School denies discriminating against migrants

• Source: Global Times
• [10:24 June 13 2010]
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By Chen Xiaoru

A junior high school Saturday denied a widely-circulated report that it discriminates against the children of migrant workers, despite not being named in the original report.

Management at Baoshan Gaojing No.3 School issued a statement denying the June 9 report by the Southern Metropolis Daily regarding a school on the border of Yangpu district and Baoshan district, commonly believed to be Baoshan Gaojing No.3 School. "The report adopted some extreme words and is inconsistent with reality," the statement read.

The report claimed that the school kept the migrant workers' children away from other students in a poorly-equipped building and made them wear different colored uniforms to those of regular students. It also alleged that regular students faced punishment if they befriended the migrant workers' children, and that the latter were excluded from school trips to the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai.

The report was widely picked up by news portals. It prompted more than 500 messages on web portal Sina.com regarding the integration of migrant workers' children into the mainstream education system, a process started by the Shanghai government two years ago.

In the statement by the school, it said it has never isolated migrant workers' children from local students, but placed them in a well-equipped building. While not denying the different uniforms, it said they do not represent any discrimination.

The school also said it has not yet organized an Expo trip for the children of migrant workers due to concerns over high visitor numbers at the Expo Park.