Gratitude will become a new moral requirement of high school students in Shanghai when their new semester starts in September.

The educational commission of the municipality issued new regulations on school kids' behavior and moral standards earlier this week, demanding that students "learn to present thanks to others."

"It's very essential for today's youngsters, most of whom are from single-child families, to learn to harbor gratitude to others," said Zou Hong, an official in charge of students' moral cultivation at the educational commission.

The official said the single-child generation, regarded as "little emperors", are egocentric and should learn to be thankful for all that they own and enjoy.

"Only after they learn to be grateful, can they consciously love others and make contributions to society," Zou said.

Zhou Jing, a teacher at Dajing High School, complained that many parents neglect the moral cultivation while caring too much about academic performance.

"That negligence might result in children's selfishness," Zhou said.

She said that the inclusion of teaching gratefulness into the new regulations can serve as a reminder to those neglectful parents and, of course, some teachers.

The new regulations are a revision to an edition issued two years ago in the city.

(Xinhua News Agency August 6, 2005)