Back in May, the illustrations in a math textbook in China went viral for all the wrong reasons after social media users had described it as “tragically ugly” and having inappropriate depictions of children.
The book, which was published by the People’s Education Press contained illustrations of people with distorted faces.
There was also a girl sticking out her tongue, recurring depictions of the American flag colours, an incorrect depiction of the Chinese flag, a bulge showing in the pants of the depicted boys, a girl in a bunny outfit, and a child with something that appeared to be a tattoo, and more.
Following the backlash, China’s education ministry ordered the state-owned publisher to rectify the school textbook and said that it will investigate the matter.
Now 3 months later, China’s Education Ministry has concluded that the illustrations are indeed ugly.
In a statement yesterday (August 22), the Ministry of Education said that 27 officials from the state-owned publisher had been reprimanded or dismissed over the illustrations that had “fallen short of the fundamental requirements of moral education.”
According to the Ministry’s research team, the textbook illustrations are found to be problematic for three reasons.
First, they’re ugly and that they do not exactly match the aesthetic taste of the general public and do not represent the positive image that is appropriate for China’s youth.
Second, they’re not right. Some of the illustrations contain errors and are just not up to standard.
Third, they’re ambiguous. Because the illustrations were not meticulously done and some poor choices were made, some elements of the illustrations are easy to misinterpret.
The relevant units and 27 employees were held accountable for their subpar performance and disciplined in accordance with the rules.
Along with the conclusion of the investigation into the ugly schoolbooks, the new schoolbook illustrations have also been published.
What do you think of this?
Also read: ‘Japanese’ Designer Brand Miniso To Clear Away Japanese Elements After Backlash From Netizens
