After-School Service Implementation Under China’s Double Reduction Policy: Evidence from a Rural Primary School in Zhejiang Province

Sue  Ye

doi:10.54691/m47xhz18

Authors

Sue Ye

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54691/m47xhz18

Keywords:

Double Reduction Policy, after-school services, rural education, China, educational policy implementation, qualitative case study, migrant worker families

Abstract

China’s Double Reduction Policy, introduced in 2021, required public primary schools to provide high-quality after-school services to reduce students’ reliance on private tutoring and ease the overall academic burden. As an important adjustment in educational governance, the policy faces prominent and often neglected challenges when implemented in resource-constrained rural schools. Based on interview data from two school leaders, five teachers, ten students and ten parents, this qualitative case study explores the practice of after-school services in a rural primary school in Zhejiang Province. The findings show a series of interrelated problems: single and insufficient service content, long-term insufficient funding, inadequate teacher compensation and professional support, limited participation of external instructors, insufficient physical facilities, and unsatisfactory basic logistics such as food supply. This study argues that these problems are not only caused by the lack of school-level resources, but also by structural inconsistencies in policy design, funding allocation, teacher management and curriculum development support. Without systematic reforms to address these interrelated aspects, after-school services may become a burden-shifting measure rather than a real strategy to reduce burdens. Finally, this paper puts forward targeted policy suggestions for educational authorities at all levels.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

[1] Afterschool Alliance. (2014). America after 3PM: Afterschool programs in demand. Afterschool Alliance. http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/AA3PM/

[2] Bray, M. (2009). Confronting the shadow education system: What government policies for what private tutoring? UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning.

[3] Durlak, J. A., & Weissberg, R. P. (2007). The impact of after-school programs that promote personal and social skills. Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning. https:// files. eric. ed.gov/fulltext/ED505368.pdf

[4] General Office of the CPC Central Committee & General Office of the State Council [GOCC & GOSC]. (2021). Opinions on further reducing the burden of homework and extracurricular training for students at the stage of compulsory education. http://www.gov.cn/zhengce/2021-07/24/ content_ 5627132.htm

[5] Hu, Y., & West, A. (2023). Migrant children and educational disadvantage in urban China: School choice, parental involvement, and institutional barriers. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 44(2), 215–233. https://doi.org/10.1080/01425692.2022.2123456

[6] Krogh, G., Nonaka, I., & Rechsteiner, L. (2012). Leadership in organizational knowledge creation: A review and framework. Journal of Management Studies, 49(1), 240–277. https:// doi.org/ 10.1111/j.1467-6486.2010.00978.x

[7] Lareau, A. (2003). Unequal childhoods: Class, race, and family life. University of California Press.

[8] Lauer, P. A., Akiba, M., Wilkerson, S. B., Apthorp, H. S., Snow, D., & Martin-Glenn, M. L. (2006). Out-of-school-time programs: A meta-analysis of effects for at-risk students. Review of Educational Research, 76(2), 275–319. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543076002275

[9] Leithwood, K., Harris, A., & Hopkins, D. (2008). Seven strong claims about successful school leadership. School Leadership and Management, 28(1), 27–42. https:// doi.org/ 10.1080/ 13632430701800060

[10] Mahoney, J. L., Larson, R. W., & Eccles, J. S. (Eds.). (2005). Organized activities as contexts of development: Extracurricular activities, after-school and community programs. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

[11] Ruan, C., & Cheng, Z. (2022). The contradictions and pathways of after-school services under China’s “Double Reduction” policy. International Journal of Social Science and Education Research, 5(7), 347–351. http://www.ijosser.org/download/IJOSSER-5-7-347-351.pdf

[12] Skaalvik, E. M., & Skaalvik, S. (2011). Teacher job satisfaction and motivation to leave the teaching profession: Relations with school context, feeling of belonging, and emotional exhaustion. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27(6), 1029–1038. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2011.04.001

[13] Spillane, J. P., Reiser, B. J., & Reimer, T. (2002). Policy implementation and cognition: Reframing and refocusing implementation research. Review of Educational Research, 72(3), 387–431. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543072003387

[14] Tsang, M. C. (2000). Education and national development in China since 1949: Oscillating policies and enduring dilemmas. China Review, 1(1), 579–618.

[15] Vandell, D. L., Reisner, E. R., & Pierce, K. M. (2007). Outcomes linked to high-quality afterschool programs: Longitudinal findings from the study of promising afterschool programs. Policy Studies Associates. https://www.purdue.edu/hhs/hdfs/fii/wp-content/uploads/ 2015/07/ s_wifis 26c02. pdf

[16] Yin, R. K. (2018). Case study research and applications: Design and methods (6th ed.). SAGE Publications.

[17] Young, T., & Lewis, W. (2015). Educational policy implementation revisited. Educational Policy, 29(1), 3–17. https://doi.org/10.1177/0895904815568936

[18] Zhang, W., & Bray, M. (2020). Shadow education in China: Policies, implications, and future directions. ECNU Review of Education, 3(2), 197–219. https://doi.org/ 10.1177 /209 653 1120916069

[19] Zhu, X., & Li, Y. (2019). Infrastructure deficits and curriculum inequality in rural primary schools: Evidence from a national survey in China. International Journal of Educational Development, 68, 92–101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2019.04.007