A review of key trends in Chinese education

Abstract

The world’s largest education system stems from millennia-old traditions that place great value and emphasis on learning, teaching, and the central role that institutions of learning at all levels should and do play in the education process. Parents and grandparents teach children from very early ages to cherish opportunities to learn. Chinese children in rural and urban settings dream of completing their basic and secondary education and performing well on the national higher education entrance exam (Gaokao, 高考). As it was in ancient times, economic opportunities in China tend to increase with the more education individuals attain (Jiang 2014). In China, basic education comprises pre-school education, primary educa-tion and junior secondary education (nine-year compulsory education), senior secondary education, and special education. To remain consistent with the historical data, secondary education in this chapter refers to specialized secondary education, regular secondary education, and secondary vocational education (see Table 1.1). Given the state of the education system that the PRC inherited in a postwar context in 1949, the government has made tremendous progress in terms of reducing its national illiteracy rate and providing basic education opportunities to the masses. Yet even with all of this progress, several social justice issues remain (Jacob 2006; Jacob et al. 2015). A large percentage of eligible cohort students are unable to continue on with secondary and higher education schooling. Roughly 42% of all eligible students move on to attend secondary education, and only 30% of secondary students move on to pursue a higher education degree (Ministry of Education 2015). Ethnic minority students struggle with issues of language, culture, andidentity. Local, national, and increasingly global environmental push and pull factors create a perfect storm context that often prevents ethnic minority students from wanting to learn and use their indigenous languages and cultures in daily life, let alone in school and employment settings (Jacob 2015; Jacob et al. 2015). Gender disparities still remain, with females having fewer mean years ofschooling than males (UNDP 2014). There are also regional disparities, where the vast majority of the top schools and HEIs are located in the eastern region, and especially in major urban centers like Beijing, Guangzhou, andShanghai. Since education is largely funded at the local level, wealthy cities and provinces tend to offer greater education opportunities than what is offered in rural and remote locations. Students of all ages from rural and remote regions of the country are at an added disadvantage due to geography (Fleischer et al. 2011; Hansen 2013; Heckman & Yi 2012; Jacob 2004). Other trends include an increase in the number of migrant children attending school in locations where their parents are working.1 Schools have the potential to provide safe havens for these migrant children (Gao et al. 2015). But seasonal jobs and other life-changing events make it difficult for migrant children to maintain steady enrollment over long periods of time in any one school (Liu & Jacob 2013). While some urban centers open up public schools to migrant children, others do not. Migrant students are often forced to enrol late and endure frequent moves that are often in the middle of the school year, which puts them at a significant disadvantage compared to their local peer counterparts. Curricula also vary from province to province, so changing schools is often difficult for many migrant children in terms of being able to remain current with differing curricular requirements and teaching styles. Chen Yuanyuan and Shuaizhang Feng (2013) also note how many migrant children are prohibited from attending public schools because they do not have local household registration status. Many migrant children are forced to enrol in schools established specifically for migrant children (Lu & Zhou 2013). Being able to meet the continuing needs of migrant children with regard to basic, secondary, and higher education will be an ongoing challenge the country will face for many years to come. While it is impossible to determine how the entire country would fare onthe global stage on the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in the areas of math, science, and reading, we do have a snapshot from two of China’s largest cities – Hong Kong and Shanghai. Both consistently score among the top five participating countries and economies, and in 2012 Shanghai led all countries and economies in all three categories (see Table 1.2).2