Enhancing university teaching has become a focus of higher education reform policies on the Chinese mainland. Facilitating teacher collaboration within teacher communities is perceived to be an effective way of enhancing teaching quality. Using qualitative methods, we conducted in-depth interviews at a sample university (H) which is a regional…

This study investigates changes to academic work life under recent employment reform in the Chinese Mainland. It employs a mixed-methods research approach, first conducting a survey of 1,770 teachers at nine universities in Mainland China. These nine universities consist of first-tier, second-tier, and ordinary universities. Next, through a…

Chinese higher education institutions have been subjected to the intensive bureaucratic governance led by the central authorities since 1949. Since the new public management has been a burgeoning social discourse, some reforms have been conducted recently, centering on the competitive contract-centered employment of staff, integration of…

This paper examines the impact of reform policies on the work of Chinese teachers. It explores the policy context in which a fragile teaching profession attempts to develop and discusses the dynamics of interacting societal forces that have created the dilemmas for the teachers. The authors argue that while the continual implementation of reform…

As a compulsory course at universities throughout the Chinese Mainland, ideo-political education aims to safeguard university students' political loyalty to the Communist Party. By employing a qualitative research method, this study investigated a renowned comprehensive university in southern China. The case study found that students expressed…

In an attempt to raise China's international competitiveness, the Chinese government has instituted a series of sweeping reforms in recent years, all with the aim of rapidly expanding the number of higher education places within tertiary institutions. However, this rapid rate of expansion has led to a new set of problems, most notably a scarcity…

Research on work life and job satisfaction of university professors is becoming an important research issue in the field of higher education. This study used questionnaires administered to 1 770 teachers from different levels, types, and academic fields of Chinese universities to investigate job satisfaction among university professors and the…

In 2003, a curriculum reform of education was initiated in mainland China to improve the quality of senior secondary education. The major purpose of this reform was to move from a teacher-centred to a student-centred approach in teaching. In order to find out how teachers coped with the challenges of the reform and how their work was affected, an…

Strengthening the transition from school to work is a major educational reform issue on the Chinese Mainland. Starting in 1985, the government began developing a massive secondary vocational education system, which sought to have 50% of all secondary senior level students enrolled in a vocational education programme. In this study, qualitative…

Reviews the issues and trends of vocational/technical education development in less-developed countries focusing on four topics: (1) cost of investment in education; (2) relevance of education and training programs; (3) equity for the trained population; and (4) alternative training and education programs and effects on productivity. (CMK)

In 1985, the Chinese Mainland introduced a policy of decentralization in order to help facilitate the spread of basic education. By looking specifically at the developmental experiences of Shanghai and Shenzhen, we can gain an in depth understanding of the specific circumstances incurred under new education reforms. While undergoing…