Teachers, NGOs struggle for solution to overwhelming problem
Xiao Hui (pseudonym), a 28-year-old teacher in a primary school in Liupanshui, Guizhou Province, has been concerned about a boy in his class for months.
Xiao Hui noticed that the boy became gradually isolated and his grades plummeted since his parents left home to work in a big city early this year.
"I tried to talk with him to understand his problems but my efforts were in vain. He used to be an optimistic boy but has become unsociable now. I can see that he has no sense of security and has little trust, even toward his teachers," Xiao Hui said.
What happened to the boy is not unusual. There are millions of children in China suffering the pain of being "left-behind children," whose parents work in cities and leave them at home to stay with their grandparents.
The changes in personality and psychological situations of these children have drawn attention not only from teachers like Xiao Hui, but also from the public.
Pains of being left behind
In a latest tragedy, four left-behind children in Bijie, Guizhou, died at home after drinking a bottle of pesticide on June 9.
"I vow to die before I'm 15 years old. Death has been my dream for years and now, I want my life to return to zero," read the suicide note of the 13-year-old, the oldest of the four.
Villagers and relatives of the children attributed their deaths to a lack of love from parents and their feelings of inferiority caused by abandonment, according to the Beijing Youth Daily.
Whatever the reason for the tragedy, it has shone a light on the unhealthy psychological status of millions of left-behind children.
According to statistics from the All China Women's Foundation, there are 61 million left-behind children in rural areas, accounting for 22 percent of minors in China. About 30 million children under 18 have no parent at home and 2 million take care of themselves with no guardian.
The NGO On the Road to School said that 34 percent of left-behind children have shown suicidal tendencies and more than 70 percent have psychological problems at different levels. It cited data from the Institute of Psychology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).
"The absence of parents in life makes these left-behind children more introverted, isolated and sensitive than others, and most of them have difficulty in dealing with human relations," Wu Xingfen, founder of an organization that offers guidance to left-behind children in Gaoyou, Jiangsu Province, told the Global Times.
"Left-behind children suffer from emotional instability, and they easily become anxious, socially withdrawn and judgmental. These problems vary with different ages and genders," read a study conducted by the Institute of Psychology of the CAS in 2009.
"Some girls have difficulties in communicating with others and go to extremes easily. Some boys are obstinate and unruly and have strained relations with teachers and classmates," said Wu.
The lack of parents influences the children's academic performance, said Wu, adding that grandparents often do not help with their homework.
"The children did not take their studies seriously, show little patience in learning, and make excuses for not finishing homework," said Wu.
"Some students leave school before they finish their compulsory education and without good education and guidance from adult guardians, these children go toward the wrong way," Xiao Hui said. "The crime rate among left-behind children is high. Some children began by stealing around the villages and some end up doing more serious crimes, like murder."
A 12-year-old girl who is a left-behind child in Hengyang, Hunan Province, killed her two classmates with poison on June 10 because of a small dispute that led to her being scolded by her grandparents. The girl made two excuses to cover her crime and looked calm when being questioned by the police, according to The Beijing News.
