SOCIAL, POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC FACTORS OF SCHOOL RENEWAL IN CHINA

Abstract

The article analyzes social, political and economic factors of school renewal in China. The article discloses political, economic and social processes in China from 70’s of the 20th century to our days. Radical reorganization of the education system in China began in late 70’s to enhance quality of education. Another reason for reorganization of the education system was to let all Chinese citizens study at school as many of them didn’t have such possibility in the past. The new program for education, which has defined the strategy of the Government of China for years to reform the general secondary education, was first officially announced at the XI Congress of the CPC in 1977. It became a part of the so-called «Four Modernizations Program» (industry, agriculture, science and technology and defense). The government of China, which came to power after the death of Mao Zedong, announced a shift from broad political revolution to peaceful evolution of building «a socialism with Chinese characteristics». The need for reform was determined by internal factors, such as old management system, backward economy, etc. as well as external ones, such as accelerated development of Southeast Asian countries in the 1960-70 of the 20th century. The development of science and technology, and the social progress, needed improvement of qualitative characteristics of human resources, increase of the number of skilled personnel, including scientific and technological ones. Education was officially recognized the basics of a perspective plan of country development and its modernization has become an important strategic element of economic development for the next 20 years. In the last years of the twentieth century before joining the WTO it was decided to move from the strategy of “Catching up development” to the strategy of “preferences selection”. In 2010 the last “State Plan for Renewal and Development of Education in China was adopted for the period from 2010 to 2020”. Under the Plan, the educational reform aimed at improving the quality of the population, the development of education in close connection with scientific progress. The article also explains methods and the main ideas of school renewal which are characterized by systematic sequence with the usage of effective tools for its implementation.