教育部部長 着力解決校園'毒跑道'問題

The Ministry of Education is working with other departments to root out toxic synthetic running tracks and reduce bullying on campus to guarantee students' health and safety, Education Minister Chen Baosheng said at a news conference on the sidelines of the two sessions.

教育部部長陳寶生在兩會記者會上表示，教育部正在與其他部門合作，根除有毒塑膠跑道，減少校園欺凌，以保證學生的健康與安全。

Synthetic running tracks have attracted widespread attention after complaints they have caused vomiting, nosebleeds and skin irritations in students at primary and middle schools, including in Beijing, Shanghai, Hebei and Jiangsu.

塑膠跑道已引起廣泛關注，此前有投訴稱，塑膠跑道引起北京、上海、河北、江蘇等地中小學生出現嘔吐、流鼻血、皮膚刺激症狀。

After investigating the incidents, the authorities found that standards for school running tracks were inadequate and out of date, Chen said.

陳寶生表示，有關部門進行調查後發現，校園跑道缺乏標準，且標準陳舊。

"Some schools are even building running tracks under the standards of more than two decades ago. There are also problems with the bidding process," he said, adding that builders are sometimes winning contracts due to their low prices not high quality.

他說道：“一些學校甚至還在按二十多年前的標準修建跑道。投招標過程也存在問題。”他還表示，跑道建設方有時因價格低中標，質量並不高。

To root out toxic running tracks, Chen said the ministry is working with other departments and research institutes to draft a new set of standards.

陳寶生表示，爲根除毒跑道，教育部正在與其他部門和研究機構合作起草一套新標準。

Meanwhile, the ministry will continue to cooperate with the Ministry of Public Security, the Supreme People's Court and Supreme People's Procuratorate to crack down on school bullying.

同時，教育部將繼續與公安部、最高人民法院、最高人民檢察院合作，打擊校園欺凌。

Some positive effects have already been seen, Chen said. "But school bullying is not uprooted yet. More efforts are needed."

陳寶生稱，目前已經收到了一些積極的效果。“但是校園欺凌目前仍未徹底根除。仍需要做出更多努力。”