Starting from the next semester in September, classes for students in Beijing's primary and secondary schools will start at no earlier than eight o'clock in the morning, according to a regulation released by the municipal education commission on Thursday.

To give students more time for sleep, the new regulation put a stop to the "self-study class" before 8:00 AM, which used to be a routine in most of the schools, the Beijing Times reports.

Considering some students are sent to school by their parents who have to go to work before 8:00 AM, the school might organize physical exercises for the early arrivers.

As part of a big step in the city's educational reform, the time spent at school is limited to be no more than six hours for primary school students and eight hours for secondary school students.

On weekends and during vacation times there must be no extra classes, whilst libraries, stadiums and laboratories should be open to students.

The regulation also set limits for homework times, namely one hour for elementary school students, one hour and a half for junior middle school students and two hours for senior middle school students.

"Finally I've got time for my hobbies." says Xiao Yu, a junior middle school student. She will spend her leisure times listening to music and do some reading.

However, parents seem to have mixed views on the issue. Mrs. Li, mother of a secondary school girl, indicated that she might give her daughter extra homework to prepare her for the national college entrance exam.

"My daughter seldom sleeps before eleven in the evening, after doing homework for at least three hours." she said.

The core of the reform lies in improving classroom teaching, as pointed out by Chen Aiyu, president of No. 171 Middle School.

(CRIENGLISH.com July 18, 2008)