Students with Disabilities Get Shortchanged in Chinese Schools

BEIJING — Mike, 13, lives on the outskirts of Beijing. He is gifted: He plays the piano by ear and, most afternoons, practices singing Italian opera. Yet Mike, whose family has requested that his Chinese name not be used, may never be able to go to university, or even high school, because he is almost completely blind.

Now in junior high, he has no special assistance in class and has to navigate the curriculum by himself. It takes him hours to take exams, trying to see the tests with what little vision he has in one eye. Because of his handicap, he receives no grades. With no grades, he is practically shut out from higher education.“We are still trying to find a way for him,” said Mike’s mother, who requested anonymity to avoid further discrimination against her son. “Maybe he can go abroad or study art, but it seems there is no way for him to have access to higher education in China.”