The social aspect and the choice of parents for the private education

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There are basically two forms of international schools. Chinese foreign private schools that are accessible to Chinese children, as joint venture were the Chinese side provide land and financial investment and a foreign school or company provide the education program.

Dulwich Schools which offers reputation and accredited programmes is one example.

The other type is the international school for foreigners. They are designed by the term

“School for Children of Foreign Workers (SCFW)’’. Students are foreigners or Chinese with dual nationality. The Chinese wealthy population in the recent years join those schools offering international curriculum and providing UK A-level courses. A new niche market for Chinese national who want obtain an A- level before going study abroad. Because of strict restriction, this is a much segmented market. In 2011, 55,000 students were enrolled in 114 such school over the country.

4.2.5. The social aspect and the choice of parents for the private education

School choice for parents has been something new in China, under the CCP power. It emerged with socio-economic development in china after 1978, and was mainly an urban phenomenon. Parents were allowed to change school district, and opt for a private school which charges fees. In the compulsory nine year education, state school provide free education and parents have only to pay small amount as for textbooks.

Study made at the end of the 90’s suggest that the parents who choose private school for their children are part of the high income class, usually holding post of managers, with plan to educate their children in good quality school and university. For some parents the context of

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the private school, quality, low teacher/student ratio, would help their children to outperform their peers in public schools. In addition by paying school fees parents can simply paid the tuition fees without having the student taking an examination as in the public schools.

Parental school choice was encourage by the government. Private school were seen as a pilot for educational change. It was seen as a laboratory for public school reform. Private school could mobilize funds, talent, and management at a level that public institution couldn’t afford.

The implementation of foreign curriculum, especially from Asian countries (Taiwan, Hong-Kong, Singapore) injected new teaching methods into society.

The trend of private school and the end of the traditional monopoly of state education was not independent for social change. It shapes the pursuit for social mobility, individual gains, and competition between classes.

School charging high fees have been seen since the 90’s as elite’s school and caused numbers of debates over the social inequality being reinforced by that fact. There were also concerns about operating private school as a potential to make big money only.

Democratisation of the private school led to more and more school run with the solely purpose of making high profit. In addition the lack of certification, guarantee mechanism for education, fake advertisement, easy grant diploma, was a sign of a poor quality of education.

The staff expenses were featured by smaller proportion as the public schools, in the mid 1990’s. This could question also on the quality of teaching. We can mention also the geographical unbalance. Private school located in cities in the eastern developed province accounted for 50% of the private school enrolment in China.

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developments of private schools. High quality private school, often costly, has been accessible to only well off families.

Nowadays, the choice of private education still driven by the parent’s interest for the future career of their children, accessible thought quality education. However more and more parents worry about the ‘’pressure cooker effect’’ of the state education, that focus on examination, as the Gaokao, at the end of the high school for enter university. The lower rate of employment for graduates makes also parents more careful of their choice. Competition for jobs among Chinese graduate become harder, as more and more graduate enter the job market.

In 2014 the employment rate for graduate was 70%, down from 20 points since 2001.

Parents therefore choose alternatives in private institutions. They realized also that the future is going to be increasable global. Yang Dongping, an education expert at Beijing institute of technology, point that the education system ignores personal development and social responsibilities, which are essential in the global environment nowadays.

Consequently, if parents want their kids to succeed they need to cope with English and they can do that without sending them overseas. Today there is an insatiable demand for English medium education for Chinese, and enormous numbers of families are able to afford. Dual curriculum Chinese English are popular and the Chinese-foreign cooperative schools are a promising investment sector for the future.

The international schools, once a virtual foreign enclave within the host country for foreign expatriate, are now a choice of wealthy families. Chinese parents, with dual nationality, can opt for foreign international school that offer a wide range of extra-curriculum activities, offer a full potential for their children development at the difference of the state education that

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focus too much on preparing exam for high school and universities. In the international schools students will prepare they study A level, International Baccalaureate (IB) or equivalent USA high school diploma. In addition, parents will clear career path for their children are convince they could make a good return on investment by sending later their children in some US or Top UK university.

There is also a strong demand for study abroad at a very young age. Some parents are willing to make long term investment by sending their children to boarding school in UK or USA.

In 2011 more than 150,000 Chinese nationals were studying in US boarding high schools. It’s represent an increase of 23% over a year period. Boarding school host annual admission tour in mainland china but some for parents choose to tour in USA in order to find the best school for their children. The investment can be costly over US$ 200,000$ a year, but lot of parents will not be refrained by the high cost. In 2012 the Hurun Media Group published a study that shows that wealthy Chinese are prepared to invest 20-25% of their annual income in their children's education.

The recent difficulties for school to running international course following local and state policies, or the recent ban announced on profit school have worried some parents. ‘’The policy orders your children to stay and study in the education system from then on” lamented some parents on education forum online.

The choice of alternative is however very vast and sometimes very singular. The Old Style Private School provide a classic education, that aim to replace the general education teaching and science. They enrol over 10,000 students in 2,000 institutions. The learning concept is based on reading and reciting Chinese classics (the Four Books, the Five Classics, and the

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Book of Changes …). This primitive education is subject to criticism and students have difficulties to join the mainstream education or higher education exam due to their lack in general education requirement.

4.2.6. The market for private school in China

Under the rule of Deng Xiaoping, the education ideology shift from the egalitarian goal to a market oriented goal with pursuit of social efficiency. In other words a transition started from a political equal opportunities education to economical one based on equal access to education, by sorting students in different curriculums and type of schools. The aim was to improve productivity and not realize the egalitarian ideology anymore.

Therefore, connecting with the market force and driven by the demand a new type of educational ‘’products’’ were available in China (foreign language school, accounting, fashion design, computer science…). Those new schools appear after the 1978 economic reform impacted the domestic demand; they are linked to the development of China economy.

The market economy made it possible for parents to choose alternative to public education.

Private school have being blossoming since 2003 and the implementation of the Private Education Promotion Law. The private school yearly increase was reported to be at 7.5%

between 2003 and 2008.

The new law facilitate private organisation and individuals to operate for profit organisations.

Entrepreneurs, international education institutions, or industrial groups, have seized the chance of this market opportunities. The founders of private schools could be educational