Effective measures should be taken to address the rising dropout rate among students in rural schools, urged lawmakers and political advisers meeting in Beijing this week.
A recent survey by the Central Committee of China Association for Promoting Democracy shows the rate of dropouts in rural junior high schools has approached nearly 40 percent. Among the dropouts, 16.7 percent have chosen to earn a living away from their hometown and 48.3 percent stayed at home as farmers.
The rising dropout rate has gravely impaired rural educational development, authorities said. It will inevitably influence the quality of farmers and hinder rural economic and social development, said Wen Jiating, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
Zhang Chengfen, also a member of the CPPCC National Committee, urged the central government to set an agenda to address the issue.
Wen said the rising dropout rate is tied both to the financial concerns of parents and student boredom. "The patterns of rural education should be modified so that it is oriented toward not only enabling students to pass college entrance examinations, but also improving the quality of farmers as a whole," said Wen.
Wen said, rural schools should stop following the steps of urban schools in the design of teaching materials, which should be rearranged in a way that benefits rural students in their future work and lives.
The income gap between urban and rural teachers should also be bridged so that high-caliber teachers are willing to work in farm areas, Wen added.
Deputies to the National People's Congress also suggested that pro-education policies and mechanisms should be instituted to support rural students in less developed regions.