English education in China

Despite the fact that it is common to learn English at an early age, some have criticized the pedagogy for being geared towards only the skills being tested.

The methods, which focus on testing students' memorization of grammar rules and vocabulary, have been criticized by Western educationalists and linguists as fundamentally flawed.

However, Guangdong Province has started requiring all students to take the English speaking exam for the National College Entrance Examination as of 2010.

The only textbooks for English instructions were translations of Mao Zedong's works until the Cultural Revolution ended in 1976, and the Gaokao was restored in 1978.

[12] Once China established the open door policy under Deng Xiaoping, the popularity of English and other languages began to thrive.

[13] In 2021 journalist Li Yuan (Chinese: 袁莉; pinyin: Yuán Lì) in The New York Times wrote that there was a trend countering English language education in China.

Tourism in China is a major industry, producing 11.04% of the GDP and contributing direct and indirect employment of up to 28.25 million people.

Now, online start-ups are gaining ground with parents who grew up in the internet era and see advantages in digital learning.

Their competitors have grown too: companies like Magic Ears and QKids are also connecting teachers to Chinese children working on learning English.