were big complainers but then I realized that they are piled on with homework. On Mondays when I ask them how their weekend was they just tell me how they have too much homework and other classes. These kids are under so much pressure that many of them already have grey hair.

These students are under more pressure than I can even imagine, yet they keep moving forward. I talked to a student the other day who is about to take the test and she said she is so excited about her future that she is ready to take the test. These students are put under pressure that I don’t think anyone that age should ever go through, yet I am so impressed by these students bravery to face this pressure and give this test their best shot. I think these students’ attitudes should be recognized and people from all ages, all around the world, should be inspired by them… I know I am.