Abstract
China has developed more rapidly than anywhere else in the world over the last three decades. In the 1980s the transformation began from a predominantly rural and peasant society to one where the majority have become urban dwellers with living a life fully integrated into mass consumption and an industrialised society free of agricultural dependence. The Chinese education system has contributed directly to the unprecedented rates of change that have reshaped the lives of most of the population through the investments in knowledge and skill that have enhanced the capabilities of the labour force and contributed to greater well being. At the same time the education system has evolved to reflect the rapid social and economic changes that have conditioned its growth and made a reality of nine-year compulsory education for all.
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Notes
- 1.
Gross rates can be over 100 % because over age children are included.
- 2.
We are grateful for Dr Niu ZhiKui for the essence of this overview of recent policy initiatives presented at the INRULED conference in 2009 in Beijing.
- 3.
We are grateful to Dr Zhu Zhiyong for this basic information on recent trends in educational finance and the insights in his paper at the INRULED Conference in 2009.
- 4.
Further details of the original research design can be found in Implementing Basic Education in China: Progress and Prospects in Rich, Poor and National Minority Areas.
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Wang, L., Lewin, K. (2016). Introduction to the Development of Basic Education in China. In: Two Decades of Basic Education in Rural China. New Frontiers of Educational Research. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-2120-6_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-2120-6_1
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