In 2012, a Chinese father who forced his 4-year-old son to run naked in the snow in New York stirred up widespread controversy online. Now they have returned to the public spotlight. This time, the boy was signed up for a test for a place on a university-level course in Nanjing, the capital city of China's eastern province of Jiangsu.
On February 7, 2017, father He Liesheng accompanied his son He Yide to sign up to take an exam for the sales management course at Nanjing University, one of the most famous universities in China. According to the father, who has been nicknamed "Eagle Dad", his son has already finished junior high school courses, and studied some business major courses in what he called "Eagle Dad Classes," which were home tutor sessions led by retired teachers with the class schedule and textbooks specifically created for the young boy.
The eight-year-old son said he is currently working on robot programming, and he is going to participate in a world-class competition in the UK soon. He said he is envious of his peers, who have more spare time, but he prefers his style of education. "I can learn more knowledge systematically, and I can do more extracurricular activities." He said he dreamed of becoming an entrepreneur, without giving other details.
At such a young age, He Yide has already achieved much more than his peers or even many adults. In April 2012, he participated in the Optimist World Sailing Championship, one of the most popular sailing dinghy competitions in the world for juniors. In September, he spent 15 hours climbing up Mount Fuji in Japan. On January 1, 2013, he sold newspapers at a subway station in Nanjing for "Financial Quotient" training, while in August 2013, he was crowned at a national competition for rapid mental arithmetic. On top of that, the boy even flew a microlight plane solo in Beijing at the age of five.
The dad seems satisfied with his son's discipline in terms of study, and admitted his education style is unconventional but not necessarily wrong. He said his son has enjoyed the process so far. But some Internet users point out that the father is acting against the law, which insists all children receive nine years of compulsory education. Lawyer Han Xiao, with Beijing Kangda Law Firm, said He Liesheng has violated his son's right to an education. No matter what education model he applies to his son, the boy should first receive compulsory education. But He Liesheng retorted that what he has done is not illegal, because his son is merely not receiving normal education from school.
According to Chu Zhaohui, a researcher with the National Institute of Education Sciences, "eagle education" is too radical and extreme, and reflects He Liesheng's one-sided understanding towards education and emphasizes short-term gains. "When the kid is young, he may achieve more than his peers, and make his parents proud. But the process of growing up is unpredictable, it is of great risk to totally give up tradition education, and carry out a personalized education mode."
Cui suggested that parents could try to adopt some unconventional methods of education, and that society should be more tolerant to exploring diverse education models. However, he pressed that a deeper understanding of education is fundamental.
