Female Education in China - Essay Example

Name: John Zhang Course ID: __________ Student ID: __________ China: Economic Relationship between Female Education and Fertility Despite building an international rapport in International trade and market after a long and tedious struggle of twenty years, it would not be dubious if we see China in the twentieth century still lagging behind in the Education matters, rejuvenating its policies. The reason is simple as Chinese government has always been busy and too much engaged in making its position on a global platform, so it never had the time to concentrate upon those issues, which arose due to female illiteracy. However Chinese Government is now devoted in taking measures to promote women rights with respect to education, population and development in context with economic and social factors and women reproductive health care. One reason for which the Chinese Government never bothered about women’s issues might be that despite being a member of WTO, it remained unsuccessful in making its importance, as it felt it was not recognized as an important member of WTO. Whatever be the reason for such ignorance, the vital part is that now the Government is serious about providing and promoting services for women with respect to education and fertility so that they can bring up a better generation. Importance of Women in China – History It was until 1930s that literacy rate in China was low, rather unrecognized in rural as well as urban areas when rural reconstruction movements of the 1930s made its significance. The movement was not that much successful to attain the parents’ attention to take care of their daughters, however the difference it made was that boys’ rate increased significantly in primary and secondary schools irrespective of the fact the schools were part time or full time. One of the main reasons for possessing the traditional concept for females in China apart from the male dominating society is their involvement in earning livelihood while engaging in household skills. An illiterate mother can only think about the ways of getting her daughter married. She does not care about her future, career and above all what her daughter would teach her children when she would be at her mother’s place. In 1930s, John L. Buck conducted an organized survey of rural areas according to which only 2 per cent of the female population aged 7 years and above had ever attended school among which only 1 per cent were able to read a common Chinese letter, while among males 45 per cent attended school and 30 per cent were able to identify commonly used letters (Buck, 1937). However the situation today is far better than what it was 60 years ago, but still the Government needs more educated mothers, wives and daughters to take part in the development of the economy. China’s recent success in limiting fertility reflects more than just a very strong family planning program. Despite a post-World War II history of modest economic growth and significant political and cultural changes, China has an impressive record in primary healthcare. China’s World Bank classification as a low- income country belies its high life expectation at birth. The 1983 life expectations at birth for females in China were listed as 69 and 71 years, or slightly higher than the mean for the upper-middle income developing nations. The 1983 per capita income levels in China were roughly one-sixth the mean for the same upper-middle income nations. (Hess, 1988, p. 145) The late 1970s and early 1980s were characterized by a surge of interest in gender differentiation. This interest was in part a rejection of the desexed, politically turbulent years of the Cultural Revolution. Women’s resentment toward a legalized gender equality that held men as the standard also played a large role in outburst for being ‘women’. However the 1990s era started a change in economic structure as well as female policies. Relationship between Education and Fertility Chinese economic structure and socialism ensures a high stage of women’s liberation by eliminating private ownership and practicing gender equality in all spheres. That is the main reason for following social practices with reference of different theories. Gender equality was written into the constitution, and the implementation of gender equality in education and employment was effective, at least in urban areas and the state-owned sector. (Hershatter et al, 1998, p. 21) Many Chinese women scholars and activists have been able to engage in projects for which they would be unlikely to get support from their own institutions or the government. Aside from large-scale research projects on reproductive health, the Ford Foundation has funded projects on rural female development, girl’s education and the mobility of the female population. Those projects have taught feminist perspectives and approaches to women’s problems. More important, this learning does not end with the completion of a specific research project. The women involved have continued their examination of Chinese women’s issues with their newly acquired feminist knowledge. For example, a group of women was funded by the Ford Foundation to with a slogan “to translate Our Bodies, Our Selves into Chinese”. In the process, they formed an organization on women’s health and engaged in further research on Chinese women’s health issues. Cases such as this indicate that in the past few years, intellectual and material resources from abroad have served as a strong stimulus in the growth of a feminist movement in China. (Hershatter et al, 1998, p. 27) Although the decision of the Chinese leaders to host the Fourth World Conference on Women (FWCW) was mainly one of political expedience, it had some immediate positive effects on women. In its effort to present the best face at the FWCW, the government began to give ad hoc support to some projects intended to benefit women. For example, a project called “Welcoming the FWCW, Millions of Loving Hearts Devoted to Spring Buds” coordinated resources from both the government and the public to help thousands of girls from poor regions begin schooling. Chinese Government official mobilization welcomed the Fourth World Conference on Women in which the nation saw a positive change in the establishment of girl’s educational institutes. Out of their concern to look as modern and progressive as Western countries at the time of the conference, the chief officials working on the conference began to show interest in the state of females’ studies. In February 1994, the National Committee of Education and the national Women’s Federation jointly called a two-day conference on women’s studies. The conference chair was Peng Peiyun, chair of the China Organizing Committee for the FWCW. The agenda of the conference was to discuss women’s studies at home and abroad and to make suggestions for China’s preparation for the FWCW, but its main goal was to give government officials an idea of what women’s studies was and how to present Chinese women’s studies at the FWCW. When directors of women’s studies centers in universities were invited to the conference, some twenty-five centers responded. Apparently, many of these were formed in a rush after the universities received the conference notice. Very likely, many women’s centers consisted only of a name and a deputy who could attend the conference. Nevertheless, universities all over the country learned that women’s studies were now supported by the Government. Chinese Government today has acknowledged the fact that literacy, women and fertility is a triangular prism who’s central concern is “women”. Women’s awareness can only be created if they possess a good school education, in this way they would be able to cope up with the fertility, family planning and health problems. Once they are among the literate and self-aware women, they would be successful in bringing up healthy families as it is the mother who runs house hold affairs and no doubt education makes women perfect wives and caring mothers. Chinese Government has been able to wake up after a long period of ignorance, and is now making strategies as to how to utilize women’s awareness for a successful economy. All China’s Women Federation (ACWF) along with the Poverty Alleviation Office of the State Council has deemed to change the economic and social status of women by opening several schools in urban and rural areas. Apart from this, it has managed to run a campaign in the coastal areas where women are illiterate and unconscious of the role they are playing in serving the Chinese economy. The federation has provided the sense of educating little girls in villages and rural areas and for this purpose they have targeted girls masses while providing schooling to them at their homes. Most recently, ACWF has launched its campaign named “Two learns and two competes” with a purpose to provide 1) school education to rural women 2) Technical perfection to their existing work. The campaign motivates the women while developing in them a sense of competition against men of their society. ACWF efforts have made 1.6 million women say goodbye to poverty. While developing in women a sense of independence, ACWF is successful in setting up institutes for technical perfection for women in which proper guidance and training sessions are conducted, and for those who are already trained ACWF after professional training employs them to further spread literacy and self awareness by joining their campaign. In this way ACWF has played an important role in providing livelihood to the unaware. (China, 2006) Restructuring the present School organization Presently, the Government is restructuring various private and public schools particularly keeping in view those schoolgirls who because of illiterate concepts of their parents and family are deprived of sending to schools. In this context recent Private School Promoting Act has provided great support for the legalization of such schools authority and promotion. Reshaping the Higher School Management Central and local Government of China is keen to educate their young girls, especially those who cannot afford education. For this purpose the Government has established various investment and charity funds centers, and has also taken steps in order to remove poverty from such families who because of lack of proper resources are unable to send their daughters to school. Government is taking care of such families and is also providing proper health care to enunciate those parents who possess many children. For this purpose those parents who send their daughters to school, their other children are also taken care of by the financial fund they receive from the Government. The Government has introduced a new system of higher school management, which has adopted uniform policies and procedures in order to avoid any differences that often create between girls and boys. The main purpose of the Government by reshaping schools is to acquire the importance globally which they are lacking. Ensuring a Long term Education System The most positive step towards a long-term success is that the Government has not abolished any one the sub-standard schools or colleges, instead it has developed the existing schools into quality ones. The government has hired capable professional teachers who offer their help to even those who are not qualifies to earn their livelihood by teaching. In this respect where on one hand the Government is determined to provide quality education, on the other it is also taking measures to abolish unemployment. Training sessions are conducted in such schools to develop a better understanding which would help increase female literacy level. The Government acknowledges that the main hindrance in getting the girls to schools is sex discrimination. For this purpose the new “law on compulsory Education” has passed according to which it is necessary for all children of a family whether a boy or a girl to attend regular school classes. Furthermore the Government is taking measures to reduce the main obstructions for girls to discontinue education, which includes poverty, cultural and social backwardness and unwanted pregnancy. Unwanted pregnancy, one of the main factors of illiteracy is the problem of many young girls in China, which require dedicated educational campaigns along with female doctors who teach the girls how to avoid pregnancy and how to lead a healthy sex life. Such campaign not only literate girls and their families on health issues but also on fertility concerns. Although with the Government improvement of literacy levels, primary schools’ admission has reached 98.69% in boys, and the ratio of girls that are being sent to school is 98.61%. (According to 2003 Report of Educational Development in China) The Education Ministry of China is still on its way to improve its education standard particularly the primary and basic education for girls, for which the Government has introduced several programs like those who belong to the rural areas or those who are unable to afford education, such students are provided with student loans, study programs, various allowances etc. Even the Government is making its effort in order to promote basic primary education to educate those young girls who belong to families that remains hand to mouth, so the Provincial Government along with Ministry of Education is taking steps to exempt such girls from tuition fees, textbook and course expenses etc. The main reason for emphasizing upon girls education apart from the ‘discrimination’ cause is that the Government after keeping their women several years in illiteracy has arrived to the conclusion that only today’s educated girls can become tomorrow’s family mentor. This has gradually being realized by most of the non-industrialized nations to educate their younger generation particularly females so that they may escort a healthy family including the upbringing of children in positive ways. Today’s educated girls may become tomorrow’s helping hand not only for their families but also for the economy. Works Cited & References Bailey J, Paul (1990) “Reform the People: Changing Attitudes Towards Popular Education in Early Twentieth-Century China”: Edinburgh University Press: Edinburgh. Buck, John L. “Land Utilization in China”. Nanjing: University of Nanjing Press, 1937. Census of China (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Almanac 1986), 1982 China Statistical Year Book, Beijing: Foreign Languages Pres, 1988 Hershatter Gail, Honig Emily, Mann Susan & Rofel Lisa, (1998) “Guide to Women’s Studies in China”: Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California: Berkeley, CA. Muller Anne, (2000) “Women and girls: education, not discrimination”. In OECD Observer. Volume: a. Issue: 223. Lynne Barbara & Mori Rowland, (2002) “Thomas H. C. Lee. Education in Traditional China: A History” In China Review International. Volume: 9. Issue: 2. Page Number: 478+. Hess N, Peter, (1988) “Population Growth and Socioeconomic Progress in Less Developed Countries: Determinants of Fertility Transition”: Praeger Publishers: New York. ChinaEconomy, accessed from < www.china.org.cn/english/2003chinamarket/79411.htm> China, 2006 Gender Equality and Women’s Development in China, (2005, Aug 24) accessed from Chakrabarti Shreemati, (1998) “Women and adult literacy in China”, accessed from < http://ignca.nic.in/ks_41036.htm > Read More