Millions of Chinese students sit for grueling 'gaokao'

BEIJING — Hundreds of young Chinese students clutching pens and their IDs shuffled into a testing center in blue-skied Beijing on Sunday, swarmed by parents, joining millions sitting for the national high-stakes university entrance exam. Around 12.9 million students nationwide registered for this year’s “gaokao,” according to the Ministry of Education, which for most is the sole determining factor in admission to a Chinese university. The multi-day exam, which began Sunda