8YO Boy In China Swallows Coin To Get Out Of Doing Homework; Lands In Hospital

No one likes homework.

I personally never understood how my teachers had the audacity to think I’d want to continue learning about the world around me after I left the school premises. My hunger for knowledge starts at 7.30 in the morning and ends when the last school bell rings.

Everyone tells you not to bring work home, but no one tells you not to do your homework, which is literally doing work at home. 

So, if a student goes to great lengths to avoid doing their homework, I can certainly empathise with it.

8YO Boy In China Swallows Coin To Get Out Of Doing Homework

Take this 8-year-old boy in China, for instance. He swallowed a coin because he wanted to get out of doing his homework, landing him in the hospital.

Now, much like a Boomer’s reaction when they see holes in jeans, you’re probably thinking, Why?

Wanted to play with other kids

The boy had actually started doing his homework after dinner but still hadn’t completed it by 11pm.

But it wasn’t just late, the boy also wanted to play with other kids.

“I heard lots of kids playing happily downstairs. I wanted to play with them but my mother said I had to do my homework first,” the boy said.

So, he racked his brain and came up with a genius solution:

I’ll swallow a coin to get out of doing homework. 

He then found a one yuan coin (S$0.19) in a drawer and swallowed it.

Now, if the boy’s best attempt to get out of doing homework was to swallow a goddamn coin, then maybe he really should be doing more homework.

Then again, 8-year-olds are not known for their critical thinking.

Parents took him to hospital

After swallowing the coin, the boy told his parents what he did, thinking he found a solution to his homework issue.

Shocked, his parents rushed him to a hospital where the boy underwent a gastroscopy and computed tomography (CT) scan. The scans showed that the coin had entered his stomach.

Fortunately, the one yuan coin was extracted the next morning using an endoscopic snare while the boy was under anaesthesia.

Not uncommon

You might think that this boy’s attempt to avoid homework was extreme, but he may have a legitimate reason for his strong aversion.

A study conducted by the Chinese Sleep Research Society, a sleep-issues research NGO, showed that the heavy academic pressure on children in China means a high percentage of mainland children do not get enough sleep.

According to the South China Morning Post, more than 60 per cent of Chinese aged six to 17 get no more than eight hours of sleep a night because they stay up late to complete home assignments.

And I’m guessing that it also means that they have less time to do what kids should be able to do; be a kid.

Many of us are so concerned with our child’s academic future and career that we take away the joy of childhood; playing with your friends and not worrying about anything.

Give your kids a break, parents. They’re not being lazy, some of them are just overburdened.