The National College Entrance Examination in mainland China took place on June 7th this year. It was reported that a candidate in Shandong suddenly lost control during the exam, first tearing up his own answer sheet and then proceeding to tear the answer sheets of other candidates nearby, causing screams from startled students and creating chaos in the examination room.
A video circulating online showed the incident occurring around 10:08 a.m. on June 7th at Exam Room 003 of West Campus of Zoucheng No.1 Middle School in Shandong province.
In the video, students were seen answering questions as usual, when a male student sitting in the middle of the front row first looked around, then glanced down at his own answer sheet before tearing it up. He then turned around to tear the answer sheet of the student behind him, followed by snatching and tearing the answer sheets of other students, leaving them scrambling to protect their papers. One student was unable to react in time and had their answer sheet snatched and torn. It was only then that the invigilator realized what was happening and had the student removed from the examination room.
This incident quickly sparked discussions online but was soon met with silence. According to internet users, “I heard that this incident couldn’t be shared on domestic platforms.” Mainland Chinese media outlet NetEase initially reported on the incident but later took down the article.
This year’s National College Entrance Examination in China took place from June 7th to 10th, with a total of 13.35 million candidates, as stated by the official CCTV. The Chinese Ministry of Education’s examination center head mentioned that this year, marking the 80th anniversary of the Anti-Japanese War, the essay topic revolved around “patriotic feelings towards the country and family.” Many candidates complained that the topic was “too difficult.” Some overseas students criticized that from just the essay topic of the entrance exam, it is evident that the Chinese education system is about indoctrination.