A Chinese professor's blunt criticism of what he believes is an excessive craze for learning English has sparked heated debate among the public. People's mania for English learning has wasted education resources and threatened the study of Chinese, said Zhang Shuhua, dean of the information and intelligence institute at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Zhang made the remarks at a meeting during the annual session of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the top political advisory body, which closed on 12 March. Reports Xinhuanet on 14 March 2013