Abstract
Once considered the weak link in China’s education, early childhood education has seen unprecedented development in recent years. The rapid development of China’s economy and the implementation of social and economic reforms have been accompanied by swift development of the preschool education sector. The growth of preschool education has also posed some challenges and difficulties. It has been necessary to ensure the quality of the preschool education against the background of rapid expansion and to meet the needs of socially disadvantaged rural and migrant children. This chapter reviews the development of early childhood education in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) from a historical perspective and discusses strategies that have been implemented to overcome challenges posed by reforms to the preschool sector. Since 2010, the State has clearly taken more responsibility for preschool education. This is reflected in the recently issued guidelines and legislation and increased funding for the sector. The proper implementation of these initiatives will ensure that China will have a high-quality and effective system of preschool education.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
Before 1994, data from the Ministry of Education was only provided for the three types of public kindergartens. From 1994, data are also provided for private kindergartens.
- 2.
This categorization applies to mainstream local kindergartens.
References
Compilation Group of the History of Preschool Education in China. (1989). Selection of materials on the history of preschool education in China. Beijing, China: The People’s Education Press.
Department of Development and Planning, Ministry of Education. (2002). Educational statistics yearbook of China 2001. Beijing, China: The People’s Education Press.
Department of Development and Planning, Ministry of Education. (2009). Educational statistics yearbook of China 2008. Beijing, China: The People’s Education Press.
Department of Development and Planning, Ministry of Education. (2010). Educational statistics yearbook of China 2009. Beijing, China: The People’s Education Press.
Department of Education, Zhejiang Province. (2009). Statistical communiqué on Zhejiang education development in 2009. Retrieved October 10, 2014, from http://www.zjedu.gov.cn/news/16154.html
Fan, F., Su, L. Y., Gill, M. K., & Birmaher, B. (2010). Emotional and behavioral problems of Chinese left-behind children: A preliminary study. Social Psychiatry & Psychiatric Epidemiology, 45(6), 655–664.
Feng, X. X. (2015). Early childhood education in China: Moving forward through reforms. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Government Administration Council of the Central People’s Government. (1951, October 1). Decision to change the education system. Retrieved October 10, 2014, from http://www.reformdata.org/content/20130222/17235.html
Government Administration Council of the Central People’s Government. (1979, October 11). Minutes of national meeting on nursery and kindergarten education. Retrieved November 15, 2014, from http://www1.people.com.cn/item/flfgk/gwyfg/1979/L35301197904.html
Hu, B. Y., & Roberts, S. K. (2013). A qualitative study of the current transformation to rural village early childhood in China: Retrospect and prospect. International Journal of Educational Development, 33(4), 316–324.
Jiang, Y., Pang, L.J., & Sun, J. (2017). Early childhood teachers’ professional development in China (Chapter 6). In N. Rao, J. Zhou, & J. Sun (Eds.), Early childhood education in Chinese societies. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer.
Lascarides, V. C., & Hinitz, B. F. (2011). History of early childhood education. New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis.
Liu, Y., & Pan, Y. J. (2013). A review and analysis of the current policy on early childhood education in mainland China. International Journal of Early Years Education, 21(2–3), 141–151.
Ministry of Education. (2001, July 2). Guiding framework for kindergarten education (Trial version). Retrieved December 20, 2014, from http://www.gov.cn/gongbao/content/2002/content_61459.htm
Ministry of Education. (2010, July 29). National medium and long-term education reform and development plan (2010–2020). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from http://www.moe.edu.cn/publicfiles/business/htmlfiles/moe/moe_838/201008/93704.html
Ministry of Education., National Development and Reform Commission. & Ministry of Finance of the People’s Republic of China. (2014, November 3). Suggestions on implementing the second round of three-year action plan for early childhood education. Retrieved November 11, 2015, from http://www.moe.gov.cn/srcsite/A26/s3327/201411/t20141105_178318.html
Ministry of Education. (2015a, July 30). Statistical communiqué on national education development in 2014. Retrieved October 31, 2015, from http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_xwfb/gzdt_gzdt/s5987/201507/t20150730_196698.html
Ministry of Education. (2015b). Educational statistics database. Retrieved October 10, 2015, from http://www.moe.edu.cn/s78/A03/moe_560/jytjsj_2014/
Ministry of Education. (2015c, November 24). Evaluation report of national medium and long-term education reform and development plan (2010–2020): early childhood education. Retrieved December 1, 2015, from http://www.eol.cn/html/jijiao/xiao/2015ghgy/
Ministry of Health & Ministry of Education. (2010, September 6). Measures for the healthcare management of nurseries and kindergartens. Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.moh.gov.cn/mohzcfgs/pgz/201010/49391.shtml
Ministry of Labor and Personnel & the State Education Commission. (1987, March 9). Standards for the institutional organization of day and boarding kindergartens. Retrieved October 20, 2014, from http://www.moe.gov.cn/s78/A26/jces_left/moe_705/s3327/201001/t20100128_82001.html
Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress. (1990, December 28). Law of the People’s Republic of China on the protection of disabled persons. Retrieved November 10, 2014, from http://www.gov.cn/banshi/2005-08/04/content_20235.htm
Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress. (1991, September 4). Law of the People’s Republic of China on the protection of minors. Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.lawinfochina.com/display.aspx?lib=law&id=5624&CGid=
Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress. (1992, October 1). Law of the People’s Republic of China on maternal and infant health care. Retrieved January 10, 2015, from http://www.lawinfochina.com/display.aspx?lib=law&id=4492&CGid=
Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress. (1993, October 31). Teachers law of the People’s Republic of China. Retrieved October 10, 2014, from http://www.npc.gov.cn/englishnpc/Law/2007-12/12/content_1383815.htm
Su, L. (2010, August 5). How to solve the problems of difficult access to kindergartens and the high tuition fees? China Education Daily. Retrieved from http://www.jyb.cn/china/gnsd/201008/t20100805_380076.html
Sun, J., & Rao, N. (2017). Growing up in Chinese families and societies (Chapter 2). In N. Rao, J. Zhou, & J. Sun (Eds.), Early childhood education in Chinese societies. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer.
Tang, S., & Zhong, Z. H. (1993). History of Preschool Education in China. Beijing, China: The People’s Education Press.
The General Assembly of the United Nations. (1989, November 20). Convention on the rights of the child. Retrieved October 20, 2014, from http://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/crc.aspx
The State Council. (1992, February 26). China’s outline of child development in the 1990s. Retrieved July 30, 2014, from http://www.wsic.ac.cn/policyandregulation/47666.htm
The State Council. (2001, May 22). China’s outline of child development 2001–2010. Retrieved October 20, 2014, from http://www.mca.gov.cn/article/zwgk/fvfg/shflhshsw/200711/20071100003401.shtml
The State Council. (2010a, November 3). The State Council executive meeting chaired by Premier WEN Jiabao to develop political measures to promote early childhood education. Retrieved November 20, 2014, from http://www.gov.cn/ldhd/2010-11/03/content_1737322.htm
The State Council. (2010b, November 21). Suggestions on current development of early childhood education. Retrieved November 25, 2014, from http://www.moe.gov.cn/publicfiles/business/htmlfiles/moe/moe_1778/201011/111850.html
The State Education Commission. (1989, June 5). Procedural regulations for kindergartens. Retrieved October 10, 2014, from http://www.moe.gov.cn/srcsite/A02/s5911/moe_621/201511/t20151119_220023.html
The State Education Commission. (1995, March 8). Education law of the People’s Republic of China. Retrieved July 20, 2014, from http://old.moe.gov.cn/publicfiles/business/htmlfiles/moe/moe_619/200407/1316.html
UNICEF. (1990a). Plan of action for implementing the world declaration on the survival, protection and development of children in the 1990s. Retrieved October 20, 2014, from http://www.unicef.org/wsc/plan.htm
UNICEF. (1990b, September 30). World declaration on the survival, protection and development of children. Retrieved October 20, 2014, from http://www.unicef.org/wsc/declare.htm
Wen, M., & Lin, D. H. (2012). Child development in rural China: Children left behind by their migrant parents and children of nonmigrant families. Child Development, 83(1), 120–136.
Xiong, B. Q. (2015, August 25). Providing children with more access to public kindergartens. China Youth Daily. Retrieved from http://zqb.cyol.com/html/2015-08/05/nw.D110000zgqnb_20150805_4-02.htm
Ye, J. Z., & Pan, L. (2011). Differentiated childhoods: Impacts of rural labour migration on left-behind children in China. The Journal of Peasant Studies, 38(2), 355–377.
Zeng, X. D. (2008). A design of an appropriate early childhood education funding system in China. Chinese Education & Society, 41(2), 8–19.
Zhang, Y. (2012, February 24). The proportion of governmental financial investment in early childhood education should be clarified in legislation of early childhood education. Legal Daily. Retrieved from http://epaper.legaldaily.com.cn/fzrb/content/20120224/Articel03004GN.htm
Zhu, J., & Wang, X. C. (2005). Contemporary early childhood education and research in China. In B. Spodek & O. N. Saracho (Eds.), Contemporary perspectives in early childhood education, Vol. (7): International perspectives (pp. 55–77). Greenwich, CT: Information Age.
Zhu, J. X. (2008). Implementation of and reflection on Western thought in early childhood education in the Chinese mainland. Journal of Basic Education, 17(1), 3–16.
Zhu, M. J. (2007). A review on the development of early childhood education in China. Retrieved December 10, 2014, from http://child.cersp.com/sTsg/sJywz/200707/1062.html
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Feng, Xx. (2017). An Overview of Early Childhood Education in the People’s Republic of China. In: Rao, N., Zhou, J., Sun, J. (eds) Early Childhood Education in Chinese Societies. International Perspectives on Early Childhood Education and Development, vol 19. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1004-4_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1004-4_4
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-024-1003-7
Online ISBN: 978-94-024-1004-4
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)