Recently, a collective return of performance costumes incident occurred at a middle school in Yinchuan, Ningxia, where students returned the costumes they had worn for a show, receiving negative reviews and sparking attention on social media.
A wholesale retailer of performance costumes posted online, stating that students from a school in Yinchuan, Ningxia, had ordered over 80 sets of the same costume on April 20. Unexpectedly, after using the costumes, starting from April 26, they began to receive a series of return and refund requests for this batch of orders, with 62 returns processed so far.
The retailer mentioned that refunds for returned orders had been automatically processed, but orders that were not returned received negative reviews.
On April 29, the retailer informed a mainland media reporter that over 80 orders were placed for a single style of performance costume on April 20, and since April 26, they had been steadily receiving return and refund requests for this batch of orders, with 62 returns processed at present. The retailer stated that refunds for returned orders had been automatically processed, but orders that were not returned received negative reviews. The school has communicated with the retailer and will bear the cost of all the costumes.
A staff member from the school told a mainland media reporter that the performance costumes were purchased voluntarily by the students themselves, and the school had prohibited students from requesting refunds. However, this incident has attracted attention on social media.
“Good Morning Summer,” the author of “Comic Novel Drawing,” wrote in a blog post: “Since it is a school-organized performance, costume issues should be borne by the school, without shifting the responsibility to the students. Spending a few hundred yuan on a costume just for a one-time use, all for the sake of following the school’s formalities?”
“Tiny Warmth, Tiny Cuteness” commented: “Starting from kindergarten, parents are footing the bill for the school’s formalities. It is called voluntary purchase, but in reality, teachers later add a requirement that all children must wear a uniform. Which parent voluntarily buys so many performance costumes that are only worn once and end up collecting dust at home?”
Internet technology blogger and Weibo influencer “Proudly Wandering Zhou Zhang” said: “The biggest problem here lies with the school. How can the school blame the students for this? Do students have the ability to choose and order independently? There must be teacher-parent associations assisting.”
Renowned parenting blogger and Weibo influencer “King People Ping” expressed: “If it is 80 sets of performance costumes ordered by the school and collectively returned after the show, it cannot be a voluntary purchase and return by the students. It must be a school-led or class-led action, requiring parents or parent committees to handle. Such practices lacking integrity and contractual spirit not only set a very bad example for the students, but also make teachers and parents lose the respect and trust of their children.”
Mainland economist and author of “Understanding the New Economic Normal with One Book,” Song Qinghui, commented: “What we are cultivating are refined egoists! The era of exam-oriented education is over, but sadly, many people are still embracing it and praising the exam-oriented system.”