Students participate in a military summer camp in Beijing. [Photo/Xinhua]

More Chinese children join 'camp education', where learning occurs alongside playing.

Zhao Qing fondly reflects on her summer camp at UWC (United World College) Changshu, in south China. She cherishes "the sense of belonging and sense of being herself" she gained at the two-week camp.

With more than 130 other teenagers from 14 countries, Zhao, 15, took part in outdoor adventure activities and workshops at the camp and became firm friends with an American girl who shared her interest in philosophy.

While Zhao's camp experience would be common in some Western countries, it is much less so for a Chinese teenager.

Her camp was organized by Initiate Development for Education and Service (IDEAS), a pioneer of China's camp industry. Zhao Wei, president of the China Camp Education Alliance and founder of IDEAS, says recognition of the education potential of camps has surged among Chinese parents and educators in recent years.

"In China, we prefer to use 'camp education' because camp is not just about play - it is education through play," says Zhao Wei. "Unlike travel or study tours, camps actually create a community for experiential learning with well-arranged activities. It is a powerful vehicle to teach young people 21st-Century skills and dispositions, including leadership, communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity."