Government figures are suggesting the number of participants taking Gao Kao - China&aposs national college entrance exam are declining drastically in recent years.

　　政府数据显示参加高考(微博)(中国国家大学入学考试)的人数近年来急剧下降。

　　Chinese high school graduates now have much more choices to purse higher education.

　　中国高中毕业生现在有了更多的选择去追求高等教育。

　　Some 9 million students are sitting for this year&aposs Gaokao.

　　大约有900万名学生参加今年的高考。

　　That&aposs a 30-thousand fall compared with the previous year.

　　与去年相比减少3万。

　　It is the fifth consecutive drop nationwide.

　　这是连续第五年全国人数下滑。

　　Xiong Bingqi is the vice President of the Beijing-based 21st Century Education Research Institute.

　　熊丙奇是北京21世纪教育研究院副院长。

　　"Some students are giving up on the gaokao as they seek admissions in overseas universities, while some choose to attend the high school for another year for a better performance. Besides, some schools, especially those in rural and remote areas, persuade the students to give up on the exam for a better enrolment rate. Last but not least, some students think it&aposs useless to go to college."

　　“一些学生放弃高考是因为他们选择被海外大学录取，而有些人选择再读一年高中是为了更好的表现。此外，一些学校，特别是在农村和偏远地区的学校为了更好的升学率说服学生放弃考试。最后但并非最不重要的一点是上大学无用。”

　　A mother of an 11th-grade high school student in Beijing says her son will skip next year&aposs gaokao, as it is proving to be too stiff a challenge.

　　北京一名高二学生的母亲说她的儿子将跳过下一年的高考，因为它被证明是太僵硬的一个挑战。

　　"China&aposs education is still lagging behind to some extent. In overseas universities, students can learn what they prer, while here in China, they are judged based on scores, which only kills their creativity."

　　“在某种程度上中国的教育依然落后。在国外大学，学生可以学习他们所喜欢的东西，而在中国，他们的评价基于成绩，这仅仅扼杀了他们的创造力。”

　　In contrast to the decline in the number of students sitting the national exam, an increased number of students are attending international schools to prepare themselves for overseas education.

　　与参加高考的人数下降相反，越来越多的学生进入国际学校以为海外教育做好准备。

　　Yan Xiaozhe works for an overseas education agency.

　　严晓哲供职于一家海外教育机构。

　　"Several years ago, people chose to study abroad as they are not able to be admitted to top universities. But now, more elite students who can even go to the Tsinghua or Peking University are also willing to go overseas, in a seek of better education."

　　“几年前，人们选择到国外学习因为他们无法进入顶尖大学。但现在，更多甚至可以去清华大学(招生办)或北京大学的尖子生也愿意去海外寻求更好的教育。”

　　Education experts say it could force China&aposs higher education institutions to introduce more ambitious rorms if they don&apost want to keep losing talents.

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