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The lack of discipline among Chinese children – blamed partly on the country’s one-child policy – is manifesting itself in another societal issue in China. It involves the crisis of masculinity China faces as experts observe more boys in the Asian giant becoming emotionally and physically weak.

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To address the issue, China would be using a new school textbook titled “Little Men.” The book stresses the difference between girls and boys, highlights the value of a father-son relationship and underscores the value of nature interactions and financial management, NBC reported.

Guide for Male Grade 4-5 Students

Shanghai Educational Publishing House printed the book in December 2016 for use among male Grade 4 and Grade 5 students. “Little Men” was used in a trial period in selected schools in China before it was approved for general use.

The publication of the book is timely amid observation by parents, such as 36-year-old businessman Miao Li that because many boys are over-protected by their families, they no longer engage in physical activities. Huang, a hotel worker and parent, added, “Nowadays, girls are becoming more like boys while the boys are becoming more like girls, introvert and shy.”

A grandfather blamed the phenomenon of Chinese boys becoming feminine to too much homework. Sheng, a hotel employee and mother of Grade 1 student, pointed to the family spoiling the child, due to the one-child policy, with too much love and care which stunts the natural adventurous character of boys.

Electric Shock Therapy at Bootcamps

Meanwhile, in a case of extreme discipline, a facility in Shandong Province used electrical stimulation to wean more than 6,000 youth who are addicted to the internet, most of whom were teenagers. The electric shock therapy have been used since 2006 but was still being used until 2016, The Telegraph cited Sixth Tone, a news portal.

The undisciplined kids are sent to the facility by their parents. China plans to ban the use of electric shock – also previously used by hospitals to “treat” Chinese gays – in bootcamps. China has an estimated 250 bootcamps where there is pervasive abuse, violence and methods that employ military tactics in teaching wayward youth discipline. However, there are a lot of times the staff at the bootcamps have abused which include the death of a 15-year-old boy in 2009 within 24 hours of his arrival at one bootcamp.

The draft regulations also prohibits online gaming firms from providing online services to Chinese youth between midnight and 8 a.m.