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All you need to know about education in China, People's Republic of

China is generally regarded as one of the oldest civilised countries and a high culture. Hence it is little surprising that education has had a long-standing tradition in China. "Even during the Shang dynasty (ca. 1600-1046 BC), a system of education existed in China. Archeological findings, e.g. oracle bones, provide evidence for the existence of schools", Caroline Glöckner claims in her essay "Das Bildungswesen in China" (Glöckner 2013: 193, translated by G. Schulte). At least since the Han period (206 BC - 220 AC.) Confucianism played an important role in China. Another well-known historical event that is connected to the education system in China concerns the Cultural Revolution initiated by Mao Zedong (1966 -1976): "Mao believed that education was...

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controlled by bourgeois intellectuals and aimed to replace their power by an egalitarian system of education based on his ideas" (see Glöckner 2013: 198). Following his death in 1976, China experienced a period of economic innovation and liberalization which also affected the education system. China reached top positions in the PISA 2009 and 2012 studies. On the other hand, the "high price" Chinese students allegedly pay for such outcomes has repeatedly been discussed in the media - the argument being that the students are subjected to high levels of pressure and stress. In this context, another book has raised attention, i.e. "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" - written by a Chinese American mother. Here, the author argues in favour of a strict and authoritarian style of upbringing.

If you wish to seek a more in-depth and scientific approach to the history and current state of education in China, you might find the essay "Das Bildungswesen in China" (2013) by Caroline Glöckner interesting. The publisher has kindly granted us permission to publish this document online.
Our web dossier provides information on the following aspects of education in China:

General Information on Education

China, People's Republic of
The website, which is provided by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), provides a broad overview over research and education in China, including information on statistics, educational reports, policy or cooperation with Germany and other countries. Additionally, you will find basic country [...]

China, People's Republic of
The country dossier for China, compiled by the International Bureau of Education of the Unesco (IBE), provides information on statistics (from the World Data on Education - WDE), national education reports, education plans and policies, a bibliography (partly with fulltexts) and links to other sources. [Abstract: [...]

China, People's Republic of; Germany
The website of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) provides ample information on academic exchange and cooperation with China. Information only available in German. [Abstract: Editors of Education Worldwide]

Im folgenden Beitrag wird Bildung in China mit dem Schwerpunkt Volksrepublik China (VR China) unter den Aspekten der Bildungsgeschichte, der Bildungsadministration, der Bildungsplanung, der Struktur des Bildungssystems, des privaten Bildungssektors und der Erwachsenenbildung abgehandelt. Zu einem besseren Verständnis werden zunächst einige Angaben zur Geschichte Chinas [...]

Educational Policy (Ministries, Authorities & further National Bodies)

China, People's Republic of
The website of the Chinese Ministry for Education informs on its own structure and departments as well as on Chinese educational policy (incl. legal texts) or international agreements in the educational sector. Furthermore, you will find educational statistics (they have to be viewed via the Chinese sight, but there [...]

China, People's Republic of
The database Planipolis provides official fulltext documents on educational policy and planning from UNESCO member states. For China you can find documents starting in the year 1995. Planipolis is provided by the UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP). [Abstract: Editors of Education [...]

Educational Reports, Statistics, Assessments

China, People's Republic of
The Chinese Ministry of Education provides educational statistics for different educational sectors starting in 2010. You will find statistics on the national and the regional level. Furthermore, you can find laws and policies, and educational reports. [Abstract: Editors Worldwide]

China, People's Republic of
The Unesco Institute for Statistics (UIS) provides the most recent basic data on education in China. You will find information on the following issues:
* General information
* Education System
* Participation in education
* Progression and completion in education
* Education [...]

China, People's Republic of
This website of the Shanghai Academy of Educational Sciences is dedicated to the PISA study in China. You will find a lot of information on PISA studies procedure and results in China, including summary reports and other online publications on the topic. The website is available in Chinese only. [Abstract: Editors [...]

China, People's Republic of
The website of the HKPISA Centre, run by the Hong Kong Institute of Educational Research, provides information on the PISA studies in Hong Kong, which are conducted seperately from the PISA studies in the People's Republic of China. Among others, you will find a newsletter (only in Chinese) and Research Output / [...]

China, People's Republic of
The China Education and Research Network provides some basic statistical data and a short report on "2000' Educational Evolution in China" on its English website. The statistics partly comprise different time spans, like 1985-1998, 1952-1998 or 1978-2002. Among others, you will find statistics on number of [...]

China, People's Republic of
This interactive website is provided by the OECD. It can be used to compare China's educational statistics with that of the average OECD results or with the results of other countries. For other countries, it is also possible to compare results from different international educational assessments (PISA,TALIS, [...]

China, People's Republic of
"A video series [including a written report] profiling policies and practices of education systems that demonstrate high or improving performance in the PISA tests." An additional report compares the People's Republic of China to the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong.
"This series of videos has been [...]

"Across OECD countries, governments are having to work with shrinking public budgets while designing policies to make education more effective and responsive to growing demand. The 2011 edition of Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators enables countries to see themselves in the light of other countries' performance. It provides a broad array of comparable indicators on [...]

China, People's Republic of
This website is provided by the China's University And College Admission System (CUCAS), "the official online portal for international students applying to China's universities". The different rankings provide an overview over "top universities" concerning different subjects, different programmes (undergraduate, [...]

(Professional) Associations and Unions

China, People's Republic of
On its homepage, the Chinese Education and Research Network (CERNET) provides information about the Chinese education system (last updated in 2001), sorted by education sectors. You will also find some information about educational research, policy and statistics. Unfortunately, most of the English information seems [...]

China, People's Republic of
The "National Committee of the Chinese Educational, Scientific, Cultural, Health and Sports Workers' Union" (JKWWT) is a socalled Industrial Union and member of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU). Its website provides information on the work of the committee, on news about working conditions in the [...]

German Commitment in China

China, People's Republic of; Germany
Official website of the German-Chinese Year of Science and Education 2009/10. The website provides information on research and educational policies, on education landsacapes, on educational and university cooperation, on events, partners, supported projects and official statements and memoranda. [Abstract: [...]

Germany; China, People's Republic of
Under the category "International Affairs", the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) provides information on the partnership between Germany and China in the educational and research sector. The website provides an introductory text on the partnership, as well as news on relevant events [...]

Germany; China, People's Republic of
This website provides information on the official cooperation in education and research between Germany and China. Among others, this includes information on funding opportunities, on the political framework, on priorities of the cooperation, on research and education in China, on the German-Chinese [...]

Germany; China, People's Republic of
The Sino-German Centre for Science Promotion (CDZ) was created jointly by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) and the German Rsearch Foundation (DFG). The cooperation therefor mainly takes place in the natural, life, engineering and managament sciences. The website provides information [...]

Research Literature on Education in China

The German Education Portal provides an integrated search over several databases in Germany and two international databases containing literature from the educational research. [Abstract: Editors of Education Worldwide]

The German Education Portal provides an integrated search over several databases in Germany and two international databases containing literature from the educational research. [Abstract: Editors of Education Worldwide]

Im folgenden Beitrag wird Bildung in China mit dem Schwerpunkt Volksrepublik China (VR China) unter den Aspekten der Bildungsgeschichte, der Bildungsadministration, der Bildungsplanung, der Struktur des Bildungssystems, des privaten Bildungssektors und der Erwachsenenbildung abgehandelt. Zu einem besseren Verständnis werden zunächst einige Angaben zur Geschichte Chinas [...]

China`s BRICS Cooperations

Brazil; international; China, People's Republic of; India; Russian Federation
"Ciência sem Fronteiras" (Science Without Borders) is a broad Brasilian scholarship programm. It aims at promoting up to 100,000 Brasilian students until 2014/2015 and helping them to spend part of their studies in a foreign country.The website provides information [...]

China, People's Republic of; Brazil
[Please note: As the original website is not available anymore, we link to a copy from the Internet Archive as of 2013]
Short article by the China Scholarship Council on the China-Brazil Education Forum (Diálogo Brasil-China em Educação) held on 19-21.11.12 in Brazil. A focus was on higher [...]

China, People's Republic of; Russian Federation
This chronology of China-Russia cooperation from 1999-2002 is provided by the Chinese TV channel CCTV. Amongst others, it mentions the "Sino-Russian Committee of Cooperation in Education, Culture, Health and Sports", which took place in december 2000, as well as the following meetings. The last [...]

China, People's Republic of; India
This information is provided by the Chinese embassy in India. You will find information for Indian students who would like to study in China, information on language courses as well as news on cooperation between India and China in the educational sector. [Abstract: Editors of Education Worldwide]

"The paper studies the modalities which are used by China in its human resource cooperation with Africa in general, and where relevant with South Africa in particular. It covers the human resource dimensions of the Forum on China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), pledges, paying particular attention to the latest round of commitments from the November 2009 Ministerial Conference in [...]

China, People's Republic of; Africa South of the Sahara
This article was published in the University World News and provides an overview over the current African-Chinese relationship and cooperation in the field of education. The author also compares this relationship to the nort-south relationship between Europe / USA and Africa. Milton O [...]

This paper was presented at the China-Africa Links Workshop 2006 at the Center on China's Transnational Relations of the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology. "This paper reviews the course of Sino-African Education Cooperation from 1949 till present, and also summarizes its characteristics, experience, and lessons. The more-than-50-year Sino-African Education [...]