Beijing Municipality has updated regulations on moral standards of primary and middle school students, introducing modern ethics and doing away with outdated content such as "fight criminals courageously", local newspapers reported Thursday.
The new regulations set by the municipal education committee will be applied to the 1.7 million students in the primary and middle schools citywide beginning next week.
New behavioral norms have eliminated the "Don'ts" with no legal basis such as "don't be late," and especially the article "fight criminals courageously" which caused students to put their lives in danger in the past.
Meanwhile, modern moral standards have emerged, including "learn to cooperate and communicate," "stay away from drugs and gambling," "protect the environment" and "be honest and credible."
Education experts said the new behavioral norms reflect the present educational realities of middle and primary schools.
The old regulations on the students' moral standards have been in use for 21 straight years since adoption in 1981.
Sources noted that the Chinese Ministry of Education is also working hard to revise regulations on the students' ethics which will be published later this year.
(Xinhua News Agency February 14, 2003)
