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Cited by 86Education in Diverse ContextsSchool Choice and PerformanceIntergenerational and Educational Inequality Studies

Measuring and assessing regional education inequalities in China under Changing Policy Regimes

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Xiang, Lili, Stillwell, John, Burns, Luke, Heppenstall, Alison·2020·Applied Spatial Analysis and Policy
DOI 10.1007/s12061-019-09293-8
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Abstract

China’s uneven regional economic development and decentralisation of its education system have led to increasing regional education disparities. Here, we introduce a new multidimensional index, the Index of Regional Education Advantage (IREA), underpinned by Amartya Sen’s capability approach, to evaluate the effectiveness of policies targeted at reducing regional/provincial educational inequalities in China since 2005. The analysis of the distribution of IREA scores and the decomposition of the index reveals that education in north-eastern China is better than in the south-west part of the country, a pattern which lacks conformity with the eastern, middle and western macro-divisions adopted by Central Government as the basis of policy implementation. In addition, the education of migrant children and the low transfer rate into high schools are identified as key issues requiring Government attention.

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  • The inequitable distribution of educational resources creates barriers for disadvantaged students, amplifying cultural discontinuities.

    “The inequitable distribution of educational resources creates barriers for disadvantaged students, amplifying cultural discontinuities [48].”

    From Attitudes and Behaviors toward traditional music among Chinese students: the role of individual, family, and school factors (2026) · cites this paper as [48]

    The Financial and Administration Decentralisation section links inadequate funding in poor areas to low enrolment and completion rates, supporting the claim that unequal resources create barriers. The Education in the Tibet Autonomous Region section separately describes a mismatch between school curricula and some children's cultures, but does not say that unequal resource distribution amplifies that mismatch. (LLM, conf=0.85)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Guangzhou has a robust music education system with professional teacher coverage of 98.6% and per-student arts funding 2.3 times the provincial average.

    “As the core cultural and economic hub of Lingnan culture, Guangzhou boasts a robust music education system with a professional teacher coverage of 98.6% and per-student arts funding 2.3 times the provincial average [48].”

    From Attitudes and Behaviors toward traditional music among Chinese students: the role of individual, family, and school factors (2026) · cites this paper as [48]

    The paper’s section on education equality and provincial planning discusses general compulsory-education funding, while its indicators table concerns education inequality at the provincial level. Searches for Guangzhou, music or arts education, 98.6% teacher coverage, and funding at 2.3 times the provincial average found no passage addressing the claim. (LLM, conf=0.76)

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Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Xiang, L., Stillwell, J., Burns, L., & Heppenstall, A.
Affiliations
University of Leeds (GB)
Corresponding author
Xiang, Lili
ORCID
Venue
Applied Spatial Analysis and Policy
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2019-03-06
Volume
13
Issue
1
Pages
91-112
ISSN
  • 1874-4621 (ISSN-L)
  • 1874-463X
DOI
10.1007/s12061-019-09293-8
OpenAlex
W2921551165
Cited by
86
References
0
Citations by year
2026: 11 · 2025: 24 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 2
FWCI
12.53
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Applied Spatial Analysis and Policy (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • White Rose Research Online (University of Leeds, The University of Sheffield, University of York) (acceptedVersion)
  • ENLIGHTEN (Jurnal Bimbingan dan Konseling Islam) (acceptedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
China Scholarship Council
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Education › Education in Diverse Contexts
  • Social Sciences › Education › School Choice and Performance
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Intergenerational and Educational Inequality Studies
Keywords
capability approach, education policy evaluation, decentralization of education, regional disparities, China

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