CHINA:As Chinese students gear up for this week's national college entrance exams, competition for precious university places has never been fiercer, pushing ambitious parents and stressed-out students to opt for bizarre stunts to ensure success.
This year ambitious parents have been trying to track down the stimulant Ritalin to give their children ahead of the matriculation exams. Ritalin is prescribed to children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and parents have been trying to bribe doctors and those suffering from the condition to pass on the amphetamine-like drug.
Doctors say using Ritalin before taking the test could be harmful. Last month, doctors had to warn parents against giving children too many protein injections to boost immune systems before the exams. Education has been a highly competitive business in China ever since the philosopher Confucius helped formulate the examination system for public service during the Tang dynasty between AD618 and 907.
A record 10 million secondary school students will sit the two-day college entrance exam from tomorrow, competing for 5.7 million third-level places, of which only a fraction are on courses at much-coveted elite schools such as Tsinghua, Beijing and Fudan universities.
Access to third-level education has improved dramatically in China, but the children of one-child families, the so-called "Little Emperors", often face pressure from parents, grandparents and a host of aunts and uncles whose future expectations rest on their shoulders.
At Confucian temples, also known as scholar temples, parents light joss-sticks and pray for success. "Although colleges are accepting more students these days, the competition remains high because everyone wants to get into the best schools," one anxious mother in Changchun, surnamed Zhao, told the Xinhua news agency. "I was so restless I couldn't get to sleep. Now that I've burned some incense I feel much better," she said.
Ambulances are on hand at exam centres to look after students who pass out from stress, while building sites are required to stop working between 10pm and 6am to ensure students get a good night's sleep. Drivers blowing their horns near matriculation halls can be fined.
Families decamp to hotels near the exam halls to guarantee peace and quiet, regardless of the cost.
Local media complain about the "matriculation economy", where pharmacies sell magical products to provide extra brain-power and consultants charge a hefty €400 a month to provide counselling and cook special meals.
There are tragedies every year. Two weeks ago an honours student took an overdose of sleeping pills in northwestern Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, unable to deal with the pressure.