Guideline issued to strengthen teachers' ethics

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A guideline on strengthening teachers' ethics and morality was released on Tuesday, following recent scandals that revealed some teachers' immoral or illegal behavior.

Drafted by the Ministry of Education, the guideline aims to establish a way to prevent teachers from breaching professional ethics.

The guideline said teachers are subject to supervision from school officials, students and parents, and those who violate ethics and morals will be punished or dismissed.

Xu Tao, a senior official at the Ministry of Education, said a detailed regulation on teachers' ethics and morals is still on the way and may be announced by the end of the month.

Imposing corporal punishment on students in any form, as well as running cram schools beyond regular lessons, is forbidden, Xu said.

Platforms will also be set up by educational departments at all levels to receive complaints about alleged immoral or illegal behavior, Xu said.

"Teachers who are accused will be punished if their misbehavior is confirmed," he said.

The release of the guidelines came after several scandals in which students were sexually assaulted by principals and teachers at primary or middle schools.

In May, Chen Zaipeng, the principal of a primary school in Wanning, Hainan province, was arrested on suspicion of raping four sixth-grade students. He was convicted in June and sentenced to 13 years in prison.

Yang Qifa, 59, the principal of a primary school in Qianshan, Anhui province, was convicted in June of sexually assaulting nine students from the first to fourth grades and sentenced to 18 years in prison.

About the broadcaster:

Nelly Min is an editor at China Daily with more than 10 years of experience as a newspaper editor and photographer. She has worked at major newspapers in the U.S., including the Los Angeles Times and the Detroit Free Press. She is also fluent in Korean.