xiAcknowledgements
This research monograph benefitted from the contributions of many colleagues
over an extended period of time. Most particularly it was only possible through
the cooperation of officials and educators in the three case study sites who made
it possible to return to the field after 20 years to take stock of the changes that
have taken place. Special thanks are therefore due to following people: Sun Yu-qi
(Director of Education Inspectorate, Tongzhou District Education Commission,
Beijing); Yuan Jing-hua (Deputy Director of Education Inspectorate, Tongzhou
District Education Commission, Beijing); Zhang Zhan-chun (Director of the
Office of Education Inspectorate, Tongzhou Education Commission, Beijing);
Liu Chun-rong (Director of Education Inspectorate of Ansai Education Bureau,
Shannxi Province); Zhou Da-fang (Officer, Education Bureau Zhaojue County,
Sichuan Province); Chen Ye Feng (Institute of Educational Research, Xichang).
Thanks go to all their colleagues in the respective education departments at dif-
ferent levels and schools who made the research teams visits so productive and
worthwhile.
The research project involves heavy fieldwork in three rural counties. There
were three distinct levels of data collection, the county, district and school. In each
case study area a progressively detailed programme of fieldwork was conducted.
First, an inventory exercise was undertaken at the county-level (xian) to gain an
overall portrait of key indicators on progress towards basic education goals. The
research then focused progressively down to the district (xiang) and village (cun)
level. Within each of the three case study counties two districts were identified for
intensive scrutiny. Third, a selection of schools was made for intensive fieldwork.
This sampled from the four main types—junior secondary (grade 7-9), central pri-
mary (grade 1-6), complete primary (grade 1-6) and incomplete primary schools
(grade 1-3 or 4). Fieldwork teams were based in each district for about 10 days for
each period of fieldwork. The fieldworkers were based in the local community and
therefore had opportunities to explore community characteristics and perspectives
through conversations and informal interviews. The main participants in fieldwork,
data analysis, writing of the school, township and county reports, and translation