Farm work, tears and tough lessons: Inside China’s ‘hardship camps’ for children
For thousands of yuan, Chinese parents are buying their children a taste of hardship: hauling bricks, labouring in fields and clearing dung from cowsheds. But psychologists warn that pushing them too far can backfire.
In China, "hardship camps" or "eat bitterness" programmes are marketed to children aged six to 16, with parents shelling out thousands of yuan for a taste of tough life in the countryside. The concept has gained popularity as parents seek to toughen up a generation they fear has become too soft. Run as private study tours, the camps charge from 5,000 yuan for ten days to over 10,000 yuan for a month, with limited spots filled by eager parents.
Typically held in the summer, these camps involve children performing tasks like chopping firewood, hauling bricks, and clearing cowshed dung. Participants are also tasked with gathering tea leaves, cooking over earthen stoves, and trekking long distances. The purpose is to teach children about the effort required to produce food and instil resilience.
A mother of an eight-year-old, Tong Lu, runs a six-day camp called "Swapped Lives" in Zhejiang province. She believes modern children are overly pampered and fail to appreciate hard work. Participants stay in village rooms with six to eight children, sleep on wooden beds, and endure challenges such as the smell of cowsheds and heat during physically demanding tasks. Despite initial homesickness, most children persevere, with instructors encouraging them to continue.
At the end of the camp, children receive letters from their parents, triggering emotional reactions and fostering gratitude. For Tong Lu, the success of these camps lies in the positive impact they have on children's perspectives and their ability to appreciate the value of hard work.
Written by urgent.news from Channel News Asia's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
