Xi’an, China – A 17-year-old girl tragically fell to her death last month during a supplementary class at school. The incident occurred after she failed to complete a punishment assignment given by her teacher, leading to a discussion in class followed by the fatal fall at the end of the first period. The news has sparked widespread concern among netizens regarding the educational system in China, with many expressing that the current pressure on students is overwhelming and lamenting the state of education in the country.
According to a report by The Paper on November 19th, the girl, known as Xiao Li, was a senior student at Wutun Vocational High School in Yanliang District, Xi’an. The tragedy unfolded on a Sunday during a makeup class session for senior students that Xiao Li’s mother had cheerfully brought her to in the morning.
The unfortunate chain of events began the day before when the teacher assigned a penalty task to students who had not memorized an English text. Xiao Li, who had spent the day out with friends, failed to complete the assignment. Upon her arrival at school, the teacher called her out for a discussion in the classroom, which lasted approximately 13 minutes. Xiao Li then kept her head down throughout the first class.
After class, she sat alone on a window ledge in an empty classroom on the fourth floor for about 40 minutes before she fell to her death.
Following the incident, the school and local education authorities set up a special team to handle the situation. However, both institutions indicated that their responsibility was minimal and offered compensation out of humanitarian concern.
The school principal of Wutun Vocational High School in Xi’an responded on November 18th that the issue had been concluded according to the law and regulations, dismissing the need for further explanations.
Officials from the Yanliang District Education Bureau in Xi’an, involved in coordinating the incident, confirmed Xiao Li’s death on campus but deferred to the police for details regarding the circumstances leading to her fall from the fourth floor.
Authorities from the Wutun Police Station declined to provide any explanations about the incident to the public.
The incident has ignited a heated debate online, with some criticizing the authorities for being evasive in their responses.
Some netizens argue that the current generation of students is hard to manage, questioning if a simple conversation and punishment assignment should lead to such a tragedy.
However, many others highlight the excessive pressure faced by students today and call for a reflection on ways to reduce this burden, attributing the problem to the overall educational system rather than solely blaming students.
As one commenter poignantly notes, “What could be more important than life itself? It’s heartbreaking.”