Preschoolers have been injured after a kindergarten teacher pushed them to fight each other to burn off energy, Yangtse Evening Post reported on Tuesday.

Five kindergarten students sustained multiple bruises and one a neck injury in Nanjing City, capital of East China's Jiangsu Province.

It was revealed that a group of children chased and fought each other outside while most other preschoolers were reading and drawing inside classrooms.

The teacher surnamed Ge explained that after trying in vain to talk them into stopping, she had to let them fight as a way of releasing energy.

The site of the fight (Photo/Yangtse.com)

Punishment has been handed down to the teacher who was directly responsible for the incident, the report said.

The principal of the kindergarten said the teacher handled the case incorrectly because children are weak and can easily be hurt.

Wang Yun, office director of Childcare Education Bureau in Nanjing's Qixia district, said they did not recommend allowing children to fight each other, which could be viewed as disguised corporal punishment.

At present, local education authorities are urging the kindergarten to rectify such teaching practices. In addition, parents with children at the kindergarten said they were satisfied with the way the incident has been dealt with and hope the matter would not have too much impact on their children's development or the teacher's career.