Chongqing Middle School Teacher Suspended After Emotional Outburst in Class WeChat Group

On October 14th, screenshots from a WeChat group for a 7th grade class at a middle school affiliated with Southwest University in Chongqing began circulating online. The screenshots showed the class’s head teacher, surnamed Xu, having an emotional meltdown and making extreme statements in the group which had 88 members.

In the morning, Teacher Xu had expressed understanding for parents' concerns about their children, but said her own emotional state was unstable and she was unable to handle all issues with the class, asking for understanding. However, by midday, Xu appeared to lose control of her emotions and began berating parents and students, telling everyone to “roll far away from me” and that she couldn’t stop her hands from shaking.

When questioned by parents, Xu replied they could “go ahead and report her if they wanted to.” She later reiterated not wanting to be contacted by anyone, warning she had already “exploded” and didn’t want to cause secondary harm.

The middle school released a statement that evening, announcing Teacher Xu’s teaching duties had been suspended and further handling would depend on the results of an investigation. On the 15th, Beibei District education authorities confirmed they had gotten involved and were in the process of verifying facts and dealing with the situation.

While Xu’s public outburst was inappropriate, many have expressed sympathy and concern for her mental state based on the extreme language she used like “explode” and “death.” Records show Xu was an outstanding student who graduated from East China Normal University and later an award-winning teacher recognized at the district and city level in Chongqing for her strong teaching abilities and work ethic.

Unverified reports claim Xu’s breakdown occurred after she was slapped by a parent during a confrontation at the school gate over a cafeteria card issue when Xu was slow to respond to messages due to being busy with work. Xu allegedly wanted to report it to police but was pressured by the school to handle it privately, leading to her eventually lashing out in the group chat.

The incident has prompted discussion about the extreme pressures teachers, especially head teachers, face - caught between the demands of students, parents, and school administrators while handling not just teaching but various administrative and counseling duties for classes of 50-60 students. Many argue that society and schools don’t provide enough support for teachers' mental health.

Some say regardless of the full story, the teacher will likely pay the biggest price, with little official effort to clear her name as damage has already been done to her reputation that will be hard to recover from. Others argue that as a professional, Xu should have controlled her emotions better, but that the system makes it very difficult for teachers to protect themselves.

The school and district have not revealed more details, likely to protect the privacy of students and parents involved. But there are calls for this to be a wake-up call to seriously examine teachers' work stress and mental health, rather than just quietly disciplining them when inevitable blow-ups occur under immense pressure with little support. While unacceptable, many see Xu’s public outburst as a cry for help from an overwhelmed educator.