Many Chinese schools and local education officials have promised to shorten class hours and ease the burdens on young students. However, that hasn't stopped many parents who don't want their kids to fall behind from finding other ways to make up for missed time. Online classes have been gaining popularity as a result.

A classroom with no students. But English teacher Yin Jiang is busy anyway. He is one of many at the education company New Oriental who teach online courses.

YIN JIANG, ENGLISH TEACHER NEW ORIENTAL EDUCATION & TECHNOLOGY GROUP "The online courses have been developing very rapidly within this corporation. Because we need to be alert to the change of the market."

CHEN YONGMEI STUDENT OF ONLINE COURSE "I have learned plenty of online courses on different subjects such as time management skill, which helped me effective and efficient as well as financing skill."

This is not a new thing. Online courses started to gain popularity in 2010. However, Yin Jiang said the recent rise in high quality live internet broadcasts in China has given this way of teaching more momentum.

YIN JIANG, ENGLISH TEACHER NEW ORIENTAL EDUCATION & TECHNOLOGY GROUP "More and more families, those parents have embraced this change. They have gotten used to the live broadcasting of press conferences and concerts. So for them, they say why not?"

Estimates indicate that online education became a 194 billion yuan market in 2017, growing by 22 percent year on year. It's estimated that the market will expand to around 273 million yuan in 2019. These courses are not for young students only. Yin Jiang's class on former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill attracts everyone from college students to working adults: those who don't have time to attend physical classrooms.

YIN JIANG, ENGLISH TEACHER NEW ORIENTAL EDUCATION&TECHNOLOGY GROUP "If they do not have time to show up, in that course, they can also watch the playback and they can also interact with many students after class."

LENG ZHIYI STUDENT OF ONLINE COURSE "It's very interactive. In this context, teacher is no longer the center of class anymore. Student is the center of the class."

ANG CHENGXI SHANGHAI "According to users, perhaps the biggest feature of this format is that it redefines the relationship between the students and the educators. It makes the relationship more egalitarian."

YIN JIANG, ENGLISH TEACHER NEW ORIENTAL EDUCATION & TECHNOLOGY GROUP "Online courses can help many students in second- and third-tier cities to enjoy excellent resources in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou."

Online courses have become a lucrative business, attracting many aspiring teachers to join various online education platforms. The elimination of physical classroom has saved costs for educators and lowered tuition fees for students.

YIN JIANG, ENGLISH TEACHER NEW ORIENTAL EDUCATION & TECHNOLOGY GROUP "The cost per person is declining. However, the size is expanding. This is why many teachers who have taught online courses have become millionaires."

That should attract more people to join the rising sector. Analysts say that as more online education platforms surface in China, maintaining the quality of internet teaching will be a challenge in the future. YCX, CGTN, SH.