Chinese Teacher Compensation System of Compulsory Education


Book Description

This book examines the compensation system for teachers in compulsory education in China and how it can be brought to bear in attracting, retaining, and motivating teachers while improving the quality of basic education. The study first draws on theories of modern pay systems and revisits major teacher pay reforms at the national level and their implementation at the school level, thereby evaluating the characteristics and problems of pay systems. A comparative analysis of different pay scales and its competitiveness in contrast to other professions then further demonstrates the limitations of existing salary structures in compulsory education schools, along with a failure to offer enough incentives for high-quality teachers and teaching. Approaching the topic from both theoretical and empirical perspectives, the author proposes a restructured pay system and advances constructive suggestions on policymaking as well as research directions in teacher pay reform. The book will appeal to scholars, students, school officials, and policymakers interested in education economics, education management and administration, and especially teacher pay scales and pay reforms.




Investment and Interventions to Improve the Quality of Education Systems


Book Description

Quality improvement is a major current goal of Education in China and this will be achieved through overall quality improvement of the education system as a whole, a situation that is also the case across the world. Deploying a cost-benefit analysis and multidisciplinary perspectives from education, economics, neurocognition, gender studies, child development, and international development, this book presents a range of critical interventions in education development and investment that have proven to be effective in many countries around the world. The book draws on theoretical and practical experience in the field of education investment and analyses key issues in China's early childhood education, early reading, girls' education, brain science application in international education, small-scale schools in low income areas and teacher education. Students and scholars of education and development and Chinese education will benefit from this title.




Understanding the Professional Agency of Female Language Teachers in a Chinese University


Book Description

Centering on a qualitative study of three female English teachers in Shanghai, China, the book explores female language teachers' perceived discrepancies and agency exercised in their teaching, research and teacher learning practices. By adopting multiple research methods, such as narrative questionnaire, metaphor, timeline, interview and classroom observation, this study reveals that female language teachers’ agency is a dynamic entity manifested in the ongoing negotiation of agency belief, agency practice, and agency inclination, as well as the interaction of individual and the environment. Though there are certain limitations concerning representativeness and generalizability, the author provides a thick description of how female language teachers in China are exercising agency to fulfill their career development, which offers insightful suggestions to language education in both China and broader areas globally. The book will appeal to researchers studying teacher education and foreign (English) language teaching, university teachers, especially female foreign language teachers, PhD students and graduate students, as well as career women.




China Urban and Rural Public Education Service Equalization


Book Description

Centering on issues of disparity and equality in basic public education services in China, this book proposes a performance measurement system that assesses and guides equality of basic public education in urban and rural areas. The author moves beyond traditional research approaches by drawing on methods of public management and mathematics. Pivoted on an improved balanced scorecard model, a complete set of indicators and measuring tools are constructed, whereby the process of education equality can be more effectively measured, managed, and steered. Grounded in empirical studies on public education in the country's Sichuan Province, the book advances suggestions on better policies and optimizing implementation for the purpose of attaining equitable public education services in urban and rural areas. Finally, the study envisages further research directions and possible applications of the performance appraisal model. The title will be of value to scholars and students of education studies, especially those interested in public education, educational equity, and Chinese public education services.




Migrant Children in State/Quasi-state Schools in Urban China


Book Description

Highlighting the changing landscape of Chinese urban state schools under the pressure of recruiting a tremendous number of migrant children, this book examines the quality of state educational provisions from demographic, institutional, familial and cultural angles. Rooted in rich qualitative data from five Chinese metropolitan cities, it identifies the demographic changes in many state schools of becoming ‘migrant majority’ and the institutional reformation of ‘interim quasi-state’ schools under a low cost and inferior schooling approach. This book also digs into the ‘black box’ of cultural reproduction in school and family processes, revealing both a gloomy side of many migrant children’s academic underachievement as a result of troubled home-school relations and a bright side that social inclusion of migrant children in state school promotes their adaptation to urban life. The author concludes that migrant children’s experiences in state (and quasi-state) schools turn them into a generation of ‘new urban working-class’. The monograph will be of interest to scholars, students, practitioners and policymakers who want to better understand educational equality for migrants and other marginalised groups.




Between Sacred and Secular Knowledge


Book Description

This book examines how different social forces, including state ideology and policies, religious culture and ethnic identities, and economic market forces, affect Muslim parents’ perceptions and attitudes toward public and religious education. Combining ethnographic fieldwork and a cognitive rationality framework, this book investigates ethnic minorities’ educational attainment and its shaping mechanisms. Instead of attributing the undereducation of ethnic minorities solely to structural factors such as economic constraints, cultural conflicts and state policies, this study focuses on the critical role of perceptions and expectations through which many structural factors function. The fieldwork in a predominantly Muslim village in northwest China reveals that public education and religious education are complementary in the daily pursuit of well-being. And the study further argues that the practical oriented logic of rural Muslims sheds light on the research of inequality in educational attainment. The book will be of interest to scholars and postgraduate students studying ethnic minority education in China. Those who are researching on Islam and Muslims’ identity, especially in a multiethnic society, may also find this research insightful and helpful.




Education and Reform in China


Book Description

Transformative market reforms in China since the late 1970s have improved living standards dramatically, but have also led to unprecedented economic inequality. During this period, China’s educational system was restructured to support economic development, with educational reforms occurring at a startling pace. Today, the educational system has diversified in structure, finance, and content; it has become more market-oriented; and it is serving an increasingly diverse student population. These changes carry significant consequences for China’s social mobility and inequality, and future economic prospects. In Education and Reform in China, leading scholars in the fields of education, sociology, demography, and economics investigate the evolution of educational access and attainment, educational quality, and the economic consequences of being educated. Education and Reform in China shows that economic advancement is increasingly tied to education in China, even as educational services are increasingly marketized. The volume investigates the varying impact of change for different social, ethnic, economic and geographic groups. Offering interdisciplinary views on the changing role of education in Chinese society, and on China’s educational achievements and policy challenges, this book will be an important resource for those interested in education, public policy, and development issues in China.




Chinese Elementary Education System Reform in Rural, Pastoral, Ethnic, and Private Schools


Book Description

This book introduces Chinese educational reforms and developments rolled out in the year 2014, examining them from both macro and micro perspectives and pursuing a mixed-methods approach. This book depicts the current landscape of the Chinese education system and institutions on different educational levels and in a variety of educational types, covering the development and reform status, issues, causes and effects, strategy plans and trends in the specific areas of schooling, financing, educator development and student development. Based on policy analysis, case studies, surveys and big data analysis, it combines the perspectives of both officials and grass-root stakeholders. Presenting contributions by scholars from over 10 Chinese and international higher education institutions and research institutes, as well as administrators and educators from over 20 provinces and regions throughout the nation, the book offers the most comprehensive, up-to-date and solidly fact-based scholarly representation of Chinese education reform and development on the market.




Portraits of Chinese Schools


Book Description

This book unravels the mysteries of the Chinese school system to enable international scholars to better understand the logic of basic education in China. By collecting the latest, first-hand empirical data, it outlines a panoramic and vivid portrait of Chinese schools from principals’, teachers’, students’ and parents’ perspectives, including descriptions of their daily lives. It also interprets different stakeholders’ duties and explains the unique characteristics and operation model of Chinese schools. It is of interest to all those who are concerned with the current situation and the future of the Chinese school system and basic education in China, especially international researchers, policymakers, and parents wanting to know what is really happening in schools.