On the afternoon of August 6, 42-year-old He Haibin, a teacher at Chenzhou number 9 Middle School in central China, finally left hospital.

Just over a month before, on July 3, he had been dragged from the stage during a school assembly by an angry parent because he had earlier scolded a student for not wearing the school uniform. Later, when the school treated the matter as a dispute that required mediation, He flew into a rage and slashed his wrists.

His story struck a chord with many other teachers. In the three decades since reform and opening up, Chinese society has changed dramatically. Many teachers feel the school environment has changed too, and not for the better.

Mr. Chen used to be a math teacher in a middle school in Beijing. He remembers that in the 1990s, teachers were highly respected. Parents trusted teachers and were willing to cooperate with them. "Now, they direct their anger with the education system at the teachers," Chen said.

According to Chen, protection of students' rights has gone too far. If a student has a dispute with teacher, it seems it is always the teacher that is to blame, no matter what the cause of the dispute or how it evolves. On the other hand, the public generally has a tolerant attitude to student misbehavior.

Liu Xiang is a teacher in a vocational school in Hunan. His students have no prospect of getting to university and are more disruptive than other middle school students; some are simply unwilling to be taught. "Some parents see our school as a discipline center. But they can't rely on teachers to change their children's bad behavior. Some of the students will even attack their parents if provoked. Do you think they will hesitate to attack teachers?" Liu said. "Society as a whole must take responsibility for educating young people. Some parents don't play their roles well and then blame the teachers for everything."

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