I don't doubt that, but the NYT spouts it like facts. Even if they were off by a factor of ten and an annual income is closer to $5000 we're just supposed to swallow that the spring school fees are 5% of a family's income? Seems absurd to me. Then again we're talking about communism and the NYT. My guess would be more BS here than in the farm belt.
$500 is the average annual income of the farmers. Middle class city folks can make as much as $2000.
Not everyone goes to these "expensive" schools in China although too many parents and grandparents are living beyond their means by borrowing for their kids education