Wu Guangqiang

    SCENE One: Auckland, New Zealand, a spectacular lineup of luxury cars parked along the road hits the headlines in the local press. Their owners are all young Chinese students. Local auto dealers were thunderstruck by the way they bought these fancy items. They simply strode in with a briefcase packed with cash and made the sales clerks busy counting out what was needed for the purchase. “I had no choice but to buy three top-brand cars to overwhelm my compatriot rival who had got one.” This was what a Chinese fuerdai (rich second generation) explained why he bought three multimillion dollar cars.

    Scene Two: Toronto, Canada, an 18-year-old Chinese boy just signed on the purchase contract for a C$1.5 million (US$1.53 million) house. Having failed to secure a green card in the United States, he came to Canada and bought a house, which meant his green card would be in the bag.

    Such scenes can go on and on. They all tell of one thing: a large number of Chinese students are squandering their money and time abroad rather than seriously developing their minds or careers.

    While no exact figure is available, a rough estimate puts the number of students currently studying abroad at 250,000, making China the country with the largest number of students studying abroad. The fast expanding legion of Chinese students has been coveted by many overseas schools. Even secondary and primary schools have entered into rivalry to lure Chinese minors. Some even quipped: many universities in developed countries would go out of business if it were not for the influx of Chinese students.

    China’s first batch of overseas students dates back to the end of 1872 when the Qing Dynasty government dispatched a group of 30 students to the United States. In the Hall of Fame at Yale University hangs the picture of a Chinese, Yung Wing, who was confirmed as the first Chinese student to study abroad.

    Early Chinese students studying overseas were well known for their ardent patriotism and steadfast resolve to grasp advanced science and technology from foreign countries. Most of them went through unimaginable hardships to acquire knowledge that they thought could save their declining motherland.

    In the ensuing decades, thousands of aspiring young people followed the steps of their predecessors, completed their studies abroad and returned to the homeland with a wealth of knowledge. It was many of these science elite who helped to lay the groundwork for China’s later rapid development in science, technology and industry. Prominent scientists like Qian Xuesen, Qian Sanqiang and Qian Weichang, respectively dubbed as father of China’s space program, atomic bomb and kinetics, were all returnees from American universities.

    Nevertheless, many students currently studying abroad seem to be confused as to why they study overseas and what they should study. Bulging purses have not necessarily turned out graduates with more knowledge. Common reasons for which some of my students go studying abroad include: to evade the cutthroat domestic college entrance examinations, to improve English proficiency, and to “see the world.” Their primary objective is no longer the acquisition of advanced knowledge — what China still needs badly. Few are as hardy as their predecessors. Taking part-time jobs sounds strange to most Chinese students today. It’s not rare for some young people to fool around for years and return home empty-handed with no diploma or degree. Many even make little progress in English after spending a few years and a million yuan.

    It seems necessary for parents to think over the purpose of sending their children overseas. They must realize one thing: their financial power may enable their children to enter an exclusive school like Eton College, to live and dress like a nobleman, but their children won’t genuinely earn such a title unless they come to comprehend the true meaning of nobility.

    They may be disappointed to find out that pupils of Eton College lead a tough life. They sleep on a hard board, eat plain food and are subjected to stringent discipline.

    A far cry from what most Chinese upstarts imagine, Western nobility means honor, responsibility, courage and self-discipline, rather than an easy life, extravagance and arrogance — the signature of many Chinese nouveau riche and their offspring.

    Think twice before sending your children overseas.

    (The author is an English tutor and a freelance writer. He can be reached at jw368@163.com.)