They are at a disadvantage from the start: Reflections and Strategies for Basic Education Issues in Rural Western China

Author: Ren Yunchang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-09-01
Features: Western China, including Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, Gansu, Ningxia, Qinghai, Xinjiang, Tibet, Sichuan, Chongqing, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangxi, covering 12 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions. The land area is 6.897 million square kilometers, accounting for 71.5% of the country's total land area; the population is 364.47 million, accounting for 28.7% of the country's total population; it is home to 50 ethnic minorities, accounting for approximately 80% of the country's ethnic minority population. The rural population is close to 300 million, accounting for about 31% of the country's rural population. Children in rural areas of Western China will inevitably participate in future social competition, and the purpose of competition is naturally to strive to become the best. So, can the current basic education in rural areas of Western China cultivate future talents who can excel in social competition? Based on our extensive investigations, we have sufficient reasons to believe: in the fierce competition of future society, children in rural areas of Western China lose at the starting line!