Pupils from Xinxiang city's Jinzhang Primary School in Henan province have taken part in their first online lesson, taught by a teacher 600 kilometers away in Beijing.

They used a platform created on Taobao - the country's biggest customer-to-customer online shopping site operated by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.

Wider use of online teaching is now expected at more rural schools, say officials, many of which continue to find it hard to hire enough full-time teachers.