China+(AW)

**__ China __** By: Angela Woods

China has compulsory education for students only until they are in 9th grade. In China, children are in primary school through 6th grade; after that, junior high is for grades 7-9 and high school is for grades 10-12. Students in each grade are divided into classes, and the classes are large with 40-50 students each Chinese students typically take all their classes in the same room. They attend classes 5 days a week, but classes run from 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. with a break from noon until 2:30 p.m. At the end of junior high, Chinese students must take a comprehensive standardized exam to determine whether or not they can continue their education in high school. After graduation from junior high school, most students have to join the job force because only a small number of students score high enough to continue with high school. During the second year of high school students must decide whether they want to pursue science or a liberal arts curriculum, and their coursework from that point on emphasizes their choice as they are categorized into new classes that reflect either science or liberal arts. Every day, Chinese students take turns cleaning various parts of the school from classrooms to the playground. The last year of high school for Chinese students is devoted almost exclusively to studying for the //gaokao//, or the National College Entrance Exam. Since China only allows parents to have one child, families have high expectations for their child to do well on the //gaokao// so they can attend university. The competition is fierce: in 2007 there were 10 million applicants for only 5.7 million spots at national universities.
 * Introduction **

In 2007, there were 107,394,752 students enrolled in primary school in China. Students enter primary school at age 7, and the duration in 2009 was 5 years. The student to teacher ratio is 17.68 to 1.
 * Primary Education **

In 2007, there were 101,830,969 students enrolled in secondary in China. Students enter secondary school at age 12. The student to teacher ratio is 16.37 to 1.
 * Secondary Education **

In 2009, there were 119,417,609 students enrolled in tertiary education in China. In 2009, 56,844,232 of students enrolled were female.
 * Tertiary Education **

In 2007, 55.5% of primary school teachers were female; 45.1% of secondary school teachers were female. In 2004, 13% of government expenditures were on education. Education expenditures in China for 1999 were 1.9% of the gross domestic product.
 * Human and Financial Resources**