<figure id="attachment_261713" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-261713" style="width: 6432px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="902cd09d"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2022/08/aflo_193908434.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-261713" class="wp-caption-text">Bookstores across China, including Hong Kong, are overflowing with books about President Xi Jinping (Image: AP/Afro)</figcaption></figure>
 This is out of character.
 I don&#8217;t know what kind of nerve you have to show your children these illustrations.
 It&#8217;s not appropriate as a teaching tool.
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 There is a textbook that has come under heavy criticism on the Chinese Internet. On August 22, China&#8217;s Ministry of Education issued a severe punishment, banning 27 people, including the company&#8217;s president and editorial director, for the unforgivable problem.
 The textbooks had passed the inspection in 2012 and had been in use throughout China since the following year,&#8221; the Ministry of Education said. The Ministry of Education has been re-examining approximately 2,500 textbooks since September, in time for the new school year. The Ministry of Education has requested that almost every page of the textbooks published by the People&#8217;s Education Press be redrafted.
<h2> The girl&#8217;s breasts. &#8230;&#8230;</h2>
<figure id="attachment_261714" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-261714" style="width: 920px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="33c1c8c5"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2022/08/irasuto1.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-261714" class="wp-caption-text"> The illustration in question. A girl&#8217;s breasts are being touched (from the Chinese SNS &#8220;Weixin&#8221;; now deleted). (From the Chinese SNS &#8220;Weixin,&#8221; now deleted)</figcaption></figure>
 The Ministry of Education explained that the reason for the punishment was &#8220;to embody correct political ideals and values and to match the people&#8217;s aesthetic sense. What exactly was the problem?
 The textbook depicted children playing in a park, and there were illustrations of boys touching girls&#8217; breasts and pulling on their skirts. Some boys were not wearing underwear.
 Other illustrations did not accurately represent the Chinese flag, and one illustration showed a boy with his hands in his pockets wearing a shirt that looked like it was designed with the U.S. flag. These materials (now removed) were requested to be corrected, saying that they were &#8216;not in keeping with the image of bright Chinese children,'&#8221; he said.
 However, these textbooks have been in use in educational settings for about nine years. Why did the Chinese authorities take a tough stance now?
 In May of this year, there were posts on the Internet criticizing the contents of the textbooks, saying that they were a pawn of the United States. The criticism spread nationwide and caused a firestorm. The authorities could no longer tolerate the spread of negative campaigning.
 It was the intention of the authorities to let the criticism go unchecked. President Xi Jinping emphasizes patriotic education, but he cannot suddenly stop using textbooks that have been in use for nearly 10 years. He must have made good use of the firestorm.
 The Chinese government is willing to use online slander in order to conform to national policy. Regulations in the field of education are likely to become even stricter.
<figure id="attachment_261715" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-261715" style="width: 435px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="b04725fa"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2022/08/america.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-261715" class="wp-caption-text"> The illustration in question. The boy is wearing a shirt with a design resembling the U.S. flag. It has now been removed.)</figcaption></figure>

 AP/Afro

 An arithmetic textbook for elementary school students that had been used nationwide for nine years in China was suddenly severely punished. Twenty-seven people, including the president of the publisher, have been suspended from their posts. What is the background behind the timing and the unexpected reason why the textbooks were deemed problematic? This article introduces the special situation in China.

Used for 9 years…Chinese math textbooks “Why 27 people, including the president, were severely punished”

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