Excerpts from “The Higher Educational Transformation of China and Its Global Implications”
Following are some excerpts from the paper "The Higher Educational Transformation of China and Its Global Implications" by Yao Li, John Whalley, Shunming Zhang, Xiliang Zhao.
… The number of undergraduate and graduate students in China has been grown at approximately 30% per year since 1999, and the number of graduates at all levels of higher education in China has approximately quadrupled in the last 6 years.
… Much of the increased spending is focused on elite universities, and new academic contracts differ sharply from earlier ones, with no tenure and annual publication quotas often used.
… The educational transformation underway in China seemingly differs from that in other low wage economies at either similar or earlier stages of development, in focusing heavily on tertiary education rather than on primary or secondary (unlike, say, India).
… A further feature of recent Chinese higher educational policy has been both to promote so-called "elite" universities and also to consolidate other universities and reduce their numbers.
… The focus of policy is to elevate a small number of Chinese universities to world class status, and both strengthen them and make them bigger.
… In many of China’s major cities there has also been consolidation of universities, with, say, 4 or 5 small universities in the city consolidated into a large single entity as a way of improving their ranking.
… For example, Beijing Medical University was incorporated into Peking University and was formally renamed Faculty of Health Science,
Peking University in 2000. Eventually, the Central Arts and Design College was incorporated into Tsinghua University and was renamed Faculty of Arts and Design, Tsinghua University in 1999.… institutions of high education in China are now subject to extraordinary pressures to upgrade themselves in terms of objective rankings. High priority is placed on international rankings taken as publications in international journals, citations, and international cooperation.
… It is now accepted as important for universities and related institutions to achieve publication in journals of good ranking and what is generated by publication citations counts equally for Chinese scholars in appointment, maintenance of position, and promotion.
… It is not uncommon for an annual target of three international publications to be set for faculty members, with termination of
employment to occur on non fulfillment.… The primary stress on education attainment is on traditional academic disciplines, especially sciences, but social sciences and business also enter.
… There are three separate sources–government funds, commercial income fiom university-owned companies and entities, tuition and other educational charges such as fees paid by students and parents, …
… In 1998 under a special "985" I’roject,l4 10 of China’s leading universities were given three-year grants in excess of 30 billion RMB (current price) for quality improvements (Wang, 2002). Included in the first round of 985 Project grants were Peking, Tsinghua, Fudan, Zhejiang, and Nanjing Universities. l5 Peklng and Tsinghua universities, the top two ranked institutions, each received 1.8 billion RMB. Afterwards, the Ministry of Education cooperated with provincial or municipal governments and other departments to also develop Shanghai Jiaotong University, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Science and Technology University of China and Harbin Industry University …
… In addition to government funding, higher education institutions in China, also generate significant support by engaging in commercial activities. These include companies and other entities owned by the institutions and which the institutions operate.
… Table 9: Education funding for elite universities in China (2004)
… The main tasks for the higher educational development strategy in the 1 lth 5-Year Plan are as follows. The gross enrollment rate of higher education is to reach 25% of each entering age cohort by 2010 and the total enrollment of higher education is to hit 30 million.
… The "211 Projects" and "985 Project" are to be continued, with an emphasis on technology innovation, cultivating talents with creativity, and improving the capacity for self-innovation, so that top universities in China become an important force in an increasingly innovative nation.
… The educational component of the llth 5-Year Plan is clear in providing for large injections of funds into China’s tertiary educational system. Education is a major focus over the 5 year period of the plan, with the proportion of education expenditures to GDP increasing to 4% in 2010, from 3.4% in 2002. Much of the additional spending is focused on the elite universities, a group of around 20 universities in China, which are thought to have the best students and the capability to grow and mature into major global educational institutions which are comparable to those in the OECD. The research component of university activities is also seen as a central element in generating new ideas and eventually process and production methods which will improve profitability. Educational improvement in both research and student generation is thus seen as a central element of a continued high Chinese growth process.
… The prime emphasis which is now placed on international publications in China has already resulted in large increases in paper submissions to international journals and paper submissions are likely to grow further in the next few years. According to a recent study "Key Figures 2007 on Science, Technology and Innovation", China is now one of the largest producers of scientific output as measured by its share in the world total of peer reviewed scientific articles.
… Evaluated by the most frequently cited papers, China is ranked seventh, lower than South Korea, but still higher than other large developing economies, such as India and Brazil.
… The contractual arrangements in universities in China are a further element of China’s educational transformation, and portend future global change.
… , the tenure system for professors in universities and colleges has been changed significantly. The first changes were made by Peking University in reforming its deep-rooted academic tenure system, and this was followed by other Chinese elite universities. These reforms were implemented in February 2004. Taking Pelung University as an example, the reforms are that only professors enjoy lifelong employment, and the university does not offer tenured positions to associate professors, lecturers and assistant professors. Associate professors in arts and sciences and lecturers in all subjects are offered employment contracts up to 12 years. If associate professors and lecturers fail in their promotions after appraisal and examination of their academic attainments within the contracted period, they are dismissed.
… It is now common for researchers and scholars in many Chinese universities to receive only 3 year contracts and these contracts differ sharply by individual circumstance. And individuals receiving contracts are often given quotas in terms of the number of the publications in designated journals which should be attained within a limited period of time. It is not uncommon for these quotas to specify 3 papers per year in international journals, although what is accepted as an international journal varies sharply from institute to institute.
April 3rd, 2008