Educational Reform Flashcards
What was education like in China in 1949?
Hint: it was shit/very poor
Hint: base your answer on one contemporary study of education in rural China
1) only 45.2% 🚹 and 2.2% 🚺 received any schooling
2) 🚹 an average of 4 years of schooling / 🚺 (if attended) 3 years
3) 8️⃣0️⃣% of population were illiterate
4) when children were educated: CLASSICAL education (Confucian concepts 📜😐). Practical subjects (needed for a modern economy) like arithmetic, science—> NOT included ⚗️🔬📊:(
5) ELITIST— best kindergartens and primary schools: a) located in the cities’ wealthier neighbourhoods 🏦b) charged prohibitive tuition fees 🧓🏽c) set entrance exams that reduced access👨🏿🏫
How did the communist party seek to radically alter the illiteracy situation after taking power, with reference to primary schools?
Once in power, the Communist regime sought to radically alter the illiteracy situation.
National primary school system introduced for the first time
1949-1957: Number of primary school students increased from 26m to 64m
By 1964: the literacy rate at 64%
How did the communist party seek to radically alter the illiteracy situation after taking power, with references to adult peasants?
Adult peasants could go to short courses in winter schools.
Party claimed 42m peasants attended in the winter of 1951-52
How did China cope with the initial lack of scientists, doctors and technical experts?
Universities focused on producing more of them
New polytechnic & engineering institutes were created
Many were sent to Russia to train at unis there
Tell me allllllllllllllllll about the new alphabet bro
The Chinese language? Verrrrry difficult to learn— it used ideograms instead of an alphabet— what a joke!! Not only that, but these symbols varied greeeeatly from region to region: people from different parts of the country couldn’t understand each other at all.
Soooo
A new form of written language was introduced to simplify the traditional, highly complex characters.
Called Pinyin— became the official language of the whole of China.
What were the failures of the Chinese education system, with regards to elitism?
Education system REMAINED ELITIST
Key schools established: students had to pass an entrance exam: attracted BRIGHTEST pupils and BEST teachers
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ became the preserve of GOVERNMENT officials kids > promises of greater education opportunities for all
What were the failures of the Chinese education system, with regards to funding?
Education remained WOEFULLY underfunded: just 6.4% is the budget spent on Culture And Education In 1952
What were the failures of the Chinese education system, with regards to the standards of teaching?
Very poor in rural schools:
many teachers tasked with spreading literacy were barely educated themselves.
What were the failures of the Chinese education system, with regards to winter schools?
NOT effective in creating literacy: many peasants forgot what they had learned from one winter to the next
What were the failures of the Chinese education system, regarding the Great Leap Forward?
Many students couldn’t attend school: working on backyard furnaces
Summarise the failures of the Chinese education system
Elitist Underfunded Poor standard of teaching in rural schools Winter schools ineffective Great Leap Forward
What happened to schools and universities during the Cultural Revolution?
(Young people)
They closed
Up to 130m young people received no formal education.
Many joined the red guards, travelling across the country (rallies, struggle meetings denouncing ‘demons and monsters’- those who refused to denounce four olds)
What happened to teachers during the Cultural Revolution?
Educated representatives of traditional authority
Often victims of revolutionary violence
Many were killed ; books were destroyed
What happened after the Red Guards disbanded with regards to education?
Many didn’t return to school
Instead sent to the countryside to work alongside the peasants
^^^ old elitism remained: children of party members could use their connections to return to their old city lives, those who remained lived a life of rural poverty.
