The world of today seems orderly. People need specific requirements to drive a car, become a teacher, and even vote. But what about raising a child? Do parents need credentials to prove their worthiness? In the city of Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, mothers and fathers of children under the age of 15 are rushing to get a parenting license, in the hope it would help them establish a healthy and sound relationship with their offspring.

Ma Xiaomin is among the first accredited batch of ten parents who have successfully finished the program designed by Hangzhou’s Shangcheng District earlier this week, Chinanews Service reported.

"When I asked my daughter to drink water in the past, I often used a commanding manner. But now, I would say 'daddy is tired too. How about we drink some water together?'" said Ma, a father of two aged 1 and 3. "It's a more effective way to communicate with kids."

Ahead of the program launch in Shangcheng district, a survey conducted by the organizers showed that a sizeable number of parents had misunderstandings about child rearing. Nearly 70 percent of parents considered education as the most significant part of a child’s upbringing, while only 15 percent said moral teaching is their first focus.

To turn the tide, the district’s government jointly promoted a platform on Wechat, China's most popular social media app, providing access to educational tools for parents on how to tackle the daunting task of raising kids.

By following the platform’s official WeChat account, applicants can fill in their personal information, including their children's age group. Parents are then allowed to watch over 180 video courses by renowned experts, which are often less than ten minutes each. Topics are related to prenatal care, baby healthcare, and how to develop good habits in kids.

Parents' efforts are then turned into credits. One hundred credits translate into a one-star license, and parents' rating ups with the amount of credits they hold. The highest parents can reach is a five-star rating.

Parents also have to take offline activities if they want to get the license.

Chief of the local education bureau Xiang Haigang said they would continuously expand their project to other regions with the aim of benefiting more parents and building a life-long educational system in the future. He also noted that the next stage of the platform is to enable users to share information based on their own experience.

During this year’s two sessions, Cao Dewang, a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, brought forward the idea of certificated parents and handed a proposal to formulate a plan for parental education. Cao said that parents should receive professional training in advance.

Chinese netizens were divided between those who admitted the necessity to train parents to be more competent and those who cast doubts over the scheme's practicability.

“Some parents actually know how to treat their kids, but they may follow their old ways in the end. The program has a good start point, while it also needs further regulation,” a user under the name @lixiaoyuxiaoliyu commented.