Early childhood education in China is defined as the system of education offered to children who are 2-6 years old.
China is growing fast, and the government’s effort to support early childhood education is admirable. In present China, the early education industry is proving beneficial to political, economic, and social aspects surrounding education in China.
To tramp its seriousness about early childhood education, the Chinese government has approved the opening of 70 new kindergartens in Hainan for Fall 2021. This was after Hainan province met its quota for enrolling 42,000 new students. This has undoubtedly enhanced the quality of basic education in China.
Teaching in China is rapidly progressing, and early education is at the pinnacle of steering all this development. For example, the early education market in China has been tremendously growing after the demands towards nurturing quality childhood caring services.
The quality of early education in China plays an essential role in a child’s learning and mental development. This, in turn, contributes to their entire school preparation and general wellbeing. Early education is like the foundation of learning about life, and that is why it should be given significant attention.
To the present date, preschool education in China’s remote areas has developed rapidly. Change has seen kindergartens merge teaching with childcare to help children develop physically, intellectually, and morally to prepare them for formal school education.
The education conducted in kindergartens is a multi-faceted process that is systematic and full of purpose. This means that the education is administered in a lively and invigorating manner focusing on the sound development of the children. Even though playing games is the main activity within this form of education, children should be allowed to express their talents from a young age independently.
To facilitate the guidance offered to children in kindergarten, the government has come up with serious regulations. For example, the Chinese government has formulated rules and regulations regarding the proper qualifications of kindergarten teachers. This rule also stretches as a basis to assess teacher’s performance.
Over the years, China’s government has become more and more open to outside ideas, and a new era of early education is rapidly taking effect. The cracking down of after school tutoring has also been implemented to combat the heavy burden imposed on families. With these regulations in place, schools have devoted themselves to more training of teachers. Furthermore, the discipline of early childhood education has improved significantly.
Early Education – The Curriculum.
Teaching in China and the curriculum for early education range from language, math, art, music, general knowledge, and physical education. General knowledge combines science and social studies. Each class session is assigned a specific curriculum area. For example, language classes teach children to read and write, whereas math classes focus on number concepts.
Academics in China aren’t always prioritized until children are at the age of five years – pre-primary school. This is evident as pre-primary schools merged with elementary schools pay more attention to academics than kindergarten programs.
Singing and dancing hold a special place in the early education curriculum, as two-year-old kids are seen performing dance routines in public events. Other activities would include Chinese painted fans.
Teaching Methods in Early Education in China.
Even though most of the early education curriculum is like the one seen in the United States, the teaching in China is slightly different.
Even though children can work independently on simple tasks, the focus remains on the teacher’s directions and instructions. There is an expectation for all the children to do the same thing at the same time. For instance, drawing lessons are often about the children copying precisely what the teacher is doing.
The benefits of the entire group doing the same thing by the teacher’s instructions outweigh the limitations of fewer supplies. For example, even when there aren’t enough toys, each child will be seen having at least a few pieces playing the same game. Activities such as going to the bathroom are also done in groups.
Teamwork is always encouraged in nurturing behaviours, and this is clear as children help one another dress neatly. In some instances, they give prized toys to the child with the best behaviour.
Achievements of Early Childhood Education – The Past Ten Years.
As there has been development and promotion of early childhood education policies, with preschool education as the pillar of basic education in China, noticeable changes have shown tremendous achievements.
Here are some achievements met within the past decade;
Conclusion.
Over the years, kindergarten teaching jobs in China have been popularized more, and the Chinese government is more inclined to embrace new ideas from the outside world. This is quite impressive and has led to positive changes within the education system in China.
The teaching methods and curriculum adopted from the United States were designed to allow all the children to move and learn simultaneously. It is impressive how they meet these expectations without any hesitation. Plus, there is continuous encouragement for those children that lag.
Early education in China is of major significance to both the child’s mental and physical development. The abolishment of extreme traditional forms of punishment has brought great good and awareness. Even though early childhood education in China has seen its fair share of criticism, it has created more kindergarten teaching jobs in China. It has created a better foundation for the education system in China.
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