China Cracks Down on Homework

In an apparent pause in its ongoing cultural crackdown, China’s government has announced it will now impose restrictions on … homework. A new law taking effect January 1 is designed to “reduce the ‘twin pressures’ of homework and off-site tutoring on children,” according to The Guardian, and “asks parents to arrange their children’s time to account for reasonable rest and exercise, thereby reducing pressure and avoiding internet overuse.”

Apparent pause. Because there are wheels within wheels. Easing up on the high-pressure demands on pupils also happens to fit in with Beijing’s “more assertive paternal hand,” the newspaper notes—for instance, the limits placed earlier this year on gaming and “celebrity worship” among the young. And behind it all is the nation’s looming national emergency: a precipitously dropping growth in population, now at its lowest in 60 years. Less pressure on students also means less pressure on parents, and—maybe—motivation to have more children. On whom to apply less pressure. (More or less.)