Two Decades of Basic Education in Rural China

53

schools. Transition rates are usually more than 90 % from grade 6–7. Though tran-
sition rates had been high in 1990 the difference is that now most children reach
grade 6 whereas before only 25 % or so graduated from primary. As a result the
on-schedule graduation rates have improved for those who enter primary school at
the correct age.
In 2009 there were 7890 enrolled in junior secondary schools in Ansai. This
represented a decline from 2005 when numbers reached a peak of 11,000. In 1990
there were 2300 enrolled out of a much larger age group. In 2008 about 46 %
of enrolments at this level were female. Twenty years ago the number of girls in
lower secondary was less than 35 % so considerable progress has been made. The
number of secondary classes has grown since 1990 from 55 to about 230 and class
size has increased from 42 to about 50. With a reduction in enrolments this class
size is now falling.
Outward migration has affected numbers in junior secondary schools, as has
increased aspirations by parents of capable children who want their children to get
a higher quality education in Yan’an or even Xian. The reduction in the number of
repeaters has also increased internal efficiency and reduced numbers.
Huaziping and Yanhewan secondary school have followed the overall trends.
The former enrolled 240 students in 1990 a third of who were girls, and the latter
270 of whom 42 % were girls. Now Huaziping has about 700 students of whom
more than 45 % or female and Yanhewan also has about 700 with 47 % girls. In
both cases enrolments in the recent past have been fairly stable (Figs. 3.4 and 3.5).
Consistently enrolment in grade 7 has been larger than in grade 9 in both cases
suggesting that there is still some attrition. However, analysis of transfers suggests
that the larger part of this reduction in numbers between grade 7 and 9 is a result
of more transfers out than in. Thus in both townships up to a hundred students a

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Enrolmen

t

Grade 7

Grade 8

Grade 9

Fig. 3.4 Enrolments in Huaziping junior secondary

3.3 The Evolution of Nine Year Compulsory Education