Two years ago, a Chinese father in central Sichuan province touched national nerves when he openly challenged the value of higher learning by refusing to send his daughter to college.

In his cost-benefit analysis of a college education, the farmer-turned-businessman reckoned his daughter's four years of tuition, room and board would set him back at least 80,000 yuan ($12,900). Meanwhile, the wages forgone due to attending college could also amount to another 80,000 yuan or more if his daughter started work after high school.

On benefits, he argued she might not be able to find a job after college and it would take years for her to recoup the investment. Perhaps it would be wiser to use the money to make a payment on a house or start a small business. "College isn't worth it," the bitter man told the local news media. "A garbage collector is making more than a college graduate."