Education authorities in Shanghai have sought to reaffirm a government rule that bans international schools attended by Chinese students from using imported curricula in their entirety.
The Shanghai Municipal Education Commission summoned principals from 21 international and bilingual schools from across the city and representatives from district education bureaus to an October 19th meeting, where the commission told the schools to tighten oversight of their respective curricula.
Education authorities also told administrators at international schools and public schools that have international units to comply with government rules on "national education" - the teaching of Chinese history, constitution, law and morals.
In a commentary published on Oct. 13, the state-run Xinhua News Agency criticized some international schools for violating Chinese law and government regulations by failing to include China-specific subjects in their curricula.
The news agency also took a swipe at school regulators for their lack of oversight of the curricula at international schools.
As Chinese families become increasingly wealthy, more parents perceive international schools as a better alternative to the rigid curricula and rote learning styles used by government-run schools, and see the international schools as a springboard for their children to continue their studies overseas.
News about the meeting, which broke on Monday, sparked heated debate on social media, with many parents expressing worries that the upcoming changes could make international schools no different from mainstream schools.
In a microblog post on Monday, the Education Commission confirmed the news and sought to reassure the public, asking parents not to read too much into the move while reiterating that international schools were required to comply with Chinese law and government regulations on education.
The policy toward international schools that operate exclusively for children of foreigners remains unchanged, the commission said.
Education authorities in Shanghai have sought to reaffirm a government rule that bans international schools attended by Chinese students from using imported curricula in their entirety.
The news agency also took a swipe at school regulators for their lack of oversight of the curricula at international schools.
