'Taking it slower': how Chinese middle-class parents negotiate a new time perspective in alternative education

Over the past decade, dissatisfied with mainstream education, some Chinese middle-class parents have migrated to Dali in search of lifestyle changes and alternative education for their children. Building on this phenomenon, this study draws on interviews with 45 parents and on-site observations to explore the temporal dimension of their childrearing strategies, encapsulated in the notion of 'taking it slower'. This phrase captures parents' resistance to the temporal regime of mainstream education, which is marked by urgency, acceleration, and efficiency. It also reflects their willingness to reset priorities for their children's development at different stages. Meanwhile, this study reveals the co-existence of a long-term vision and a living-in-the-present mentality in middle-class parents' childrearing strategies. By doing so, it offers a nuanced understanding of middle-class privilege in the context of alternative education.