In March 2021, China unveiled the outline of its 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) for national economic and social development, which sets out a series of targets for the education sector during this key period in the country's efforts to build a modern socialist country.
These targets range from ensuring equitable access to basic public education and improving vocational and technical education to raising the quality of higher education and deepening education reform.
More than four years later, results and statistics summarized at a press conference on Tuesday show that China has not only met these targets but has also made breakthroughs in multiple areas of education.
"On a global scale, China's education system is the largest and of high quality, providing strong assurance that the younger generation has equal access to education," said Education Minister Huai Jinpeng at the press conference.
A major achievement is that China's basic education has reached the average level of high-income countries. The country has steadily improved access to high-quality compulsory education, with 2,895 county-level localities having achieved balanced development in this area. It has also expanded subsidies for students in need, granting more than 1.2 trillion yuan (about 169 billion U.S. dollars) to 630 million eligible recipients between 2021 and 2024.
Moreover, the gross enrollment rate for preschool education has reached 92 percent, surpassing the 90 percent target set for the 2021-2025 period, while the gross enrollment rate for higher education has risen to 60.8 percent, slightly exceeding the 60 percent target.
During the past more than four years, China's higher education institutions have supplied the workforce with more than 55 million graduates and have received more than 75 percent of the country's national awards in natural science and technological invention.
"Chinese universities have achieved original breakthroughs in fields such as life sciences, quantum technology, artificial intelligence, materials science, and space science, while also making progress in philosophy, social sciences, culture, and the arts," Huai said.
China has also established the world's largest vocational education system. According to Vice Minister of Education Xiong Sihao at Tuesday's conference, China now has 87 vocational undergraduate universities, 9,302 secondary vocational schools, and 1,562 vocational colleges, with a total of 34 million students enrolled in these institutions.
In addition, China has promoted the integration of industry and education to better align talent cultivation with regional economic and industrial development.
During this period, China has advanced comprehensive reforms in education. These include optimizing the allocation of resources in basic education, refining the college entrance examination system, and diversifying development pathways for students in higher education.
China's education sector is also opening up further to the world. The country has built the world's largest smart education platform, providing high-quality services to more than 170 million users from over 200 countries and regions.
According to figures released at the press conference, China has engaged in educational cooperation and exchanges with 183 countries and regions, signed mutual agreements on the certification of academic qualifications and degrees with 61 countries and regions, and collaborated with 42 countries and regions to operate joint educational institutions and programs.
Source: Xinhua
