Elementary Education in China

This chapter introduces elementary educationElementary education in China, the first stage in formal education. The first part of this chapter provides an overview of elementary education in China with the situation in major developed countries presented as a reference. Then, Shanghai and California are compared to further understand excellence in elementary educationElementary education, based on publicly accessible statistics retrieved from OECD, official yearbooks, and government websites. Our results demonstrate that China has been doing a remarkable job serving the highest number of children in the world and has been comparable with excellent elementary educational systems across the world with regard to total educational expenditure, gross enrollmentEnrollment rate, student–teacher ratio, student academic abilities, as well as the qualityQuality of educational facilities. However, it still falls behind in terms of educational expenditure per student and the composition of the highest educational degree received by teachers. The second part of this chapter further introduces elementary educationElementary education in China from four aspects, including featured educational practices, stories of inspiring teachers, contemporary educational research, and critical educational policies. Examinations in this chapter suggest that policies, research, and practices go hand-in-hand in improving the quality of elementary educationElementary education in China by emphasizing educational equityEquity, morality in education, reducing student burdens, and promoting students’ well-beingWell-being and holistic development. In sum, elementary educationElementary education in China has been and will further increase its capacity in supporting students’ lifelong development and the sustainable development of the country.