Meaning:

“草” literally means “grass,” which is in fact short for “草根” (cǎogēn: grassroots) and “校” means “school.” In contrast to “prestigious schools” or “elite schools,” this term is used by Chinese netizens to refer to the common public school. Because of peer pressure, Chinese parents living in big cities often invest heavily into their children’s education, which has also given rise to many terms related to the topic.

Example:

A: 你家孩子明年要上小学了吧？有什么计划吗？

Nǐjiā háizi míngnián yào shàng xiǎoxué le ba？Yǒu shénme jìhuà ma？

Is your kid going to primary school next year? What are your plans?

B: 为了方便，我就打算让他上家门口的草校了。

Wèile fāngbiàn，wǒ jiù dǎsuàn ràng tā shàng jiāménkǒu de cǎoxiào le。

For convenience, I plan to let him go to the common public school near our home.