The case of Zheng Xiaoyu, former chief of the State Food and Drug Administration, who was executed in 2007 for taking bribes, is incorporated into a school textbook, Integrity Education Reading, as a negative model to help teach children about the importance of integrity.

The move has raised doubts from parents in Jinan city, East China's Shandong province, Qilu Evening News reports.

Compiled by Jinan Bureau of Education, the book has four editions to cover different age groups to suit their different levels of acceptance and comprehension.

There are versions for primary, middle school, high school and college. Students at all levels are required to take at least 18 classes each semester.

Liu, a father of a fifth-grader, questioned the effectiveness of the course after a rough reading of the book: "Integrity education should be taught to those who possess power and hold high ranking administrative positions rather than to children. Isn't it a waste of money and time to teach children the course? It seems so ineffective and superficial."

Fang Hui, head of the Municipality Teaching and Research Section, said that anti-corruption is of great importance to both the country and its people. Integrity education taught in schools can help children shape high moral standards and is significant to China’s future.

Zhang Wei, a middle school teacher, chief editor of the book's middle school version, said, "In order to avoid overlapping with existing subjects like ethical education or politics education, the book chooses to incorporate real examples, and the teachers responsible for this course are asked to teach in an exploratory way instead of repeating clichés."