File photo: A Chinese rural school

It’s a school that only has three students and five teachers left. Can this type of school possibly make it? 

Mr. Zheng, whose kid is a student of Cai Jiapo School in Hu county, central China’s Xi’an, wondered aloud this question as the school faces closure. There have been rumors saying that the school is facing consolidation. Since then, parents began transferring their children to other schools. Before long, the school went from 50 students down to three. 

Hu county officials denied ever releasing any consolidation notifications. And despite the fact that transferring schools is ultimately the parent’s own decision, this rumor has already caused a clear impact. Analyzing the consequences of this rumor, though, one can see a new trend emerging within education and the management of schools in rural China. 

The number of schools in China is decreasing while the students are increasing. This stems from the consolidation of schools, particularly in rural areas. Many parents believe sending their children to “central” schools will save them the hassle of having to transfer schools down the road. They believe that local schools lack the quality and resources offered by their central counterparts. The problem is psychological, too. As rural schools have been subjected to consolidation in the past, Chinese parents feel that the remaining schools will eventually follow suit. Rather than dealing with the uncertainty, they prefer sending their children to the urban schools. 

We don’t want our rural schools closing, and we certainly don’t want for parents to think that they must send their children to the city in order to obtain a quality education. In July, the State Council released an opinion piece outlining the steps necessary for reforming county and rural education. The piece proposed moving forward on making nationwide education standards, including standardizing teacher training, setting a fixed quota for public funds, fairly allocating equipment, etc. The aim is to harmonize compulsory education and China’s urbanization. Rural schools shouldn’t be eliminated. Instead, we must work towards establishing equilibrium in how schools are run in the city and towns versus the countryside.