"School-choosing fee" should be abolished

In the survey about who should be responsible for the popularity of choosing schools, 71.5 percent of the respondents chose "local education department;" 68.5 percent chose "national education authority;" 40.3 percent chose "schools;" and 24.8 percent chose "parents."

Ms. Gao, a middle school teacher in suburban Beijing, said the "school-choosing fee" was an important revenue source for her school. Parents usually give the fee to the local education department, which then allocates half of the money to the school. Her school is not among the best ones, but it still attracts a lot of students with its convenient location.

"After the 'school-choosing students' came to our school, our wages increased. Sometimes, though, these students caused problems. Many of them were disobedient and lagged behind others in examinations," said Gao, who wants to choose another school to work at. "Students enrolled in good schools are better students. It's a pleasure to teach them and the wages there are much higher than at ordinary schools."

"Schools' competencies vary greatly in different regions. This has historical reasons, but it is not unchangeable," said Zheng. For instance, in Tongling City of Anhui Province, the local government attaches a great importance to the equal development of schools. By allocating more resources to poorer schools, the city has managed to put a stop to parents choosing schools for their children. According to Zheng, the problem can be solved if the government is resolute to do it.

A teacher at No.6 Middle School in Tongling City said all middle schools in Tongling have similar facilities and wages. The only differences are school scale and admission quotas. No.6 Middle School is not a "model school," but teachers are confident about their students' abilities.

When asked about how to address the issue of parents choosing schools, 68.1 percent of the survey's respondents agreed that the "school-choosing fee" should be completely abolished. About 63.9 percent said a quality-oriented education should be put into practice and people should change the old mentality that entering college means everything in the world. In addition, 57.7 percent of the respondents thought there should be a long-term policy to support and enable headmasters and teachers to move freely among schools, and another 57.7 percent suggested authorities increase funding to poor schools.

According to Cheng Fangping at the China National Institute for Educational Research, the Education Ministry has devised a plan to balance educational resources. Cheng says it is imperative to put the plan into practice. A balanced education system doesn't mean every school should be exactly the same. Outstanding schools must keep their specialties and poor schools should receive more help from the government. "Tackling the phenomenon will hurt the interests of some groups, but we should be courageous, patient and confident in reform," said Cheng.