Young people enrolling in night school to expand horizons

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Students at Jiulongpo Youth Night School learn about the craft of making rubbings at the Wanxiang Bookstore in Chongqing’s Jiulongpo district in April (YANG DUODUO / FOR CHINA DAILY)

At 7 pm sharp on the evening of 20 March, a bevy of 40 young people gather at a bookstore in downtown Chongqing to learn how to step into the world of livestreaming and e-commerce.

The sight has become a familiar one in recent times, as young people flock to the store to diversify their skill sets to gain an edge in China’s competitive job market.

One of the beneficiaries of the e-commerce night course is Luo Peng, who as a result of picking up new skills has embarked on a side hustle selling products on his own livestreams.

“I used to hang out with friends, eating and drinking in the evening. But attending night classes is a more productive use of my time,” Luo said.

The e-commerce night class is free of charge and is run by Jiulongpo Youth Night School and sponsored by the local government.

Jiulongpo Youth Night School is one of many night schools that have sprung up in recent times. Topics associated with night schools have regularly ranked among the most trending on social media over the past 12 months.

Students practise calligraphy at Guanyinqiao Night School in Chongqing in April (DENG RUI / CHINA DAILY)

Buried among the threads are comments from many users who complain they are tired of some of life’s mundane activities such as shopping, watching TV or browsing their mobile phones, and yearn for self-improvement.

Unlike night schools of the past that may have only focused on traditional crafts or arts, many of the latest raft of classes have a more modern bent to them, featuring short-video production, livestreaming and artificial intelligence, to name a few.

The early signs that night schools were becoming a thing among young people came in Shanghai in autumn last year when more than 650,000 people attempted to enroll in 10,000 places available in night schools. So many people attempted to enroll at the same time that the enrollment platform crashed at one point.

Jiulongpo Night School opened in March, holding classes every Wednesday evening ranging from livestreaming to healthy living, mobile phone photography to making floral displays.

The students, aged 18 to over 40, come from all walks of life and include college students, civil servants, teachers, doctors, bankers, journalists, factory workers, housewives and freelancers.

As nonprofit programmes run by public institutions, many night schools invite top teachers and professionals from various fields to give high-quality lessons.

“Attending night school has reignited my long-lost motivation for learning. Not only can I break the bad habit of staying at home and just scrolling through my phone after work, but I can also acquire new skills and more like-minded friends,” said Fu Xiaofeng, 32, an administrator at a local hospital.

Fu said the courses that she has signed up for — Chinese calligraphy and boxing — cost 50 yuan (£5.44) each, and are affordable and worthwhile.

Fu said young Chinese are facing many problems in the fast-developing society, and one of them is the inability to communicate with others.

“The popularity of night schools means that they are still seeking a better life despite their spare time being limited,” she said.