Call in China to end English's core status sparks debate

From business and academia to social media and entertainment — English is considered the dominant global language. One in five people on Earth actively uses this lingua franca. In China, a mathematics professor specializing in vector algebra is now challenging this dominance in no uncertain terms. Tang Jiafeng believes that English should be abolished as a core subject in elementary schools, secondary schools and universities.

Tang is convinced that no other country in the world has placed as much importance on English as China has.

"Our children desperately begin learning English even before they have properly mastered their native language. Yet we are a civilization that dates back thousands of years. English is just a tool. It's enough to be able to use it. The tradition of revering and emulating Western cultures must come to an end," Tang says in social media.

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