Time and time again, my students tell me of the strain they are under and how they are constantly tired. Pressured by adults and peers alike to compete in every category, they have no time, energy or will-power to explore things that genuinely interest them – things that could bring big rewards in the future if their ideas and instincts were given a chance to flourish.

If it were just the students complaining I could understand why people would dismiss their gripes, but they are not alone in this.

Forget the tabloid sensationalism of the so-called tiger mothers. They exist, but so do more forward-thinking parents. Many mothers and fathers have confided that they mourn for their offspring's childhood and wish they could find an alternative.

A respected colleague once told me that she was sick of the clamor for more and more qualifications at the expense of children's free time, but felt constrained by the system. "We have a saying here in China that you cannot afford to lose a race at the starting line," she told me.

It is a saying that makes sense when viewed in isolation, but to expect people to win every race they enter is absurd. A child can no more come top in every subject than an athlete can win every event in the Olympics. They can do their best, they may even excel in some fields, but to demand they become world class in everything is asking too much.

It could be argued that the current policy served China well in the past. Great strides have been made in education, but China no longer has to catch up with anyone. It is globally seen as the front runner, and the educational demands of the past are not what are needed now.

Certain traditions should be sustained, but this is not a cultural issue. While some aspects of learning will never change, knowledge and methods of delivery are constantly evolving.

Students' creativity and progressive thought are being smothered by exhaustion. Of course effort is needed to achieve high grades but to overload kids simply because that is how it's always been done is folly. Surely it is better for them, and for society as a whole, to let them reach their full potential rather than have them endure the same bleak childhood as those that came before them.

As China stands poised for its next step forward, it is time to reflect on what kind of life people want for their children. We should review the archaic structures and practices currently in place and find a better way to prepare the young for the bright future ahead. Without change, without a new direction, the specter of karoshi for kids will loom ever larger.

The author is a communications professional, film maker and published writer with a keen interest in life.

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.