Controversy has centered on a plan by east China's Shandong Province to completely ban teachers from making money out of tutoring or teaching privately organized classes.

The province plans to hold hearings in late October on a regulation about compulsory education, which states that teachers in primary and middle schools are not allowed to tutor for money in holidays or spare time.

Some other provinces and municipalities have come out with similar restrictions, including Beijing, but not a total ban.

A junior high school teacher in Jinan, capital of Shandong Province, told Xinhua on condition of anonymity that compensated private teaching is quite common among teachers.

Many believe the phenomenon is a result of the exam-oriented education system and the fact that many students are the only children of their families.

"I think teachers should be banned from teaching privately organized groups in a large scale," the teacher said. "But if some parents come to ask for our help, it's only fair that they pay for the tutorship."

For a privately organized class of 50 students, a teacher could earn 10,000 yuan (US$1,465) a month if each student pays200 yuan. For one-to-one tutorship, the charge could reach 200 yuan an hour.

Figures from the southern prosperous Guangdong Province in 2008showed the average monthly salary of teachers was around 1,200 yuan, whereas urban employees in the province earned nearly 3,000 yuan in average in the first half of 2009.

In less developed regions, teachers' salaries are lower.

Li Jianguo, a parent in Jinan City, said teachers could offer paid private teaching, but only without affecting normal school teaching.

A 31-year-old Beijing mother surnamed Guo said there should not be a total ban as some students do need extra help from teachers and the teachers' work should be rewarded.

"If teachers and parents could reach an agreement on payment, why not?" she said.

Yao Wenjing, a teacher at the Xianda College of Shanghai International Studies University, said she was against the ban.

"I don't think it's contradictory for teachers to both teach well at school and make a little extra money afterwards," she told Xinhua. "Besides, many students do need tutorship to improve academic performances."

Yao believes this is fair trade in a market economy and the local governments should not simply ban it but should work to solve more fundamental problems, such as raising teachers' salaries.

At the end of 2008, the State Council, China's cabinet, decided to provide performance pay to teachers and promised to keep their salaries no lower than those of local civil servants.

(Xinhua News Agency October 20, 2009)