China Photo Triggers International Outcry

This picture is reportedly what passes for classroom instruction in China. A kindergarten teacher in China gave a female student the experience of being lifted by the ears. Not only does the teacher appear to be enjoying the experience, but she later posted the photo to Weibo, the Chinese analogue of Twitter.

The teacher later said that this was not punishment and that she and the students “were just having fun.” She allegedly let another student take photos of the incident with a cell phone.

The teacher was recently hired under a “first hire, then certify” policy to fill badly needed teacher positions.

The photo triggered outcry in the wake of another video from Shanxi province in which a teacher is shown slapping a student.

The teacher was given a 15 day suspension for beating the student.

I recall on one of my trips to China in having dinner with one of the wealthiest Chinese businessmen who told me that he sent his daughter to Canada to be educated. When I asked why, he explained that he would not expose his child to the cruelty of the Chinese schools — a system in which he obviously excelled but found physically and emotionally crushing.