A teacher at a a primary school in Foshan has issued a public apology to students and parents after sending out a group text message to parents calling his students “trash” after performing disappointingly in an English test on April 9, Guangzhou Daily reports. The teacher called students who failed to get 80% in the test “trash examinees” and students who failed to get 50% “trash among trash” in the text message which was sent out at around 5 p.m.
Part of the group text message
He even named the students in the text message.
The following day, one of his students at Rongjia No.4 Primary School in Shunde District shared the text message on Sina Weibo, causing much outrage among parents and leading local education authorities to force the teacher, Mr. Lin, to make an apology.
Many netizens also reacted with outrage, but some pointed out the teacher was criticizing the students’ exam performance, not necessarily criticizing them personally. Many others have come to Lin’s defense, claiming to be former students who benefited from his teaching.
It’s not just children who feel the pressure to perform in English tests in this country. Officials in Shenzhen have revealed that 130 people were caught cheating on the national English-language test for professional qualification March 30. Six of the examinees have been detained for using either fake ID cards or electronic devices.