Global Times
23rd July 2020
City's plan to include eyesight in high school entrance assessment sparks controversy
A city in North China is in hot water after the public learned that students' eyesight will account for almost 10 percent of their score on senior high school entrance exams beginning in 2022, with parents arguing that the policy is unfair to students with poor eyesight, which many believe can be caused by studying too much and in improper lighting.
The policy discriminates against students who have poor eyesight and lower income families who can't afford possible corrective surgery, many parents wrote on Sina Weibo.
Some netizens were supportive of the policy saying it shows education authorities attach more importance to the quality of both body and knowledge, which can encourage students, families and schools to pay more attention to protecting eyes and promoting physical quality.
The policy, part of an education reform plan, was published by the government of Changzhi, North China's Shanxi Province on its website in 2019 but only recently seems to have caught attention on Chinese social media.