Campus lessons

I read in the latest issue of the Shanghai Star an opinion piece entitled "Respect the rights of students" which, from the students' point of view, showed some dissatisfaction with announcement by the Ministry of Education saying that all university students in China were forbidden from renting houses off-campus.

If I were still a university student I would cheer for this article. However, as a university teacher I have begun to see things from the other side. In my opinion, as far as the issue of students' rights is concerned, we should consider them from at least four perspectives: that of the students, their parents, the university and the government.

I agree with the author that in legal terms, university students are adults, which means that they should have "the full capacity for civil conduct and the right to independently engage in civil activities." But in terms of their psychological capacity, can they fully be responsible for what they choose and what they do? If a university student did something wrong or he/she was hurt either physically or psychologically who would their parents blame? More often than not, the university and the government.

More importantly, what would the whole nation and the world community say if violence happened on campus?

I am not saying that university students should be denied their right of free choice, nor am I saying that it is right for the government to prohibit students from living off-campus. All I am suggesting is that if we really want to solve this problem, the four parties involved, the students, their parents, the university and the government, should make concerted efforts.

Of course, accidents can never be avoided. All we can do is to reduce the incidence of accidents. I believe that as long as the above-mentioned four parties can learn to work together, the educational environment in the university of our country will continue to improve.

Luo Mingqiong