The problems, needs and strategies of rural teacher development at deep poverty areas in China: Rural schooling stakeholder perspectives

Abstract

The number of rural teachers has decreased substantially, especially in deep poverty areas in China, due to the limited governmental political and financial support. This study used the observation of filed visits and semi-structured interview data of rural teachers, rural school principals and county-level local officials to provide insider perspectives on rural teachers’ problems, needs and strategies at deep poverty areas of Liangshan prefecture, Sichuan province in China. It finds that the structural shortage of rural teachers, the imbalanced outflow of rural teachers, the dilemma between “teaching and training”, and the weak teaching capacity of rural teachers contribute to decreasing the development of rural teachers at deep poverty areas. The insider stakeholders suggested that enriching the training approach, breaking down the institutional barriers and ensuring the rationality of teacher mobility, decentralization of training authority and construction of county-level teacher education system, and using information technology all contribute to exploring the rationale of rural teachers development in deep poverty areas in China. Understanding local context rural school actual needs, internal features and functions, as exemplified by the means of analysis on rural teachers at deep poor areas, which provide heterogeneous, accounting for their status, resources and contexts within and between various areas in China.