China's students sleep through mandatory 'political education' propaganda classes: Report

President Xi Jinping wants everyone in China to be committed to “one country, one people, one ideology, one party, and one leader”, but students do not appear to be following his vision.

Most of the students in Chinese propaganda classes, which preach the vision of Xi and the Communist Party of China (CPC), are either sleeping, doing other work, or visibly board, according to a report.

Even as Xi hails the classes boosting students’ spirit and self-confidence, a student told Financial Times that the class “are a waste of time”.

“These classes are a waste of time. They either require too much coursework or are simply too boring,” said the student.

During a four-hour propaganda class at a Chinese university, a quarter of a students were seen sleeping and the others were either visibly bored or engaged in other coursework, according to the newspaper.

The propaganda courses, dubbed like ‘Marxism and social science methodology’ and ‘Xi Jinping’s thoughts on the rule of law’, are essential to graduate.

If you fail these classes, you will need to repeat the exam in the next term or you may fail your entire degree, said the student quoted above.

While the classes are seen by the Communist regime as a tool to inculcate CPC ethos amongst the youth and suppress any subversive ideas, it appears to be failing on multiple fronts. It is not just unpopular but it is also making students ask questions — a big no in the Communist China.

Are propaganda classes leading to questions?

China once had an activist culture where workers’ rights were valued — in line with Marxist principles.

Even as China became highly industrialised and the world’s manufacturing on the back of workers, the culture ceased to exist and the notion of workers’ welfare faded. While there could once be protests for workers’ rights and better working conditions, protests are unimaginable today as a president-of-life rules with dystopian surveillance of citizens and no civil liberties.

The FT reported that even as the CPC tries to rope in the youth, the youth is questioning. One young person was quoted as questioning how the Chinese regime defined Marxism.

“What kind of Marxism are we talking about here? Because, you know, if our country’s definition of Marxism is just ‘doing things well’, then Bill Gates could claim to be the world’s greatest Marxist," said this person.

Another said that the propaganda classes are a tool to distract the youth from real issues China is facing. The person further said that it’s hard to distract adults.

“It’s a way of distracting young people away from China’s problems. But will this work? If you’re over 18, it’s much harder to distract you. You feel these problems on your own skin. So I don’t think any adults will take these classes to heart and some children may ignore them too," said the person.