‘Should we surf the internet?’: Chinese university mocked for telling students to take swimming test online
Swimming in China
Shanghai University became the butt of jokes after asking its students to take the mandatory swimming test online before graduating. On May 15, the dean’s office at Shanghai University announced that undergraduates finishing their bachelor’s degrees who are due to participate in a 50-metre (164 feet) swimming test can be allowed to take it online from home in the wake of the city’s Covid outbreaks, reports South China Morning Post.
In China, students at some of the most prestigious universities are required to learn swimming before they graduate as it is considered a survival skill and improves physical fitness.
The move was made to "ensure that the graduation process proceeds smoothly", the now-deleted read that was screen-grabbed and widely circulated over social media.
To pass the swimming requirement this year, students must fill out an online "Basic Theory of Swimming" test by May 29, the notice said.
“The classes and facilities including the swimming pool at the university are suspended under the ongoing Covid-19 lockdown. To ensure the students can graduate, we decided to conduct the swimming test online,” an unnamed staff member from the dean’s office told the Chinese news outlet Jimu.
However, the announcement was met with ridicule and laughter after the notice was shared on the Chinese social media platform Weibo.
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"This is just embarrassing, coming from a reputable university. How can a theory test be the same as an actual lap in the pool?" one Weibo user commented.
"Are the students supposed to swim in their bathtubs?" another person said, while another user asked, “Is it a reality version of surfing the internet?”
After witnessing one of the worst outbreaks that began on April 22, Shanghai city is witnessing a gradual decline in Covid cases.
Starting on Sunday, shopping malls, libraries, museums, theatres and gyms will be allowed to reopen, with limits on the numbers of people, in the eight of Beijing’s 16 districts that have seen no community cases for seven consecutive days.
(With inputs from agencies)
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