Development of Equal Opportunities to Education using ICT : Overview of the Nationwide Project ‘Modern Distance Education for Schools in the Rural Areas of China’

Abstract

The Ministry of Education in China is concerned to extend the reach of educational opportunities to the whole country, and that all students have equal access to high quality education. To extend opportunities to the rural areas of China, it is necessary to use distance education and technology, since these may be able to provide access at reasonable cost through sharing high quality education resources developed and used in the major cities. Since 2003, the Chinese government has promoted a project ‘Modern Distance Education for Schools in the Rural Areas of China’, which aims to reduce the gap in education quality between the urban areas and the rural areas - by sharing digital resources through ICT. This Paper gives an overview of the project : its background, the main tasks, achievements, challenges, and trends. We include a literature review, interview findings, and a field case study. Together with discussion of the challenges and the trends, some suggestions are then given for further consideration. This Paper shares some valuable information on how distance education can be used as an effective way to enhance the educational balance in China.