Most students who took the poll agreed with her. To the young group, what teachers wear, how they speak, and what they can offer are all decisive factors for them in choosing whether to attend the class. In a word, students tend to flee the class if the teacher is boring.
More importantly, outdated courses have been driving students out of class. For example, Marxist Philosophy and Moral Cultivation have long been a part of the nation's curriculum, which continue to bore the young generation. Many courses were set decades ago and have not been updated in accordance with the needs of the employment market.
Due to the few options in class, many college students turn to the internet or part-time jobs for more practical knowledge. "I can't receive the knowledge that I anticipated from class, thus I quit," complained Yu, who spent the most part of his college time at part-time jobs that enhanced his skills as a copywriter.
"It's a new age and the channels for knowledge have been widened. It's time to be flexible and make suitable changes to suit the students," added Professor Yan from Qingdao University.
Call for tightening college discipline
Following the poll, a picture emerged of a lonely gray-haired professor in Northeast China's Liaoning University giving lectures to only three students in an empty classroom. Upon the uploading of the picture capturing the devoted professor's writing on the blackboard during the barely attended class, many internet users rose to outrage against the disrespectful students ducking out of class.
More than 10,000 web users forwarded the picture and joined the voice criticizing those who were supposed to attend the class. "Go back to the classroom, stop wasting your time," they yelled online.
"The behavior indicates a lack of discipline, and might affect the students when they graduate," Professor Wang from Ocean University of China commented. "No matter how many reasons you have, it's irresponsible to skip the class."
Wang Xiyuan, a representative of the Municipal Political Consultative in Qingdao blamed the "careless and sloppy attitude" aroused during the college reform in the past decade. "It's the responsibility of the college to tighten the discipline and get students back to classes," he added.
