This study used the historical research method to explore the Chinese government's role in building world-class universities. We traced the government's role in pushing policies for: (1) accelerating academic improvement; and (2) enhancing the involvement of provincial governments in achieving universities' world-class status. The findings…

Geopolitics is shaping the international education landscape. International education has trationally been used as a tool to boost transnational cooperation, foster multilateral and global ties, and reduce tensions between nations. Such a role has been eroded and international education has been weaponised in the context of escalating political…

Regional higher education growth in non-federal states has not attracted much academic attention. This paper is one of the first attempts to explore China's latest higher education expansion and its systematic and regional impact from the perspective of multi-level governance. This article argues that the state had explicitly utilized the…

Purpose: This study systematically reviews the China's progress in lifelong education (LLE) policies, theories, and practices in the 40 years since its reform and opening-up and provides several guidelines for developing LLE going forward. Design/Approach/Methods: This study analyzes the characteristics of LLE in China through a review of its…

Like all organisations, good governance is a fundamental requirement for the responsible and accountable management of universities in general and open universities in particular. This is to ensure that these (open) universities remain relevant to their mission of facilitating unfettered access to higher education for citizens and at the same time…

The Chinese government has attached great importance to the development of e-learning since its emergence in the 1990s. As a consequence of the implementation of a series of policies, China has made significant achievements in the e-learning arena with respect to infrastructure construction, production of resources, academic education,…

After more than 20 years of practice and construction, China's higher vocational education has developed into an important educational category and become an important force in the development of China's higher education. But in the course of this development, higher vocational education is facing problems such as excessively fast development,…

The article presents the concept of rhetorical agency to understand and analyse the parallel and paradoxical agencies teachers are offered, and limited by, under discourses of globalisation within education. The paper identifies typical arguments, reactions, narratives and metaphors of globalisation. It discusses some of the consequences these…

Compared with the former policies on early childhood education, the policies recently issued in mainland China clearly defined early childhood education as an integral part of education and social public welfare and stipulated the responsibilities of the government in its development, shifting the developmental orientation to promoting social…

The rate and scope of internationalization of Chinese higher education has been unprecedented. Eight sections discuss how: (1) China's internationalization of higher education is on a fast track; (2) The United States is the most favored country destination for Chinese students; (3) There have been recent changes in higher education relations…

Looking at the rise of world-class universities through history, creating an institutional environment in which universities are relatively autonomous, while also ensuring effective material support from the government is essential for the formation of world-class universities. It is worth examining the deteriorating academic environment in China…

China's 985 Project, which came after the 211 Project, is a key program of the Chinese government to create world-class universities and high-level research universities. The central government invested a total of RMB32.9 billion in special funds for phase I (1999-2001) and phase II (2004-2007) of the project, assisting thirty-nine universities.…

Generally, there are two types of Chinese public educational policymaking: problem oriented and ideal oriented. The 985 Project policy clearly exhibits the characteristics of the latter. Usually, the goals of ideal-oriented policymaking are long-term and overarching, so they can play a role in propagating, directing, and encouraging people to…

The development of world-class universities is high on the policy agenda of governments across the globe. China's 985 Project is among the earliest national initiatives to concentrate research funding to build world-class universities. Ten years after it was initiated, the project has enabled selected institutions to improve their research and…

A growing number of national and local governments view child development accounts (CDAs) as an innovative policy tool for social and economic development. This article reviews the global landscape of CDAs, presents three CDA policy cases from Asia, analyzes main themes and discusses potential implications for China. (Contains 1 table.)