Young workers head to classes after the sun sets

Positive turn

Li Shiyu, 28, a white-collar worker in Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu province, used to be bogged down by intense work pressure, often toiling late into the night. However, her life took a positive turn after she enrolled in a night school ballet course at the end of last year.

"I started leaving work early to catch up on classes, and gradually developed more interests in my life," she said.

In addition to ballet, she signed up for lessons on playing African drums. "I started to look forward to what would happen after I left work," Li said.

Yang, founder of the night school in Beijing, said that one of the most popular courses focuses on interpreting I Ching, also known as the Book of Changes, one of the oldest classic Chinese texts. Lessons for tarot card reading are also in demand.

Yang said this shows that young people are more uncertain than others and sometimes feel lost about their place in today's society.

"The COVID-19 pandemic also disrupted people's lives for three years, leaving them more uncertain about the future. The atomized urban lifestyle also makes it difficult for young people to express their frustrations, with not enough help on hand to provide guidance. As a result, young people might turn to divination for some psychological comfort," Yang said.

Besides makeup and fortunetelling, sports courses are also highly sought after, with tennis, badminton and other pursuits extremely popular.

In the 1980s, night schools were also popular in China, offering courses such as computer technology and foreign languages, with participants joining them mainly to enhance their skills.

However, young people today — driven by their interests and passions — are testing themselves, broadening their education and making new progress through various night school courses.