Chinese tutoring schools scramble for loopholes as top-tier firm Wall Street English collapses amid crackdown
- Wall Street English, one of China’s wealthiest English tutoring companies, is expected to file for bankruptcy next week
- Private institutions are scrambling to offer services that comply with new regulations
One of the world’s most highly-respected and wealthiest English-language tutoring companies is on the verge of collapse, an apparent casualty of the central government’s crackdown on private education institutions.
At its peak, it employed 3,000 staff at 71 locations in 11 cities in China.
The State Council, China’s top administrative body, cracked down on the private tutoring industry on July 24. The government forced these companies to register as non-profit organisations, banned approvals for new companies and made it illegal for them to receive foreign investment.
It also banned tutoring during weekends, public holidays and school holidays.
The policy change is ostensibly to crack down on excessive studying for young Chinese students. It only applies to kids in primary and early secondary school because high school is not mandatory for children in the mainland.