Education Policy and Reform in China Guangli Zhou · Xiang Zhou Education Policy and Reform in China Guangli Zhou • Xiang Zhou Education Policy and Reform in China Guangli Zhou Xiang Zhou Renmin University of China Renmin University of China Beijing, China Beijing, China ISBN 978-981-13-6491-4 ISBN 978-981-13-6492-1 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-6492-1 Based on a translation from the Chinese language edition: 教育与未来——中国教育改革之路 by Zhou, Guangli and Zhou, Xiang Copyright © China Renmin University Press, 2016. All Rights Reserved The edition is not for sale in China Mainland. Customers from China Mainland please order the print book from: China Renmin University Press. ISBN of the China Mainland edition: 9787300232126 Library of Congress Control Number: 2019933173 © China Renmin University Press 2019 This work is subject to copyright. 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The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21- 01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721, Singapore C ontents 1 Introduction: Social Change and Education Reform 1 Guangli Zhou 1.1 Historical Orientation: Education Reform Gets into Deep Water 2 1.2 Policy Trend: Build a Fair and Just Society through Education 8 Part I Social Change and Improvement of the Education System 15 2 Efforts to Develop Preschool Education 17 Xiang Zhou 2.1 The Current Situation of the Development of Preschool Education in China 18 2.2 Analysis of Problems in the Development of Preschool Education in China 20 2.3 Preschool Education Development Direction 26 3 Balanced Development of Compulsory Education 31 Xiang Zhou 3.1 Balanced Development: A New Goal for Compulsory Education 32 v vi CoNTENTS 3.2 B asic Principles and System for the Balanced Development of Compulsory Education 34 3.3 Analysis of the Current Situation of Imbalance in Compulsory Education 36 3.4 Measures: Features of Constructing a Compulsory Education Equalization Index System 38 4 Guaranteeing Migrant Children’s Right to an Education 45 Xiang Zhou 4.1 Urbanization and Migrant Children’s Education 46 4.2 Cause Analysis 48 4.3 The Real Predicament of Migrant Children’s Education 50 4.4 Solutions 52 5 The Establishment of a Modern Vocational Education System 55 Guangli Zhou 5.1 Planned Industrialization: The Integration of Vocational Education with General Education 56 5.2 Market-Oriented Industrialization: Parallel Dual Tracks for Vocational Education and General Education 59 5.3 A New Type of Industrialization: Interchange of Vocational Education and General Education 63 6 Change and Innovation in the Private Education System 67 Xiang Zhou 6.1 The Development of Private Education and the Process of Policy Change 68 6.2 Problems and Countermeasures in the Development of Private Education 72 6.3 Development of and Prospects for Private Education in China 78 7 Improving the Quality Evaluation System of Higher Education 81 Guangli Zhou 7.1 The Development of the Higher Education Evaluation System in China 82 CoNTENTS vii 7.2 S ocial Accountability and University External Quality Evaluation System 85 7.3 Self-Improvement and the University Internal Quality Evaluation System 89 Part II Reform of Higher Education and Institutional Innovation 93 8 Establishment of a Lifelong Education System 95 Xiang Zhou 8.1 Review of the Development of Lifelong Education in China 97 8.2 Problems and Reflections on the Establishment of a Lifelong Education System 99 9 Reform of the College Entrance Examination 105 Xiang Zhou 9.1 The Process of Reform of the College Entrance Examination 106 9.2 The Dilemma and Direction of the Reform 114 9.3 Concrete Principles and Methods of Reform 118 10 Teaching Personnel System Reform 121 Xiang Zhou 10.1 Teaching Personnel System Reform Led by the Contract Employment System 121 10.2 Problems and Analysis of the Reform 123 10.3 Measures for the Improvement of Teaching Personnel Reform 127 10.4 Personnel Reform of Colleges and Universities 129 11 Establishment and Perfection of a Modern University System 133 Guangli Zhou 11.1 Autonomy and the External Governance System of Universities 134 11.2 Corporate Governance Structure and the Internal Governance System of Universities 137 viii CoNTENTS 12 Postgraduate Education and Degree System Reform 145 Guangli Zhou 12.1 The Early Exploration of Chinese Postgraduate Education: From 1900 to 1949 146 12.2 Reform and Development of Chinese Postgraduate Education: From 1949 to 1998 148 12.3 Transition and Innovation in Chinese Postgraduate Education Since 1999 152 13 Establishment of a Zone for Training Top Innovative Talents 157 Guangli Zhou 13.1 Class for the Gifted Young: The Beginning of the Innovative Talents Cultivating Zones from 1978 to 1984 1 58 13.2 Breakthrough in Professional Education: The Exploration of Innovative Talents Cultivating Zones from 1985 to 1999 160 13.3 Student Centered: The New Exploration of Innovative Talents Cultivating Zones from 2000 to 2012 163 14 Building a World-Class University 169 Guangli Zhou 14.1 The Transfer of the World Science Center and the Rise of World-Class University Clusters 169 14.2 From the “211 Project” to the “985 Project” 172 14.3 Characteristics of World-Class Universities 177 15 Epilogue: Cultivation of the Capacity of the National System to Facilitate the Modernization of Education 181 Guangli Zhou 15.1 The National System Capacity Guarantees the Modernization of the National Governance System and Capacity 182 15.2 The Transition of Governance Is the Essential Guarantee of National System Capacity 183 15.3 Corporate Governance in Universities Should Be Improved for Cultivating National System Capacity 185 15.4 More Power Should Be Delegated to Society to Cultivate National System Capacity 186 L C ist of harts Chart 12.1 The increasing number of Chinese postgraduates enrolled in the 1990s 152 Chart 12.2 The rapid expansion of postgraduate recruitment in China in the early twenty-first century 153 ix L t ist of abLes Table 2.1 Preschool education statistics in the period 2008–2012 19 Table 2.2 Number of preschool education teachers in kindergartens (2010–2012) 24 Table 2.3 Number of officially employed teachers, substitute teachers and part- time teachers in preschool education (2010–2012) 24 Table 2.4 Educational level of preschool education teachers (2010–2012) 25 Table 7.1 The first round of undergraduate teaching evaluation results 87 xi