Abstract
A teaching workforce with good quality is a key factor in the process of China’s rapid development. Although 76% of Chinese pupils are studying at schools within county areas, a general portray of the corresponding teaching workforce is still not clear. This study presents data from a nationally representative survey of primary education teachers in 35 counties of 18 provinces in China. Findings presented include demographic and professional characteristics, living conditions as well as attitudes towards work. Besides, variations among school locations and geographical regions are also examined. The key findings are the followings: 1) Quality of primary school teachers in county areas has been improved regarding education background; 2) Teaching force in village primary schools has an unbalanced age and gender composition; 3) Out-of-field teaching practice is widespread, especially for minor subjects. 4) Primary school teachers perceived relative low salary and low social status.
Highlights
That education plays a vital role in the economic growth of a nation is recognized for decades [1]
A recent study on OECD (The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries has shown that an increase of one standard deviation in teacher cognitive skills is associated with an increase of 10 to 15 per cent of a standard deviation in student performance [14]
We report here a comprehensive, national study of the demographic and professional characteristics, living conditions, and attitudes towards work of Chinese primary teachers in county areas
Summary
That education plays a vital role in the economic growth of a nation is recognized for decades [1]. A recent study on OECD (The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries has shown that an increase of one standard deviation in teacher cognitive skills is associated with an increase of 10 to 15 per cent of a standard deviation in student performance [14]. Due to the fact that only four Chinese areas were surveyed and these belong to the wealthiest areas, the results cannot be regarded as a portrait of nation-level student performance. The successful transition towards a nation with strong human resources depends much more on the improvement of student achievement in the vast county-level areas. A high quality teaching workforce is the key to the construction of a high-level compulsory education in county areas
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
