Answer to exam question, generation gap perhaps
In the final exam of Grade 6 Chinese language course this semester, a school in Ningbo, Zhejiang province, included popular Chinese food blogger Li Ziqi as an good example for students to emulate. One parent shared the photo of the exam paper and expressed his concern that it might mislead kids by teaching them the wrong values.
The photo of the exam paper shows Li was selected for promoting an idyllic traditional Chinese lifestyle and for spreading traditional Chinese culture to the world. Li has a huge global following for her videos which show her preparing meals that she shares with her grandmother.
The parent questioned the appropriateness of Li’s inclusion as a role model expressing concerns about the picture of an idyllic life she was promoting and that the inclusion of a digital influencer might encourage children to spend too much time online.
Such worries are understandable, but unnecessary. Li works hard. She and her team put in a lot of efforts and her videos appeal to people all over the world. Children can learn from her hard work and professionalism, how can that be misleading?
Besides, we live in a commercial society. Children will sooner or later have to understand that money matters for everyone. As for the concerns about it encouraging children to spend too much time online. They are going to go online anyway, so they may as well see how a good idea and hard work can pay off.
It is also worth noting that Li was one of three examples that the children were presented with. The other two were Yuan Longping, a renowned Chinese agronomist and Lei Haiwei, a deliveryman and the champion of the Third China Central Television’s Poetry Competition show. The children were asked to select one and give their reasons why they chose the one they did.
Given this, some parents have said that it is good for primary education to follow the social trend and so children can be more familiar with what is happening around them. Maybe that’s a more practical attitude so that education keeps in step with the times.