Education and Society in Contemporary China

This course offers a critical overview of various aspects of the education system of contemporary China. Among the issues covered are:

• The recent history of the education system and the factors influencing major shifts in national policy
• The rural-urban divide in Chinese education
• The role of schooling in political socialization (i.e. identity formation, ‘patriotic education’), as this relates to different sectors in Chinese society (Han / ‘minority’, men / women, etc.)
• Tensions between curriculum reform efforts and the public examination system

Students will read and discuss excerpts from Education and Society in Post-Mao China (a new study co-authored by Dr. Vickers and Zeng Xiaodong), and readings by a variety of Chinese and overseas scholars.

Convener: Dr. Edward Vickers, Dept of Education