A school in Luohu District, called Shenzhen Luoling Foreign Language Experimental Primary School, has rescinded a controversial policy whereby enrolled families living in larger apartments in the area stood to have a better chance of gaining admission to their school.
Posted on December 4 on the school's official website, the notice points out that the number of enrolled students in the school has reached its limit. So as not to be turning away students and families, the school set out the new regulations, which were stated to begin in 2019.
According to the regulations set out by the school:
Families who purchase houses of 30 square meters or less must have lived in the houses for six years or more and cannot have another, larger abode within Shenzhen.
Families who purchase houses larger than 30 square meters, but of or less than 50 square meters, must have lived in the houses for four years or more.
Finally, families who purchase houses larger than 50 square meters must have lived in the houses for more than one year.
The timeline of these rules begin on April 30 of the same year after purchasing the house.
A notice including the school's new admission policies. Image via Beijing Shijian
Also stated in the notice is the school's wish to provide spaces for children who live in the area, and to stop families from buying small houses in the area on a temporary basis just so their child can attend the school.
On December 5, the day after posting the original notice, Luoling Foreign Language Experimental Primary School announced via their website that they had cancelled the new rules after the Education Bureau of Luohu District caught wind of it.
The following day, December 6, the school posted another notice to their website, apologizing for any distress caused to parents, stating that they would adhere to the enrollment requirements set out by Luohu Education Bureau.
According to The Paper, the Luohu Education Bureau posted their own notice, responding to criticism of the new regulations, saying that schools in the district adhere strictly to the national policy of accepting all students who are eligible for enrollment and apologized to parents, whilst also stating that urban renewal work is underway in the area in order to build new education infrastructure.
With population figures rising, the number of migrant students in Shenzhen rose by 100,000 from 2015 to 2017, while the number of primary schools in the city has actually been decreasing since 2002, according to Scholar Education.
[Cover image via luohuedu.net]
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