A few days ago, the Municipal Education Commission issued the newly revised "Ten Measures to Improve the Physical Health Level of Primary and Secondary School Students" (hereinafter referred to as the "Ten Measures"), requiring schools in the compulsory education stage to ensure that students have a physical education class every day, and also proposed that in addition to large recesses, ensure that primary school students have 15 minutes of recess activity time, and middle school students have 10 minutes of recess activity time.
The "Ten Measures" aim to improve the physical health of primary and secondary school students by ensuring their physical activity time. Among them, the requirements for the time of small recess activities can be said to directly refer to the current social problem of primary and secondary school students, especially primary school students, being "captive" during recess.
A proposal
"Toilet social" is hotly discussed
Li Guohua, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), submitted a proposal entitled "Suggestions on Paying Closer Attention to the Problem of "Toilet Socialization" for Primary School Students" at the National People's Congress and the National People's Political Consultative Conference. Because of this proposal, the new term "toilet socialization" has once again sparked heated discussions about the old problem of primary and secondary school students not being able to move freely between classes.
The so-called "toilet socialization" means that in some schools, children cannot walk into the playground between classes, cannot stay in the corridors, and can only sit in their own seats in the classroom, and the only free activity is to go to the toilet, so they can only take the opportunity to use the toilet to contact and communicate with others.
In fact, the Provisions on the Protection of Minors in Schools, which came into effect as early as September 1, 2021, clearly state that unnecessary restrictions shall not be placed on students' freedom of speech and deeds such as proper communication, games, and classroom activities during recess and other non-teaching hours. However, the reality is not rosy – students can still have some group activities during large recesses, while many schools go into "silent mode" during small recesses.
A sigh
"Spitting" from parents and children
Xiao Fan (not his real name) is a second-grader who has been very "quiet" for 15 minutes between classes. He said that except for going to the toilet and going out of the classroom, the rest of the time is basically sitting in his seat. Occasionally, you can get out of your seat and have an interaction with your classmates, but you also have to tiptoe and speak softly, because there will be a class committee in the classroom to maintain order, observe whether the students are noisy or have actions that may lead to danger, and report the "situation" to the class teacher.
Xiaofan said that what he wanted to do most during class was to go to the toilet, and he could move a lot out of the classroom and chat with his classmates, and he felt very comfortable and relaxed at that time.
Xiaofan's mother said this to her child very clearly, but she was also helpless. She said that every time she came home, she would communicate with her child about his day at school, and she would also ask about small recess activities, and she could feel the child's helplessness. She said that during class, the spirit is highly concentrated, and recess activities are conducive to students to regulate their emotions, relax their minds, enhance their physical fitness, and prevent and control myopia. Many parents have the same thoughts as her, worrying that "staying" like this is not conducive to physical and mental growth during their children's developmental stage.
Seeing that the children are getting quieter and quieter, she is a little anxious, and usually takes the children to participate in more outdoor activities on weekends, but this often does not replace the interaction between the children during school recess activities.
Tiantuo Central Park in Nankai District has a beautiful environment, and a large group of primary and secondary school students come here to play basketball every weekend. Recently, the reporter randomly interviewed more than a dozen primary and secondary school students from three middle schools and three elementary schools on the basketball court in the park. The three primary schools do not allow students to go out of the teaching building at will, one of them can be active in the corridor outside the classroom, one can only be in the classroom, and the students of one primary school because the students in the class like to fight, the class teacher will divide the class into several groups, except for going to the toilet, can only be in the designated two or three groups between activities, can not go to the non-designated group. Two of the three secondary schools allow students to move freely between classes and to leave the building, while only one does not allow students to leave the building and can only move in the classroom except for the toilet.
Frontline investigations
Where are the difficulties in implementing the regulations?
A few days ago, the newly revised "Ten Measures to Improve the Physical Health Level of Primary and Secondary School Students" was issued. In order to solve the dilemma that students cannot move freely between classes, the introduction of relevant regulations can be said to be one after another. In addition to the explicit regulations of the Ministry of Education, five years ago, the city adjusted the recess time of primary schools, from the previous 10 minutes to 15 minutes. Three years ago, the Municipal Education Commission issued a notice requiring all district education bureaus and schools in the city to allow all students to "stand up, come out, and move" during recess (15 minutes for primary school and 10 minutes for middle school).
After Ms. Wan saw the news of the "Ten Measures" launched by the Municipal Education Commission, she went home and said to her son, who is in the third grade of primary school: "In the future, you can have physical education classes every day, and you can also have free activities between classes." But my son's latest feedback is that physical education classes have not yet begun to increase, and the small recess is still not allowed to go out of the classroom except for going to the toilet. Ms. Wan's friend's child attends another primary school, and the situation is exactly the same.
Through interviews, the reporter found that there are many reasons why students can't move between classes: first, the school activity venue is small, and students can't go outdoors for activities; Second, today's teaching places are all buildings, even if the recess is extended to 15 minutes, except for queuing up to go to the toilet and going up and down the stairs, there is not much time for small recesses; Third, the school is worried about students bumping into each other during recess activities; Fourth, some students are reluctant to move.
In the proposal, Li Guohua suggested that the education department should come up with a plan to ensure the implementation of students' right to free recess activities nationwide, clarify the punishment mechanism for schools that have not implemented it for a long time, and include the development of recess activities in the scope of education supervision, and put forward specific suggestions in four aspects:
First, implement policies and safeguard the rights and interests of students. Second, refine the judicial rules so that the risks of schools are controllable. Third, optimize the school's insurance and improve the compensation standard. Fourth, multi-party linkage and coordination to promote security guarantees.
Some trying
In these schools, recess is comparable to a sports day
While it is difficult to solve recess problems in some schools, some schools have overcome difficulties and carried out recess activities with great success.
"In our place, as long as the weather permits, the school encourages all teachers and students to go out of the classroom for activities regardless of the size of the class, and implements a leave system between classes, and students who are not feeling well can participate in the big recess activities to ask for leave." Du Hongwei, principal of Youguzhuang Central Primary School in Jizhou District, said.
At the time of the interview, it was just in time for the school's small recess. As soon as the bell rang at the end of class, the reporter saw that the students walked out of the classroom one after another and went to the playground to choose their favorite activities, and the lively scene was comparable to a sports meeting. There were two boys skipping rope, and when they saw their sports director Yang Jie coming over, she had to ask her to be a referee for the two of them, and the two competed in skipping rope.
The reporter grabbed a boy who was shooting and asked, "Can I go to the playground to move freely between classes?" He replied: "You can move freely, and the students come out after class, and they don't want to stay in the classroom." ”
Yang Jie said that the school has 12 classes and more than 300 students, and compared with primary schools in the urban area, the space for student activities is much more spacious, which is an advantage. However, whether it is recess activities or extracurricular sports homework, whether it is urban or rural, parents need to be supported, which is the difficulty of the work, and it is necessary to let parents understand and support step by step. At first, some parents thought that sports activities had nothing to do with their children's education, and that too much sports would only delay learning, and they did not understand and support the sports homework left by the school for their children. The school does the work and tells parents that it is good for children to do more physical exercise, which can promote brain development, promote learning, and also help to improve the personality. Parents are gradually paying attention to the physical exercise of their students.
Students are allowed to move freely between classes, and small bumps will occur, and some students have small conflicts due to teasing, and some parents come to them, which can be solved by explaining to the class teacher. Once, when the school was preparing to train the students' upper body strength, they communicated with their parents in advance before letting them climb the equipment, and they might scratch their hands when they climbed for the first time, and they were fine after practicing a few times. That time, two students really broke their hands, and the parents did not come to the school because they knew in advance.
Zhang Qingbo, principal of Youguzhuang Town Central School, said: "We encourage the school to innovate and organize large recess activities, and teachers spontaneously participate in small recess activities, which greatly mobilize students' enthusiasm for sports and ensure the effectiveness of the activities." At the same time, we strictly implement the physical education homework system to extend students' outdoor exercise to after school. The increase in physical exercise time has enhanced students' physical fitness, and parents no longer have to worry about their children going home to play with their mobile phones. The increase in students' outdoor activities has also led to obvious benefits, with the children's spirit significantly improved, fewer 'chubby children', and the myopia rate far lower than the national average for primary school students. ”
How to carry out recess activities in a small school activity space? Allure Elementary School has found a solution.
This school is located in the urban area of Jizhou, covering a small area, but with 32 classes and more than 1,700 students, the activity space is more tight than most primary schools in the city's 6 districts, which is indeed not conducive to recess activities.
Principal Wang Shuxue said that in order to do a good job and invigorate student activities, according to the school's own conditions, in addition to long-distance running, physical education, and large recess in the playground, small recess activities are basically indoors. Excluding toilet and drinking time, singing and desk exercises take about 10 minutes between classes. Through singing and doing exercises, students can adjust the fatigue of the previous class and enter the next class with full energy.
During the recess, the reporter saw that as the music sounded, the students of Class 2 of the 5th grade returned to the classroom one after another and began to do desk exercises with the music. The reporter noticed that the students were very devoted, and the boys in the middle of the first row showed a very enjoyable look in terms of expressions and movements. He said that he likes to do desk exercises during recess, and usually practices when he is tired from studying at home, and his parents are very supportive of the school's recess table exercises.
A few suggestions
Xu Lianwang, deputy director of the Jizhou District Education Bureau
Take the physical health of students as a major matter
"Jizhou District has ranked first in the city for six consecutive years in the ranking of primary and secondary school students' physical health monitoring results, which is the result of our emphasis on school physical education, recess activities, and students' physical fitness." Speaking of attaching importance to students' recess activities, Xu Lianwang, deputy director of the Jizhou District Education Bureau, is like a treasure.
Why are recess activities better in schools in Jizhou District? "The key is that we have always regarded the improvement of students' physical health as a major event. Only with a healthy body can you take on great responsibilities in the future. Xu Lianwang told reporters.
The Jizhou District Education Bureau fully implements the spirit of the superiors and clearly stipulates that students go to outdoor activities between classes in the form of documents. All schools are required to carry out various and colorful recess activities in combination with the site conditions to make students move. Based on the small recess, it extends to large recess, physical education class, and off-campus sports homework, actively promotes the new physical education teaching model of "church, diligent practice, and regular competition", comprehensively strengthens the school's physical education work, and vigorously promotes the "physical health improvement action" to continuously improve the physical health level of students. Innovate the double recess format to enrich the content of activities and involve all students. At the same time, extend school recess activities to the home. Attaching great importance to physical education, students play mobile phones and games at home every day after school, and exercise is everywhere in the yard, square, front and back of the building, and a good exercise atmosphere is gradually forming.
Wang Xiaobo, associate researcher of Tianjin Academy of Social Sciences
Parents also need to change their mindsets
According to Wang Xiaobo, an associate researcher at the Tianjin Academy of Social Sciences, "toilet socialization" is due to the restriction of students' activities between classes and forced to communicate with each other. To solve this dilemma, in addition to the school to take the initiative, parents also need to change their ideology.
Some parents are overly anxious about their children, and in the process of defending their rights, they continue to pursue the joint and several responsibilities of teachers and schools, and even complain to the relevant education authorities. Although some places have documents stipulating that schools should protect students' freedom of activities between classes, in order to prevent campus safety accidents, "zero harm on campus" is taken as the red line for evaluating schools. The school is worried about complaints from parents and that they will not pass the assessment. In order to avoid similar troubles, restrictive practices such as allowing students to "drink water, go to the toilet, and not go to the playground" were adopted during recess.
Overprotection of children is detrimental to their development. Children are completely protected and enjoy the right to "absolutely no harm", but at the same time they will suffer the loss of "restricted and deprived of their free activities". Overprotection of children, in turn, leads to restrictions on their rights, which may also make them more vulnerable. Because long-term protection and restriction may lead to a decrease in the flexibility and coordination of the body, it is more likely to cause accidental injuries.
Chen Hao, a lawyer at Oriental Law Firm
Remove the "unlimited liability" concern
Regarding the worries that schools may have while ensuring recess activities, Chen Hao, a lawyer at Oriental Law Firm, said that not all accidents of primary and secondary school students during school are tort liable. Articles 1199, 1200 and 1201 of the Civil Code provide for the liability of students for personal injuries sustained during their studies and lives in kindergartens, schools or other educational institutions:
First, kindergartens, schools or other educational institutions bear the principle of presumption of fault liability in the case of personal injury to a person with no capacity for civil conduct, that is, if the kindergarten, school or other educational institution cannot prove that it has fulfilled its educational and management duties, it shall bear tort liability, and if it can prove that it has fulfilled its relevant duties, it shall not bear tort liability.
Second, if a person with limited capacity for civil conduct suffers personal injury while studying or living in a school or other educational institution, the principle of fault liability is followed, that is, if the school or educational institution fails to perform its educational and management duties, it shall bear tort liability.
According to the provisions of the Civil Code, minors under the age of eight are persons with no capacity for civil conduct, and the period of primary school is the transition period for minors to change from persons with no capacity for civil conduct to persons with limited capacity for civil conduct. In other words, the principle of attribution of liability for persons with no capacity for civil conduct and persons with limited capacity for civil conduct is different, and the risks borne by educational institutions are different. In the case of harm to minors under the age of 8 in educational institutions, the responsibility of the educational institution is generally presumed, and the educational institution needs to find evidence to prove that it has fulfilled its educational and management responsibilities before it can not bear tort liability. In the case of harm to minors over the age of 8 but under the age of 18 in an educational institution, the injured party will bear tort liability only if the injured party finds that the educational institution has failed to perform its educational and management duties.
Third, if a student is injured by a third party, the third party shall bear the tort liability, and if the kindergarten, school or other educational institution fails to perform its management duties, it shall bear the corresponding supplementary liability and may recover from the third party.
In addition, in view of the school's safety and security obligations for primary and secondary school students, the school can also establish and improve the student accident prevention and control mechanism and related insurance system through the competent department to disperse the corresponding legal risks, so as to dispel the school's concerns.
Source: Tianjin Daily