China issues plan to strengthen basic education teacher force

BEIJING, April 14 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Education (MOE), in collaboration with seven other authorities, has issued a plan to build a stronger teacher force for the country's basic education system.

China has 15.86 million teachers of basic education, accounting for 86 percent of the total number of full-time teachers, Ren Youqun, an MOE official in charge of teacher work, said at a press conference on Thursday.

Stressing the significance of the role of basic education in the nation's education system, Ren said the plan aims to expand the number and improve the quality of teachers, and meet the demand for China's basic education development by 2035.

China will further improve teachers' professional ethics and competence by introducing talent nurturing programs and reforming targeted training, per the plan.

Teacher resources will be more balanced as special teacher cultivation plans for undeveloped areas in China's central and western regions will be put into practice. A policy providing subsidies and accommodations for teachers in these areas should be implemented.

National-level pedagogical bases and coordinated pedagogical innovation platforms will be built to strengthen the education system for teachers, the plan said.

A series of reforms regarding the teacher qualification system, assessment system, and salaries and benefits will be advanced, it said.