The survey results of our newspaper show that the winter vacation of middle school students is obviously more monotonous than that of primary school students. Among the interviewed middle school students, nearly half spend more than 5 hours a day on remedial classes; more than half of the interviewed students spend more than 3 hours a day on homework. The homework they need to complete not only includes the assignments from different subjects left by their school teachers before the holiday, but also includes the assignments from various remedial classes during the winter vacation. Eighty percent of respondents play with their peers for no more than 1 hour.
A conclusion drawn from the survey is that the happiness index of holidays is inversely proportional to the grade level of students. The higher the grade, the lower the happiness index. The feedback from students indicates that the main reason is the heavy burden of remedial classes brought by the pressure of advancing to the next academic level. "If others are taking remedial classes and you are always thinking about playing, without looking at books or studying for several days, you will have a sense of guilt, and even when you go out to play, your mind won't be at ease." Wang Xinyue, who is in the second year of junior high school, sighed.
"I remember my holidays as a child, finding a few classmates every day to do holiday homework together, then play together, it was very happy. Few children in urban areas of Shenyang took remedial classes back then. Unlike now, parents have to spend a lot of money on remedial classes for their children, and this trend spreads among each other. If your child takes remedial classes, mine has to as well. I've heard that this leads to a vicious cycle, everyone takes remedial classes outside, so teachers don't put as much effort into teaching in class, thus those who don't want to take remedial classes have to go outside as well."
During the investigation, the reporter learned that although the pressure of advancing to the next academic level is not imminent, the winter vacation of first and second-year junior high school students is not easy either. The majority of students' holiday time is still spent on remedial classes. Their remedial classes mainly focus on subjects for advancement exams. "Mathematics and foreign languages, these are must-take courses. My daughter's math isn't good, so apart from taking remedial classes with her teacher at school, we also hired a math teacher from a key junior high school to give her two lessons per week," said Chang Mingqin, the parent of a first-year junior high school student.
Recently, our newspaper conducted a survey interview with 200 primary and middle school students in Shenyang about their winter vacation life. The survey results show that although many primary school students feel that their winter vacation life is happy, compared to ten or twenty years ago, the content of holidays has changed significantly.
Half of the interviewed middle school students spend more than 5 hours a day on remedial classes during the winter vacation.
83% of primary school students spend an average of no more than 1 hour a day playing with children during the winter vacation. "Where is there time? Today you went to do this, tomorrow he went to learn that." Parent Wang Nan attributes the lack of time for children to play with peers to choosing different remedial classes. Third-grade student Wang Xintong doesn't even know where her classmates live. She likes the remedial class her mother enrolled her in because she feels there are "many friends" there.
Nowadays, many junior high school students lament the "troubles of growing up". Some students have even changed the lyrics "the older you grow, the lonelier and more restless you become" to "the older you grow, the more remedial classes you take, the older you grow, the sadder you become."
Do you think your vacation was fun? Why?
More than 80% of the interviewed middle school students indicated that they spend an average of no more than 3 hours a day playing with friends or classmates.
In the happiness index surveys conducted separately for primary and middle school students by our newspaper, 77% of primary school students felt that their holidays were quite pleasant, while this proportion was equivalent to the percentage of middle school students who felt their holidays were unpleasant.
Zha Jingwen (30 years old, postgraduate degree, currently working in the financial industry)
Hao Yuheng (36 years old, undergraduate degree, currently working in a training institution)
Adults talk about their holidays as students
When asked if they would like to attend these classes, Mingming, who is as quiet as a girl, seemed accustomed to it, saying "yes." Ms. Shen, Mingming's mother, believed that although Mingming seems to be rushing around attending various talent classes all day, his holiday is not boring. "There are cultural and sports aspects, and he can also play with other children. He likes it himself."
Grade: The higher the grade, the lower the happiness index of the winter vacation.
Primary School Students
"I am from a rural area, and when I was a child, I had never heard of remedial classes. Our holidays were spent running wild and playing everywhere. The little content we learned in elementary and junior high school could be mastered as long as the teacher taught seriously and the student studied diligently. I believe that what truly allows children to grow and improves their IQ and EQ is the process of playing. Thinking back to that time, every child was full of vitality, imaginative, and independent. Conversely, today's children cannot do anything, are exhausted, and in the end, what progress have they made?"
Xiaoyu (a pseudonym), a third-year junior high school student, frankly admitted that this winter vacation was no less stressful than regular school days, including chain sales. "Several subject teachers rented a place outside, and the students all took classes there." Xiaoyu finds remedial classes tiring and boring, but he has no choice but to attend them. "Most of the students in my class take remedial classes. Now, it's the most crucial moment in the third year of junior high school, and no one wants to fall behind. If only you don't take remedial classes, the teacher might think you have some ulterior motive."
In our childhood, playing games with friends should have been the main entertainment activity during holidays. However, for today's primary school students, playing with friends has become a luxury. The survey results of our newspaper show that 63% of primary school students spend most of their winter vacation "online or watching TV"; 31% of primary school students spend more time attending various remedial classes; even 21% of primary school students spend more than 5 hours a day online or watching TV; nine of the interviewed primary school students indicated that they spend more than 5 hours a day attending various tutoring classes.
Mingming, a fourth-grade student living on Xinggong Street in Tiexi District of Shenyang, is under 10 years old and already wears glasses with over 200 degrees. Essays often describe holidays as colorful, and Mingming's winter vacation life is indeed rich, but not for traveling or playing games. Instead, he participates in various types of remedial classes. Now, let us take a look at Mingming's holiday schedule:
With the 40-day winter vacation coming to an end, how did you allocate your time during this holiday? Did your winter vacation provide you with enough joy and relaxation?
Remedial classes are like "rushing around", learning both culture and intelligence.
Comparison
Winter vacation happiness index