Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) — Beijing recently unveiled a new comprehensive initiative to promote the holistic development of primary and middle school students, highlighting the relationship between physical and mental health.
According to a person in charge of the Beijing Commission of Education, the new policy consists of five sections and 20 specific measures. The focus is on integrating aspects such as cultivating high moral character, cultivating mental ability and physical skills, developing teamwork and hard work, and strengthening three key types of relationships: peer-to-peer, teacher-student, and parent-child.
This means that for the first time, relevant departments in the Chinese capital have clearly linked physical health indicators, such as reducing myopia, obesity and spinal curvature, with psychological resilience, which in turn implies synchronous improvement of both aspects.
Some of the key measures include requiring students to participate in at least one school club, hobby group or extracurricular activity, organizing a “Teacher-Student Dialogue Day” and encouraging parents to spend 15 minutes daily for open conversation and one hour doing activities with their children.
Under the new policy, schools are encouraged to increase team sports such as football and basketball to develop students’ resilience and persistence. In addition, special psychological support corners and stress-relief rooms will also be set up in common areas of school campuses.
The document also provides for a division of responsibility between society and government. Professional social workers and volunteers will assist in the implementation of educational programs to improve health, while city authorities will ensure stricter control over online content and the amount of time spent in front of any screen, in close cooperation with students, their parents and educational institutions.
Notably, Beijing will implement a three-tiered assessment system to monitor progress at the city, district and school levels. The system will use key indicators such as physical fitness data, mental health data and disease prevention dynamics to track trends, refine prevention strategies and intervention methods to ensure policy effectiveness.
The initiative follows Beijing’s previous reform initiatives, including the introduction of 15-minute breaks between classes and guaranteed daily physical education classes, underscoring the city’s commitment to prioritizing health in education under the principle of “health first.” As a senior official at the Beijing Education Commission emphasized, the new policy is an innovative endeavor aimed at creating a special “Beijing model” that promotes the all-round development of students. -0-