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Government officials in China believe that boys are getting more effeminate and want to toughen them up.
In the latest attempt to tackle what academics and news outlets call a “masculinity crisis,” the Education Ministry has proposed emphasising the “spirit of yang,” or male attributes, by hiring more sports instructors and redesigning physical education classes in elementary and secondary schools.
The plan, a response to a top official’s call to “prevent the feminisation of male youths,” was released last week. It included no timeline and few other details, but it prompted an outcry online and is still stirring fierce debate on social media. One hashtag has been viewed 1.5 billion times on Weibo, a popular microblogging platform.
China proposes to hire more male PT teachers in schools to end masculinity crisis The Chinese Education Ministry’s plan is in response to a proposal that said that the prevalence of female teachers in kindergartens and elementary schools and the popularity of “pretty boys” in pop culture had made Chinese boys “weak, inferior and timid Representational image. AFP
Hong Kong: Government officials in China believe that boys are getting more effeminate and want to toughen them up.
In the latest attempt to tackle what academics and news outlets call a “masculinity crisis,” the Education Ministry has proposed emphasising the “spirit of yang,” or male attributes, by hiring more sports instructors and redesigning physical education classes in elementary and secondary schools.