Picture: Beijing implements the “double reduction” policy to improve the quality of school education and teaching, and increase classroom extension guidance. The picture shows students attending a public summer nursery school. China News Agency
On August 17, Li Yi, deputy secretary of the Beijing Municipal Education Commission and spokesperson for the Municipal Education Commission, introduced that Beijing has taken “further reducing the burden of students’ homework and off-campus training in compulsory education” as a “major people’s livelihood project” and will strengthen school education. The status of human beings as the main body, improve the quality of classroom teaching in schools, and increase classroom extension counseling. Off-campus training institutions shall not occupy national statutory holidays, rest days, and winter and summer vacations to organize subject training. Institutions will investigate and deal with them as soon as they start classes. Through both internal and external efforts to ensure that the “double reduction” is effectively reduced by the end of 2021, the effect will be significant within two years.
It is understood that in terms of deepening the governance of off-campus training institutions, Beijing will strictly review and approve entry, and will no longer approve new subject training institutions for students in compulsory education, and re-examine and register existing subject training institutions. Subject training must be strictly controlled in time, and national statutory holidays, rest days, and winter and summer vacations must not be used to organize subject training. The “exceeding standard and advanced training” that existed before will be strictly prohibited in the future.
Beijing will also strengthen the management of off-campus training advertising, and strictly prohibit capitalization operations, strictly implement relevant central requirements, and discipline training institutions are not allowed to go public for financing. At the same time, standardize training service behavior, strengthen the supervision of business activities, incorporate the fees for subject-based off-campus training in the compulsory education stage into government guidance price management, clarify the charging standards, and resolutely curb excessively high fees and excessive profit-seeking behavior.
Promote inter-regional flow of teachers to promote education balance
“School services should improve quality and efficiency, and build a high-quality education system, so that every student can learn, learn well, and learn well in school.” Li Yi introduced that Beijing will strengthen the main position of school education and expand quality Coverage of resources, improve the quality of classroom teaching and after-school service, and improve the efficiency of students’ learning in school. In order to narrow the gap in education levels between urban and rural areas, regions, and schools, this summer, many outstanding principals, backbone teachers, special-grade teachers, and senior teachers in Beijing have carried out reasonable flow within the region to promote the high-quality and balanced development of compulsory education.
In the past, not only were students overburdened with homework, but parents also had the task of checking in and revising their homework every day. It is reported that after school starts this fall, there will be new changes in teaching, homework, and tutoring at the compulsory education stage in Beijing. Among them, the homework will be more refined, and there will be more “personalized” homework for different students’ characteristics; after-school activities will be more abundant, not only quality education courses, but also extended classroom guidance, and some junior high schools will also offer evening self-study.
Increase inspections and inspections of training institutions for violations
It is the summer vacation. Although both the central and local governments have made it clear that off-campus training institutions shall not occupy national statutory holidays, weekends, and winter and summer vacations to organize discipline training, but many institutions are still opening courses and renewing fees. The Beijing Municipal Education Commission stated on August 17 that various departments are increasing the intensity of inspections. For training violations that violate the specified time, they will find one, investigate and deal with it, and report it together.
In Beijing, Haidian is the largest area for both on-campus and off-campus training. Wang Fang, director of the Education Commission of Beijing’s Haidian District, introduced on August 17 that the education administrative department and market supervision departments continue to carry out joint law enforcement and inspection work, focusing on the prevention of unlicensed school running, resumption of classes in violation of regulations, price violations, and false advertising. All teaching points of the resumption institution realize remote real-time intelligent monitoring, strengthen the management of the whole process, and strengthen the fund supervision of training institutions through modes such as “risk reserve”, and protect the legitimate rights and interests of students.
On social platforms, many parents in Beijing expressed their support for the above-mentioned two-way effort within and outside the school, believing that the school provides “menu-style” after-school services for students to choose voluntarily, which has enhanced the attractiveness of after-school services compared to the past, and the free line is free. The online learning service has improved the public online teaching platform, and the burden on students and parents can be reduced.
Some parents also pointed out that in the face of the changes brought about by the “double reduction”, there will be some confusion and hesitation about whether to enroll their children in cram school, what parents should do, and so on. Therefore, they hope that there will be more home-school communication. At the same time, it is easy to publish a document and it is difficult to implement it. I hope it can be strictly implemented after the policy is implemented.