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Scholarship and education
The waltz arrives in Beijing schoolsPosted by Joel Martinsen, June 13, 2007 12:30 PM
![]() Yesterday, the Ministry made two points of clarification about the dances. First, it reiterated that the new steps are not intended to replace current calisthenics; far from being compulsory, dancing will be just one of a number of aerobic activities available to schools. Second, the Ministry countered objections from concerned parents that close contact between boys and girls would foster teen romance. From The Beijing News:
The story was featured in every Beijing newspaper today and made the front page of The Beijing News, Beijing Youth Daily, and the Beijing Times. Though each paper sent its own photographer to the school, they all ended up taking photos of the same couple - a boy in a sweater vest and a girl in a plaid skirt. In the background, other boys are in white shirts and other girls are in plain blue skirts. A Ministry of Education survey found that 72.3% of primary- and middle-school students "like" or "reasonably like" dancing in schools, and 75% of students participating in tests of the program chose coed over single-sex dancing. However, to some critics, the waltz and other dances (including the traditional Chinese yangge) are not appropriate for all school children. A Reuters article last week closed with a bizarre suggestion from a dissenting voice:
It turns out that what's translated here as "cock-fighting" (斗鸡) is actually the name of the children's game depicted in this illustration - hopping on one leg, kids try to knock each other down. Links and Sources
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Comments on The waltz arrives in Beijing schools
"cock-fighting"...I loled!
What, you mean you never cock fought?
Ehmm, me either.
The criticism of puppy love and the risk of teenage love (mostly future premarital sex) stemming from being too close together while dancing that comes with teaching children how to waltz is nothing new. In the late 18th century, most archdioceses and religious sects banned the dance for the same reasons. It's sad that I have to compare the critics of the movement with the Catholic bishops and the pastors of the time.