Authorities help girls into school
Source: Xinhua |
March 7, 2011, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
AUTHORITIES in a mainly Muslim Hui autonomous prefecture in northwest China's Gansu Province are combating poverty and gender discrimination to keep all school-age girls in the classroom.
Figures released last week showed all school-age children in its eight counties were attending primary school, and the attendance rate at -junior high schools had reached 95.5 percent.
"This shows girls' schooling, a problem that has troubled us for decades, is settled to some extent," said Ma Yongming, deputy education chief in Linxia.
Linxia, with a population of 2 million, is dubbed "China's own Mecca" as more than half of its residents are Muslims.
Until the mid 1990s, only about 60 percent of its girls went to school. Inadequate education left 80 percent of women aged 15 and above illiterate.
"While some parents refused to send girls to school due to poverty, many others believed it was a waste to spend the money on their daughters, who would be married off to other people's family and there would be no return," according to Ma.
Boys, however, were often treated differently.
"Parents rarely hesitated to send their sons to school," said Tang Yuwen, vice president of Beiling Village Primary School. "But some were reluctant to send daughters to school - even if it was free."
To ensure equal access to schooling for all children, the Gansu provincial education department launched a Sino-British joint research project in 1999.
The project on basic education was aimed at -improving school -facilities and teaching standards in Linxia.
It also offered scholarships for girls and trained young women to become teachers at village schools.
Starting in 2006, the Chinese government removed the biggest reason that stopped girls from going to school by exempting fees for all primary and middle school students in the western regions.
By last year, almost all school-age children in Linxia were attending school, except the few who were mentally or physically disabled.
China's central government launched the compulsory education policy in 1986, making primary and junior high school education mandatory for children aged over six.
Figures released last week showed all school-age children in its eight counties were attending primary school, and the attendance rate at -junior high schools had reached 95.5 percent.
"This shows girls' schooling, a problem that has troubled us for decades, is settled to some extent," said Ma Yongming, deputy education chief in Linxia.
Linxia, with a population of 2 million, is dubbed "China's own Mecca" as more than half of its residents are Muslims.
Until the mid 1990s, only about 60 percent of its girls went to school. Inadequate education left 80 percent of women aged 15 and above illiterate.
"While some parents refused to send girls to school due to poverty, many others believed it was a waste to spend the money on their daughters, who would be married off to other people's family and there would be no return," according to Ma.
Boys, however, were often treated differently.
"Parents rarely hesitated to send their sons to school," said Tang Yuwen, vice president of Beiling Village Primary School. "But some were reluctant to send daughters to school - even if it was free."
To ensure equal access to schooling for all children, the Gansu provincial education department launched a Sino-British joint research project in 1999.
The project on basic education was aimed at -improving school -facilities and teaching standards in Linxia.
It also offered scholarships for girls and trained young women to become teachers at village schools.
Starting in 2006, the Chinese government removed the biggest reason that stopped girls from going to school by exempting fees for all primary and middle school students in the western regions.
By last year, almost all school-age children in Linxia were attending school, except the few who were mentally or physically disabled.
China's central government launched the compulsory education policy in 1986, making primary and junior high school education mandatory for children aged over six.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
