BEIJING, Dec. 14, 2018 -- China's Ministry of Education said that 248,000 after-school institutions, 90 percent of the 273,000 institutions that were found to have problems, had completed rectifications as of Wednesday.

 

A total of 400,000 after-school training institutions have been examined amid a national campaign targeting extracurricular programs that put students under too much pressure, Lyu Yugang, an elementary education official from the ministry, said at a press conference held Thursday in Beijing.

 

The campaign started in February and will last for one and a half years.

 

The ministry will further examine and rectify the institutions for potential safety loopholes, unlicensed operations and teaching too advanced or difficult courses, said Lyu.

 

A report conducted by the Chinese Society of Education shows that China had about 180 million school-aged students in 2016, and more than 137 million students were taking part in extracurricular classes or off-campus training, with the market exceeding 800 billion yuan (116.3 billion U.S. dollars).