Row over aircons in classrooms as Chinese city swelters Leave a comment

School authorities and parents in one of China’s hottest cities are arguing about installing air conditioners in classrooms, as the country endures an unseasonal heatwave.

Parents in the southern city of Changsha, have called on schools to install air conditioners, sparking discussions on who should pay for them and whether they should be used at all.

But school officials said they would not install air conditioners “to cultivate the spirit of hard work and endurance in the students”.

This drew outrage, as temperatures in Changsha, located in Hunan province, can surpass 40C (104F), among the hottest in the country.

However, most classrooms in China are not equipped with air conditioners and rely on ceiling fans instead. Calls to install them have intensified, but some schools are reluctant, citing financial constraints.

“Hard work and endurance? Can we please then ask the education bureau to work in 40-degree heat, then discuss whether this is the way to cultivate such spirit in children,” wrote one Weibo user.

“Global warming has become so serious. What do you want the children to do?” wrote another.

In Xiangtan city, also in Hunan, one primary school drew criticism for asking donations from parents to fund the installation of air conditioners, reported Sixth Tone, a Shanghai-based news site.

The local education bureau later ordered the school to reimburse the parents.

However, some observers said school’s request was reasonable and that students’ comfort should be the priority.

“Now that [authorities] have stopped parents from contributing, when will school students be able to use air conditioners under such persistently high temperatures,” wrote Long Zhi Zhu, a commentator for local media outlet The Paper.

“The parties have been going around in circles on this issue. Ultimately, the children are the ones who suffer,” wrote a Weibo user.

Some are looking beyond air conditioning to cope with the hot weather.

Several schools – including in the eastern Jiangxi province and the southwestern Sichuan province – have postponed the start of the autumn semester, which was due to begin on 2 September.

Some schools have also lined pails containing large blocks of ice inside the classrooms to help students manage the persistent heat.

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Source ( Al jazeera News )