Boys at the Experimental Primary School in Beijing's Chaoyang District practice nunchucks. Photo by our reporter Cixin
At 9 a.m. on December 11, amid the biting cold, the school playground was bustling with students playing soccer, basketball, tug-of-war, rock climbing, and even wielding nunchucks. These physical activities are part of the Chaoyang Experimental Primary School's initiative to "build steel" in boys—School Principal Chen Lihua explained that based on her observations in recent years, the lack of masculinity among boys has become a widespread social issue.
“Boys' voices get softer with each new cohort, they burst into tears at the slightest difficulty, and their words and actions often lack the vitality and vigor they should have,” said Chen Lihua, sharing a sentiment common among many teachers. “Boys should give off an energetic, masculine vibe, speaking and acting with drive and vigor. But nowadays, many boys are as delicate as girls.” Chen Lihua noted, “The causes of this abnormal phenomenon are multifaceted, but one prominent factor is the one-child policy. With only one child in the family, there’s a lack of a gender-defining environment during their upbringing. Moreover, many families are overly doting and protective toward their children. Especially now that living conditions have improved, parents naturally want their children to live happier lives—but the issue is that most assume material abundance and avoiding hardship equate to happiness.”
Aside from family factors, another significant reason is that school physical education classes have been gradually becoming more “gentle” under pressure from real-world constraints, with long-distance running events having all but disappeared from most school sports meets as a typical example. Wang Zongping, head of the Physical Education Department at Nanjing University of Science and Technology, stated, “Over the past 20 years, in order to reduce safety risks, the intensity of PE classes in schools across China has continually been scaled back. It has become common for PE classes to become increasingly ‘gentle,’ with many schools completely eliminating competitive or contact sports.”
In 2007, Nanjing University of Science and Technology mandated that a 2000-meter run be a basic required physical activity, conducting a school-wide test. During the first test, one-third of the students experienced discomfort such as vomiting or fainting, leading to numerous online complaints and immense pressure on the school administration. In reality, the Experimental Primary School in Beijing’s Chaoyang District also faced challenges when it introduced “steel-building” courses for boys starting this September. Chen Lihua told reporters, “There were many concerns and immense pressure—the biggest concern being the risk of student injury.”
“Once a safety incident involving a student occurs, the school often finds itself in a very helpless position,” said Chen Lihua. “Nowadays, almost every family has just one child, and if that child gets injured, the family is bound to be heartbroken—and the school understands that. Resolving disputes between families and schools arising from such incidents still requires education authorities to improve relevant policies, and may even need the state to address the issue through legislation.” The current reality, however, is that whenever an accident happens at school, parents hold the school accountable, and public opinion often sides with the parents. This forces schools to limit physical activities to those that are low-intensity and non-contact. Wang Zongping found through research that “PE classes have largely become dominated by activities that pose no physical risk whatsoever, and even avoid any mental stimulation.”
During the process of youth development, the psychological resilience to handle stress and setbacks, as well as the courage to challenge and strive, can only be cultivated through exposure to high pressure, failure, and hardship. “It’s undeniable that heavy academic pressure can also help develop students' mental strength, and critical education can foster psychological maturity—but these methods are difficult to calibrate in terms of 'degree,'” said Wang Zongping. “Sports, however, allow students to experience failure within a controlled competitive and confrontational environment, tempering their willpower and teaching them to cope with adversity and develop a drive to improve. Sports are the best way to expose students to small challenges and setbacks, helping them overcome difficulties and grow from them—something other educational approaches struggle to achieve.”
The recently concluded Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee put forward the directive for school physical education to “strengthen physical education classes and extracurricular exercise to promote the physical and mental health and strong physique of young people.” “The word ‘strengthen’ points to the direction of reform for PE classes,” said Wang Zongping. “It’s not enough for students to have just one hour of physical activity per day—they also need intensity and quality.”
This consensus led Chen Lihua to ultimately decide to launch “steel-building” courses tailored for boys at her school, with plans underway to introduce more contact-intensive activities such as rugby and wrestling. “For the sake of the children and society as a whole, children, families, and schools need to properly face a certain level of risk. If we don’t take on that risk today, the future of our children, families, and even the nation may suffer even greater losses.”
Chen Lihua is comforted by the fact that many parents, after learning about the purpose of the boys’ “steel-building” courses, have expressed support. “In truth, we’re not trying to put children in danger—we want to teach them how to face difficulties and challenges. For example, when learning rollerblading, the first thing is to teach kids how to fall and how to protect themselves. We hope to send a message to parents and society: that the cultivation of masculinity and resilience in boys deserves much more attention.”
In recent years, the popularity of the term “pretty boy” has led some boys to take pride in being “flamboyant,” but once “prettiness” becomes mainstream, the overall masculinity of society weakens. “When hiring male teachers, many young men have good academic qualifications, height, and looks, but something is missing—the masculine toughness. That’s why we hope that by redesigning our school’s physical education curriculum, boys will face the social responsibilities they will shoulder with stronger bodies and more vigorous spirits.”