Why were Americans always asking kids to go out and play? In China, kids almost never played. They had to sit for exams starting at an early age. Except for family get-togethers, every minute after school was packed with homework, drilling, revision, and dictation. When I went to first grade in China, I got only two minutes a day to play. That’s literally what it said on a schedule I made for myself: 5:00–5:02: Play.
