BEIJING: China’s education ministry has unveiled new measures to ease the non-teaching workload of primary and secondary school teachers, so they can devote their attention to the classroom.
Made public on Monday (Nov 10), the eight-point directive calls on local governments to tighten scrutiny over how tasks are assigned to teachers while also reducing paperwork and inspections.
Under the new rules, each school will undergo no more than one major inspection a year, while checks disguised as “research” or “monitoring” are banned, said the education ministry.
A new “whitelist” system will regulate non-academic activities on campus. Provincial authorities can approve up to 10 activities per semester, while individual schools can host a maximum of six.
“It is strictly forbidden to require teachers … to participate in activities unrelated to education and teaching,” the notice stated, citing examples such as street patrols or festival performances.
The evaluation of teachers must not be linked to their participation in such activities, the ministry further noted.
Full-time teachers should also not be assigned any work duties during statutory and school holidays, weekends and other periods when no students are on campus.
The ministry said teachers should not be compelled to take part in training unrelated to classroom instruction, except where legally required. It also instructed schools to avoid holding such sessions during peak teaching periods.
To better safeguard teachers’ “rights and interests”, after-school services should be held on school days and end according to “local off-work hours”, the ministry said.
Schools may also adopt flexible work schedules for teachers involved in after-school services, ensuring that extended hours do not add to their overall workload.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/china-teachers-ease-workload-education-measures-students-5459911
