2010/ED/EFA/MRT/PI/42 Background paper prepared for the Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2010 Reaching the marginalized Education for migrant children in China Han Jialing 2009 This paper was commissioned by the Education for All Global Monitoring Report as background information to assist in drafting the 2010 report. It has not been edited by the team. The views and opinions expressed in this paper are those of the author(s) and should not be attributed to the EFA Global Monitoring Report or to UNESCO. The papers can be cited with the following reference: Paper commissioned for the EFA Global Monitoring Report 2010, Reaching the marginalized For further information, please contact efareport@unesco.org
Han Jialing 2009 Education for migrant children in China Background paper for the Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2010
Ever since the 90s, the migration of rural labour between rural and urban area has been in an increasing number. According to the survey in 2005, there were 18 million migrant children(0-14), one third migrant to big cities, one third migrant to counties and towns, one third were internal migrant across the country. Meanwhile, there are 60 million children left-behind(0-14) in their hometown. 1. National policy Review The issues of migrant children are the product by times and the byproduct by labor s mobility from rural areas to urban areas. The problem of education for migrant children didn t become apparent until early 1990s, so there s no regulation on migrant children s education in The Compulsory Education Law of the People s Republic of China (1986). The Constitution and the Compulsory Education Law of China has given protection to children s right to go to school in laws. And the articles of the laws are for all children, all the children who are six years old, no matter what sex, ethnic group and race they are, ought to enter schools to receive compulsory education which is stipulated a fixed number of years. In the previous laws and regulations on it, the Compulsory Education Law Implementing Regulations stipulated that children and teenagers with right age to receive compulsory education in areas where are not their hukou residence, approved by education authorities of county level or government of countryside level where are their hukou residence, can apply to study at a school on a temporary basis according to relevant regulations of the government in their living areas. The number of years when they study on a temporary basis, accords with the regulations in the areas where their hukou residence are (the Compulsory Education Law Implementing Regulations of the People s Republic of China (1992)). Compulsory education in our country adopts the principle of Classify to Run a School, Hierarchical Direct. In this principle, the one who is mainly responsible for the compulsory education of migrant children, can only be the local governments in the areas where are the hukou residence of children. In general, our country did not pay enough attention to migrant children s problems and there was no special document for them in the level of a country before 1995. With their problems emerging, laws and regulations for them became necessary. The Ministry of Education began to survey and study the education problems of migrant workers children in 1995, printed and distributed the Way on Children and Teenagers of Right Age in Migrant Population Going to School in City and Town (Trial Implementation) in 1996, and tried out in six areas chosen in such six provinces and cities respectively as Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Zhejiang and so on. According to the result, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Public Security issued the Temporary Way on Migrant Workers Children of Right Age Going to School together. ⅠThe Temporary Way on Migrant Children and Teenagers of Right Age Going to School
The Temporary Way on Migrant Children and Teenagers of Right Age Going to School is a temporary document issued by the Minister of Education and the Ministry of Public Security according to the Compulsory Education Law of the People s Republic of China and the Implementing Regulations and the fact of migrant children. Although the document is issued temporarily, the Temporary Way is the first one of laws and regulations for migrant children, and it sets the fundamental frame of migrant children s education in the future. And we will explain and analyze the important content and regulations in the influential law as following: The breakthrough and limitation for migrant children brought about by the Temporary Way for Migrant Children and Teenagers to Go to School 1) The Way stipulated a few regulations for migrant children to receive compulsory education, which supervised and urged governments in the receiving areas to resolve the problems. 2) It has made an important step on the way to resolve migrant children s education s problems by encouraging receiving areas to adopt various ways to resolve the problems. It provided law and regulation to migrant children s schools which had already sprang up at that time and directly resulted in migrant children s schools increasing rapidly after 1998. These schools had made essential contributions to resolve the objective problem of migrant children s education in that time when there were insufficient public education resources. 3) Responsibilities of receiving governments were indeterminacy. In one aspect, the Temporary Way required governments in flowing areas to control migrant children s flowing out strictly, in another aspect, it encouraged the governments in receiving areas should create conditions for migrant children to have compulsory education. The Temporary Way still didn t define what responsibilities governments in receiving areas should have, and we can see that the idea of legislation had been restrained obviously by the system of traditional education resources allocation. 4) The lagging of laws, regulations and policies had missed the opportunity to resolve the problems of migrant children and left-behind children in rural China with public educational resources. Due to the Temporary Way s regulations, governments in flowing areas had to control migrant children s flowing out strictly unless migrant children had no guardianship condition in their hukou residence and they could have compulsory education in receiving areas. We can see that the Temporary Way still has restraint from the system of traditional education resources allocation and adopts the administration tactics of obstructing on migrant children without making clear that governments in receiving areas ought to undertake what responsibilities in resolving the problem s of migrant children to enter a school. The lagging of laws, regulations and policies caused the phenomena that migrant children s schools blossom everywhere in the whole country and the problems of left-behind children in rural China occurring.
II. State Council s Decision on Reforming and Developing Elementary Education set the principle of Two Main Points for migrant children, establishing the fundamental idea for resolving the responsibilities problems for migrant children to enter a school. Since the currently available system and policies, laws and regulations are unable to resolve them at all, the problems of migrant children s education are attracting more and more attention from society and media after 2000. In May of 2001, the State Council passed State Council s Decision on Reforming and Developing Elementary Education, and it brought about clearer idea about the responsibilities of governments in receiving areas to resolve the problems of migrant children s education. The Decision recognized that it was weak links in implementing compulsory education nationally. We should pay more attention to resolve the problems of migrant children to have compulsory education, and there are two main points that governments in receiving areas administrate it mainly and public full-time middle and primary schools receive migrant children mainly. We should adopt various ways to resolve the problems and protect migrant children s right to have compulsory education in laws. Decision has the same place as regulation and document in our country, and it is the first time that the Decision decides the principle of Two Main Points. Especially it makes clear that governments in receiving areas have main responsibilities for migrant children s education, and it ends the time when government in receiving areas and flowing areas absolve themselves from the responsibilities of migrant children s education each other. Besides, it makes clear that migrant children should go to public full-time schools mainly and such other types of schools as migrant children s schools are supplement. (Article 12) III. Ideas on How to Do Well with Migrant Children s Compulsory Education Further (2003) After implementing the policy of Two Main Points, public schools in cities have received a number of migrant children. However, there are still difficulties for the children of migrant workers who are in lowest bottom with relatively low income when they enter a school. The Ideas separates migrant workers children from migrant population s children and aims at their children s education problems consciously. In 2003, the State Council passed the Ideas on How to Do Well with Migrant Children s Compulsory Education Further aiming at resolving the problems of migrant children to enter a school. And in the same year, China passed the Decision on Enhancing Rural Education Further. Both of them claims that Governments in cities at all levels should stick on the principle of Two Main Points that governments in receiving areas administrate it mainly and public full-time middle and primary schools receive migrant children mainly. Establish the responsibilities of governments in receiving areas and embody
them The Ideas not only reclaims the responsibilities of governments in receiving areas, but also embodies them. The responsibilities of governments in receiving areas on migrant children s education are that make related administrative regulations and assort with parties concerned, do well with migrant children s compulsory education indeed. Responsibilities of every department in receiving areas It cannot be resolved only by the department of education and it needs the cooperation of every department for the problems of migrant children s education. There are requirements for every department in receiving areas as well: IV. State Council s Ideas on Resolving Issues of Migrant Workers The Ideas not only reclaims the responsibilities of governments in receiving areas, but also emphasizes that governments in receiving areas should bring migrant children s compulsory education into local education development plan as well as bring it into education financial budget, and financial departments should fund schools according to the actual students in schools. V. Compulsory Education Law of the People s Republic of China revised in 2006 Compulsory Education Law of the People s Republic of China passed in 2006 is made on the basic of the Compulsory Education Law of the People s Republic of China (1986) and the new development of China s society and economics. The new Compulsory Education Law stipulates for migrant children s education: If parents and other guardians in law work or live in areas which are not their hukou residence, and migrant children have education there, the local governments should provide equal condition for them to receive compulsory education. The concrete implement ways are decided by provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities. It continues the above principles basically, stating that governments in receiving areas play important roles in migrant children s compulsory education and establish the equity for migrant children to receive compulsory education further. 2. Analysis of Situations of Policy Implementation I. Migrant children's enrollment premise: Providing serial of credentials (ID card, transient residence card, employment card and so on) Although the above central committee documents had all regulated that we should treat the migrant children impartially regarding enrollment. But because the migrant children should apply for enrolment instead of holding written notice, they should meet with certain requirements. While what requirements they should conform to is decided by different regional governments according their specific conditions. Basically all provinces and cities request that the migrant children should provide series of credentials and experience an application process when they go to the schools
in the receiving areas. Generally all the provinces and cities request to provide the parents ID cards, transient residence certificate, employment certificate and so on. But the regulations and procedures of each place are incompletely similar. However handling "five certificates" consumes time and efforts, Furthermore, "five cards are complete" is unable to achieve for many migrant population family, especially employment certificate and residence certificate. It is very difficult for them to obtain the employment certificate, because most agricultural laborers work in irregular departments or makes small business. The guardians have to afford all kinds of certificates. All these regulations imperceptibly form some barriers which prevent migrant children from entering school. II. Enrolment way: enters the nearby school According to the Temporary Way on Migrant Children and Teenagers of Right Age Going to School, each place has formulated concrete measures or regulations. Seen from concrete implementation situation, we may discover, the migrant children's nearby matriculation actually is "relatively nearby". The act of Education Bureau of Yuhua District in Changsha is worth learning. Because the policy design of migrant children entering school is to let the parents go to the nearby school and register after all essential certificates are ready. Such policy supposition completely separates from the social reality. It is well known, it is a big burden for city families to let their children go to school, let alone the agricultural laborer parents who lack of social relationship. The reason why they initially chose to enter migrant children s school is that they do not have the entering channel to public school. Now if they voluntarily handle the school registration in the nearby public school in such a short time, the public school often keep them out by various reasons. The acting of Education Bureau of Yuhua District in Changsha has guaranteed that migrant children can enter school. Arranging student to the nearby schools not only decrease parent s trouble to looking for schools, but also prevent public schools keeping the migrant children out. That s to say, connect migrant children's residence with the designed school. assign the migrant children in the same area to the nearby public schools. It s more easy to conduct by the parteng.meanwhile, the information of school in which the migrant children can enter and the school telephone numbers are put in forms and be open to the society through many ways such as newspaper. They still need the certification, and the other parts of the country also follow the principle of nearby. Now, there are lots of district like Yuhua District s method. Here we mention this,emphaisis this method is a good strategic to conduct and a feasible method to guarantee migrant children enter school. III. Management and the treatment on migrant children after enrollment : establish the temporary school register About the management on migrant children after enrolment, "Tentative method"
regulates that primary schools and middle schools in receiving areas should establish the temporary school register for migrant children. Among the act of the temporary school register in each place, the experience of Zhejiang Province is worth to spread. To strengthen the dynamic management on migrant children s enrolment, each educational administrative departments of all county level should bring migrant children into the electronic school register management system in the whole province, and regularly report to the educational administrative departments of city and province level. The educational administrative departments of city and province level set up a special column about migrant children s enrollment in education websites regularly to announce to the society. Zhejiang Province emphasizes dynamic management or electronic management to migrant children. This conforms to the flowing characteristics of migrant children. Wherever migrant children are, through the electronic school register management system, migrant children s study situation is clear at a glance. IV. About college entrance examination limits to migrant children According to present stipulation in our country, students must participate in entrance examination to college in their household register location. Because the college entrance examination have different assigned number for different provinces, so the students only compete within the students in the same provinces.in China, the competition is very serious, so if you want to attend college entrance examination, you must start from High School. And different provinces have different textbook and their own entrance examination. Therefore, after finishing compulsory education, they often have to enter the high school in their household register location if migrant children want to continue higher education. This results in that migrant children have to be departed from their parents and return to their hometown to go to school. Simultaneously, they have to adapt to the study and new environment. As China s advanced area, Guangdong province is the earliest receiving area. To resolve the more and more serious problem of migrant children s compulsory education, Guangdong Provincial Government Office transmitted the Notice of State Council Office and the Ministry of Education etc. in 2004, which is about do well with migrant children s compulsory education further. In the Notice, there are the following regulations: those migrant children who accept nine-year compulsory education in receiving areas are admitted to participate in the entrance examination to high school and enter high schools as long as they hold compulsory education certificate or the proof issued by the local educational administrative departments. At present, only Guangdong Province has such explicit stipulations in provincial documents. It allows migrant children who complete compulsory education in Guangdong to be able to participate in the entrance examination to high school and enter high schools in Guangdong. This stipulation has resolved many migrant children and their parents' extra worries, and enables them to feel relieved to go to school in receiving areas, without worrying about the entrance examination to high school and enter high schools.this regulation of Guangdong is worth to be spread.
National policies on education of migrant children Name Promulgation time Main ideas Significance Temporary Way on Migrant Children and Teenagers of Right Age Going to School March,1998 It talks about the definition of migrant children and teenagers, also it has regulations on migrant children who will receive education in the receiving areas,including the conditions for migrant children to go to school,the way for migrant children to enter a school,the pattern for migrant children s administration, and the schools for migrant children. It s the first of laws and regulations for migrant children, and it supervised and urged governments in the receiving areas to resolve the problems by adopting various ways. State Council s Decision on Reforming and Developing Elementary Education Ideas on How to Do Well with Migrant Children s Compulsory Education Further May,2001 Governments in receiving areas administrate migrant children s education mainly, and public full-time middle and primary schools receive migrant children mainly. Various ways should be adopted to resolve the problems and migrant children s right to have compulsory education in laws should be protected. 2003 It establishes the responsibilities of governments in receiving areas and embody every department, also it establishes the principle to treat migrant children the same as urban children to lighten their financial burden. At the same time, it makes the regulations and administration of migrant children's schools more clear. It is the first time that the Decision decides the principle of Two Main Points, emphasizing that governments in receiving areas have main responsibilities for migrant children s education. It aims at education problems of migrant worker s children consciously.
State Council s Ideas on Resolving Issues of Migrant Workers March, 2006 Governments in receiving areas should bring migrant children s compulsory education into local education development plan as well as bring it into education financial budget. Public school should not charge the fee of studying at a school on a temporary basis or any other cost. It is the first central document to claim that public schools must not charge the fee of studying at a school on a temporary basis. Compulsory Education Law of the People s Republic of China revised in 2006 June,2006 The local governments should provide equal condition for migrant children to receive compulsory education. As a law, it shows the governments attention on migrant children s education. V. Stipulation on tuition fees charged by school to migrant children: from gathering expense of studying temporarily in receiving areas to treating them equally with local students, and through establishing grants and providing free textbooks to help children in poverty. After Compulsory Education Law of the People s Republic of China passed in 2006, the concrete implement ways of education on migrant children are decided by local governments. Different governments promulgate their new policies on education of migrant children to ensure equality and free charge on compulsory education, according to their own economics and development. there are some innovination by New policies by local governments after free compulsory education City Promulgation time Name of policy Beijing Jan 1,2009 Abolishment of 25 items of fees including fees for temporary enrollment Chongqing Feb 3,2009 Abolishment of 64 items of fees including fees for Main idea of the policy To abolish fees for temporary enrollment in primary or middle school. Those migrant children called new Beijing citizen would be treated the same as local children. Office of Legislative Affairs in Chongqing announced the abolishment of administrative
temporary enrollment Wuhan Feb 8,2009 Any school should not refuse the admission of migrant children for any reason Nanjing Spring in 2009 Haikou Spring in 2009 Abolishing fees for temporary enrollment, and treating migrant workers children as local residents List of the fees charging in primary and middle school, no differences for migrant children fees including fees for temporary enrollment. Migrant children would be arranged in public school nearest to where they live by education department in Wuhan, and treated the same as local residents. If they wish to another school, they can negotiate with other schools, but no fees for temporary enrollment admitted as well. All migrant children as well as local children don t have to pay for 杂费,fees for textbooks and fees for temporary enrollment. To charge migrant children in the city the same as local people, abolishing miscellaneous fees,fees for textbooks and so on. To abolish fees for notebooks in country areas, and fees for notebooks in the city are charged according to File No 20041427 in Hainan. 3.: Systematic Barrier Hindering Migrant Children Education to Become Mainstream With the massive rural people entering the city, education problem of migrant children becomes the new difficulty during the popularization and realization of compulsory education in our country. Since the migrant children education problem emerged in 1990s and the migrant children school appeared because of demand. They had been cleared and rectified by government of the provinces, cities, districts and counties, etc. But the number of the migrant children schools did not decrease but present steady improving tendency though they have been banned for over 10 years. The total population of the migrant children is growing fast. Compulsory education of them has
brought a challenge to the urban area which has achieved the goal of nine-year compulsory education. 1) Compulsory Education Act confirms the receiving government s responsibility, but did not break through the enrollment principle of Hukou-based registry oriented( 以户籍为主 ) In May, 2001, Decision of State Council on Elementary Education Reform and Development confirmed the principles of Two Responsibilities, that is, the receiving government and the public schools should undertake the main responsibilities to give compulsory education to the migrant children, and various styles are available, aiming to protect the migrant children s right of receiving compulsory according to the law. The principle of receiving government mainly responsible for has solved the long-term problem which one is responsible between the receiving government and outflow government, the principle of public school mainly responsible for demonstrates that in the compulsory education stage it s the country s responsibility to care for the migrant children education, which should be the non-profit undertakings protected by the government. Clause 12 of the revised edition of Compulsory Education Act updated in 2006 although proceeds with the 2001 edition of Decision of State Council on Elementary Education Reform and Development and again explicitly proposes the responsibility of receiving government on migrant children education. The Entering Close-by School in the New Compulsory Education Act just means entering the nearby schools in the household-registered locus, so it did not break through the Hukou-based registry oriented enrollment principle. Regarding to the migrant children, although it makes clear the responsibility of receiving government---- provide equal condition to receive compulsory education, the concrete regulations about how to carry out it is handed on to the autonomous region, municipality directly under the Central Government to regulate, such as how the assure the procedure from entering school to expense assurance, etc. Thus the migrant children education didn t become mainstream because the problems were handed to other authorities. New Compulsory Education Act although explicitly proposes providing equal condition of receiving compulsory to the migrant children, it is not clear how to realize their equal education right, for example, the related the Hukou-based registry management system, education financial appropriation and managerial system haven t been reformed. If the system barriers can t be broken, the authority of the policy execution will be threatened greatly. In a word, facing the migrant children number growing fast with the urbanization, the New Compulsory Education Act which was revised after 20-year preparation just uses misty articles and hasn t broken through the Hukou-based registry oriented enrollment principle. Therefore it is not able to drastically resolve the systematic barrier of migrant children enrollment in the law. 2) Hukou-based registry system and current local government investing system
for compulsory education is the bottleneck/barrier which restricts the migrant children education The main reason for the difficulty of migrant children education lies in the finance system of compulsory-education charged by local authority, managed at different grades. That is to say, the compulsory education is primarily devoted by the local authority and managed by different grades. The financial responsibility of the local authority for compulsory education is assigned like this: The compulsory education in the city is devoted by the district-level finance; the compulsory education in the countryside is devoted by the county-level finance. In accordance with this kind of education fund disbursement pattern, the local finance allocates the education resources by the population of school-age children calculated in their own household-registered locus. Therefore, the migrant children have leaved their household-registered locus and are unable to enjoy the allocated funds and distributed education resources. Under this kind of investment mechanism, the migrant children leave their household-registered locus to study so they occupy the local education resources of the receiving city in some extent. Clause 1 of the 14th article of the "Enforcement Regulation of Compulsory Education Act of People's Republic of China" promulgated in 1992 stipulates that, "The school-age children who go to the non-household-registered locus to study can apply for transient study in the receiving city according to the receiving city s related regulation if they are approved by their county-level education management department or the village-level( 乡级 ) People s Government in their household-registered locus. This is the basis the transient study fee ( 借读费 ) forms, also it is the barrier leading it difficult for the migrant school-aged children to gain equal education opportunity in the receiving city. In accord with the current principle of the receiving government taking the primary responsibility, the local government finance would take the responsibility of solve the migrant children compulsory education, which means they should open their purse. This will inevitably aggravate their investment burden. As to maintain the local or department benefit, all levels of local governments try to avoid their responsibility, therefore they put up so many barriers that the migrant children are unable to enjoy the equal education rights. 3) The big cities are impercipient to accept migrant people. They emphasize controlling the total quantity of population, which has hindered the migrant children to enjoy the equal education rights. The compulsory education s level of some big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai is in a leading position not only in "hardware" (school building, location, teaching equipments and so on) and "software" (management system, leaders and teacher's professional ability, research and scientific research). The education of these big cities is striding towards to high standard, high quality and the goal of nine-year compulsory education; also the school condition and teaching quality are persistently improved. But they aren t aware of that the migrant children's compulsory education is just the important part of the city s popularizing nine-year compulsory education.
The local governments always look at the social influence the migration workers create from the negative angle, especially the big cities often hold the viewpoint from controlling population total quantity, which makes them adopt conservative local protectionism and accept the migrant children limitedly. With this cognition the big cities formed some wrong viewpoints that are unfavorable for the migrant children to accept education in cities: they think the pouring of the migrant children will occupy the education resources of urban household-registry people, reduce the city population s education quality and affect the city s work of popularizing nine-year compulsory education. At present, the city carries on the management to the migrant people from the angels of assuring public security and preventing crime, but not from the high angle of educating the city s constructor. They often treat the education of migrant children like almsgiving. They only give the funds to migrant children after guaranteeing the city population s high-quality and high-standard education. Mainstreaming Migrant Children Education requires that we should view this problem from the angle of citizen and the migrant children's basic right. Only when we put the migrant children education into the city s whole educational plan and form the advantageous external environment of policy execution, can we further guarantee the formulation and execution of fair policies, all these will be helpful to the final solution of the migrant children education. 4) The capability of the public school accepting migrant children decides whether the migrant children can accept equal and demanding education The policy of migrant children primarily entering public full-time elementary and middle schools manifests the country should undertake more responsibility for the migrant children education. In recent years, the school student boom in the cities has passed, the students number has decreased and the education resources in the city become relative surplus, which is a good superiority to solve the migrant children s education. The education department should make full use of the city education resources, and make the public school serve as a main channel which can undertake the main duty of migrant children s compulsory education. Learning from the experience from various provinces and this event of school banning and divergence, we are informed that there are still many barriers against the migrant children entering the public schools. Firstly, the city generally has the abundant education resources to undertake the migrant children education not only in hardware but in software. But the fact is that the city education resources leaves unused and the junction of city and countryside s constitutive supply and demand relations become unbalanced because the migrant workers live and even become relative centralism" in the junction of city and countryside. This has been a historic problem because the public schools are established according to the number of local Hukou-based registry population under
the Hukou-based register oriented enrollment principle. Therefore, if we can change the school layout management not according to the Hukou-based registry population but residence population and make overall plans for the schools, we can solve the phenomenon of constitutive unbalanced supply and demand of education resources even if the migrant s work and residence places are still movable. Migrant children education should be mainstreamed and be put into the city s overall education layout plan. Secondly, regarding how the public schools can accept more migrant children, the public school often think the tendency of education for all-round development and small-class teaching mode makes the entering of migrant children will affect the education resources of the household-registry students, and then they take the quota (There are different required standard in different cities and districts, but around 45 pupils for one class. But sometimes the quota is not very fixed, it s very flexible to apply on the school level.) as the excuse to refuse the migrant children. At present there exists a wrong opinion generally in the educational field of our country that small-class teaching mode is the premise of education for all-round development or good quality education. If we view from the angle of the mainstream of migrant children, it is obvious which should be more important between rights of accepting education and enjoying good quality education. In addition, education for all-round development can not be guaranteed only by the small-class teaching mode. Public schools accepting migrant children can not only give opportunity to the migrant children to obtain the equal and good quality education, but also give opportunities to the local children who live in a comfortable environment to study and live with the children from poor rural areas. This made them get acquaintance with poverty and learn to accept others, which should have been the important connotation of our education for all-round development. In addition, only when the public schools adopt mobile enrollment mode which conforms to the migrant children s life condition and the education mode suitable to their demand, can they provide equal compulsory education to the migrant children. 4. Policy recommendation on improving migrant children education Migrant children education is a complex problem. The emergence of the migrant children education problem exposes ossification of our educational system, policy and idea, reflects disadvantage of separate management system between city and countryside, it also reveals that our education is not student-oriented. Although the migrant children education is not the central one, it challenges the traditional education system in the most powerful and advanced way. I. Challenge the localized education system; adopt the education system of inhabited area management instead of household register management
The migrant children are the gap of popularizing nine-year compulsory education work, especially in the big city; We should include the migrant children in the government s routine work. Fundamentally speaking, we must realize that they will become the city s future masters. Their development and growth will affect the long-term development of the city. All levels of governments should break the conservative localism and change the present household-registry management system from the household-registry population oriented for permanent population or residence place oriented. All levels of government should not only serve for the household-registry population but also put the non household-registry population (migrant workers) into the local daily management and service range. The governments should include the migrant children in the routine work and establish the residence place oriented management system. Especially in the elementary education period, the education departments should put migrant children into the public school s recruitment plan; instead of household-registry oriented, adopt permanent population oriented education system (In China, using the definition of National Statistics department, they apply permanent as 6 months living on the receiving areas. ). Although they are mobile but still need to be considered as one important factors when any social services(including Education) offer to the people or resident (need to consider the mobile population). In other words, the compulsory education work of the city should include the migrant children in the evaluation, monitoring and plan of popularizing nine-year compulsory education. Only by this can we make the migrant children education mainstream, and fundamentally solve their education problem. II. Challenge the localized finance system of compulsory education, receiving governments of province and city level should guarantee the migrant children education fund s investment. At present the compulsory education finance system is mainly managed by the districts and counties, which has caused financial resources of compulsory education imbalanced among the areas as well among the cities. This kind of imbalanced phenomenon similarly exists in the districts and counties of the city. At present, under the "Two Responsibilities" principle of migrant children education, the districts and counties where the migrant population gather, that is to say the districts and counties in the junction of the city and the countryside, has heavier pressure of receiving migrant children and financial burden then before. However the migrant workers often work and do business in city, but live in the junction of the city and the countryside. Because the migrant workers often work or do business in the city while live in the junction of the city and the countryside, we can consider establishing the financial mechanism managed by grades, that is to say, the government in the city, the district and the street level of the receiving area share the finance, so make all levels of governments share the migrant children's education responsibility aiming to provide sufficient resources for migrant children s compulsory education. The finance
of province and city-level governments of province and city should take some education extra fee from the commercial and industrial taxes and the house rent, thus to guarantee the migrant children s education funds investment. Simultaneously the receiving government must change this obsolete mentality of only providing the Houkou register population, also should include the inhabitant who make contribution to this community, thus to include the migrant workers in the public service. The migrant workers take the industrious work but the inexpensive wages, which has reduced the expenditure of receiving areas. They have made certain contributions to the urban construction, the economy and the society development. Therefore, the receiving government must bring their demand of social service and the children s education funds into the fiscal budget s overall plan. III. Challenge unbalanced education of city and countryside. The city should positively undertake the responsibility for the migrant children education. The education is continuously entrusted with one of the social mobility important channels. It plays an important role in reversing unbalance between city s and countryside s development, the social class, and in the gender unequal aspect. At present, the education distance of our city and countryside is expanding day by day, the city s teaching conditions are better than outflow countryside s. Therefore, although it will increase family s burden, the migrant people still bring their children from the native place to the city. This also presents that they value their children s education. Giving education to the migrant children will not only raise the vigor group and the future city constructors for the city, but also transport the talented persons who own modernized field of vision for the nation. From the influence of migrant children s education, we can see the city should display and undertake the responsibility of supporting the national migrant children s education regardless of enhancing the entire national quality or assisting the countryside. IV. Challenge the education goal towards entering a higher school and the teaching system; explore equal and demanding education of migrant children. The migrant children education challenges the existing schools teaching system. The education for all round development has not been truly realized, on contrary, the shadow of the exam-oriented education still circles in the school sky. The exam-oriented education always interferes with our normal education work so the education for all round is truly unable to carry out, to say nothing of meeting with the movable migrant children s needs. Therefore the education goal and teaching system which is leading by the exam can not meet with the particularity and fluidity, which makes the problem of migrant children s education more prominent. The migrant children come from different part of the country, their have various past study experiences and they have used different textbooks. How to gather them in a class and carry on the teaching is the first question. How will they face the new school
life, family life and community life different from their rural life? What kind of education the public school should provide to the migrant children? Fundamentally it should provide equal and suitable education meeting their special demand. Since their living environment changes, they have special demands to adjust to adapt the life and society. Thus we have to take their original experience of life as the foundation, carry on the education to them in view of their special demands. Because the current school teaching system cannot meet their special needs, what we should explore is the road of education for all round development which can meet with their special needs.