The current evaluation system of universities should be improved, says an article in Procuratorial Daily. The following is an excerpt:

The Beijing Youth Daily reported recently that more than one year before the evaluation of the teaching quality of universities, teachers start to work around the clock in preparation. Some, however, resort to cheating to score high marks in the evaluation.

They, for example, fabricate regulations and systems that have never been adopted.

Fabrication is only one of the dirty things in the evaluation process. Another is corruption. A university that was rated an excellent one sent each member of the evaluation panel a laptop computer and told the panel materials for their evaluation were all stored in the computers and they could bring them back for a close review.

Cheating and corruption during evaluation of universities has been criticized by the public for a long time. But in recent years, it has been gaining momentum.

The management of some universities spare no efforts to pass the evaluation so that they can keep their reputations and gain more students. Evaluation panelists in turn enjoy the privilege. This promotes the popularity of evaluations.

Certain evaluation is necessary to motivate institutions of higher learning to improve their teaching quality. But the evaluation system should be reformed and strict measures adopted to stop the malpractices. Those who resort to cheating and bribery must be punished.

(China Daily January 16, 2008)