Introduction
In the early morning, there is the sound of books in the teaching building, and you are chasing each other on the track and field. The campus of Chongqing Tianjiabing Middle School (District B) is filled with youthful vitality.
The school, formerly known as Chongqing No. 47 Middle School, is located in the relatively remote Huayan Town in Jiulongpo District.
In the past, the infrastructure here was old and the teaching staff was relatively weak.
In the spring of 2022, the school joined the Chongqing Tianjiabing Middle School Education Group through an integrated school-running approach.
The group's main school dispatches a management team and outstanding teachers for exchange and rotation, provides part of the funds to renovate the school building, promotes the improvement of school infrastructure, and continuously strengthens the teaching staff.
In the Jiulongpo District school quality evaluation for the 2022-2023 school year, this school won the first prize.
In May 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at the fifth collective study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee that promoting educational equity should be integrated into all aspects and links of deepening comprehensive reform in the education field, and narrowing the urban-rural, regional, inter-school and group gaps in education. , striving to ensure that every child can enjoy fair and high-quality education and better meet the people’s needs for “a good education”.
The report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China proposed to "accelerate the high-quality and balanced development of compulsory education and the integration of urban and rural areas, and optimize the allocation of regional educational resources."
In June 2023, the "Opinions on Building a High-Quality and Balanced Basic Public Education Service System" issued by the General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the General Office of the State Council was announced, which stated that "focusing on promoting a balanced teacher allocation, accelerate the reduction of the quality of inter-school education Gaps. Improve the management methods and operating mechanisms of group schools and school districts, promote the close integration of management, teaching, and teaching and research among schools, strengthen quality promotion, complementary advantages, and resource sharing, and accelerate the realization of high-quality balance among schools within the group and within the school district."
What should we do if we run a school in a group manner?
How to configure the teaching staff?
How to achieve high-quality balance among schools?
The reporter went to Qingdao City in Shandong Province, Huanggang City in Hubei Province, and Jiulongpo District in Chongqing City for interviews and research.
school joint
Strong schools drive weak schools, famous schools drive new schools
"Bang, bang, bang..." At around 3 p.m., more than 20 students were practicing shooting the ball on the basketball court of the Shili Yihai Campus of the Fifth Primary School of Huangmei County, Huanggang City, Hubei Province.
"Open your fingers and touch the ball with your fingers and the parts above the base of your fingers and the outer edge of your palm." Teacher Tao Xinming stood aside, carefully observing the children's movements and reminding them of technical essentials from time to time.
It used to be Shili Yihai Primary School in Zhuogang Town, Huangmei County. It once had backward facilities and insufficient teachers. Now the campus environment has been greatly improved, and there are also full-time teachers in subjects such as physical education, music, and art.
In September 2022, the Hubei Provincial Department of Education issued the "Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Construction of County Education Federations to Improve the Level of Basic Public Services in Education", clarifying that each county (city, district) will build at least one model education federation by the end of 2023. body.
Huangmei County took the lead and tried it first. As early as the fall of 2021, the original "Zhuogang Town Shili Yihai Primary School" was brought under the unified management of the county's fifth primary school and renamed "Huangmei County Fifth Primary School Shili Yihai Campus".
"After the merger, the two schools will become 'one family' and form a close educational community." Wu Wei, who was transferred from the deputy principal of Huangmei County No. 5 Primary School to the executive principal of Shili Yihai Campus, said that the County No. 5 Primary School has invested more than 1.6 million yuan in Shili Yihai Campus. Yihai campus renovated teaching buildings, repaired roads, etc. At the same time, the two schools sent teachers to each other for exchanges and learning.
Tao Xinming studied at the County No. 5 Primary School for two years and brought back advanced teaching models and concepts.
"With the support of the Federation of Education, our campus currently has two full-time physical education teachers. We offer club classes during after-school care hours, and systematically offer basketball and football classes for students with hobbies and specialties to guide and help them develop in an all-round way. "Tao Xinming said.
Use the strong to lead the weak, and the effect is beginning to show.
After more than two years of reform and practice, the teaching staff and teaching level of Shili Yihai Campus have been effectively improved.
In the past, many parents near the campus sent their children to school in the county, and the school's student base continued to decrease, with only more than 270 students in 2021.
Now, students are returning one after another. When the fall semester started last year, the number of students has increased to 507 in 12 classes.
"By promoting the construction of county-level education consortiums, we can realize the unified deployment of people, finances and materials within an education consortium, and the sharing of high-quality teaching resources and teachers." He Lantian, director of the Huanggang Municipal Education Bureau, said that the city's 1,081 public junior high schools, primary schools, and kindergartens have so far It has been integrated into 167 teaching unions.
Strengthening schools to lead weak schools is just one of the models of group-based school running that various places are exploring.
In recent years, the number of students enrolled in compulsory education in Shibei District, Qingdao City, Shandong Province has continued to rise, and more schools have been built.
The district actively promotes "famous schools lead new schools", based on "high quality at the beginning", and integrates all new schools into group management.
In September last year, Wang Xiu'e, a resident of Shibei District, chose Qingdao No. 4 Experimental Junior High School on her doorstep after several comparisons as her son's first choice for elementary school.
"Although the school had only been in operation for two years at that time, as a member of the Qingdao Second Experimental Junior Middle School Education Group, it developed rapidly and had a good reputation." Wang Xiu'e said.
Qingdao No. 2 Experimental Junior High School is a prestigious school in Shibei District with a limited enrollment.
In August 2021, under the "famous schools leading new schools" model, the newly opened Qingdao No. 4 Experimental Junior High School was clarified as a member school of the Second Experimental Junior High School Education Group.
"The management personnel and key teachers of the member schools are all sent from the main school, and the two schools share high-quality educational resources." Lin Yan, the former vice principal of Qingdao No. 2 Experimental Junior High School and the principal of Qingdao No. 4 Experimental Junior High School, said that the dispatched teachers must be in the main school. He has served as leader of the teaching and research group and class teacher in related subjects and has rich teaching experience.
Since 2021, Qingdao has built 94 new schools, 66 of which participate in group-run schools.
"The rise of these high-quality new schools has effectively increased the number of high-quality academic degrees and continues to meet the needs of the people in the region for high-quality educational resources." said Luo Dong, director of the Education and Sports Bureau of Shibei District, Qingdao City.
Teacher sharing
Two-way communication and job rotation, policy guarantees and incentives
After school on Friday, Hou Yao, a teacher at Mingcheng Yucai School in Jiulongpo District, Chongqing, walked out of the school, took a bus, then transferred to the subway, and returned to the main city from Tongcanyi Town, Jiulongpo District. “Although it is a bit far, there is a school in front of the school. The bus is much more convenient than in the past.”
In the fall semester of 2023, Hou Yao was sent here by Chongqing Yucai Middle School Education Group for exchange and rotation.
When I first came here, transportation in the surrounding area was inconvenient.
The school does not have dormitories, so teachers can only rent houses in nearby communities, which increases expenses.
Knowing the practical difficulties encountered by rotating teachers, Zhang Hesong, Secretary of the Party Committee of Chongqing Yucai Middle School Education Group, led a team to Mingcheng Yucai School many times for investigation. After discussion, it was decided that the school would allocate two rooms and one living room for rotating teachers. One set per person, one room per person.
In terms of travel, the school and the transportation department coordinated to add bus stops to facilitate the commuting of rotating teachers.
"The group has set up a special office to be responsible for connecting and ensuring the living facilities of rotating teachers." Zhang Hesong said that there are more than 170 rotating teachers like Hou Yao in the Chongqing Yucai Middle School Education Group.
It not only helps solve family and life worries, but also provides policy support in aspects such as performance rewards, merit evaluation, and professional title evaluation.
In recent years, many places have actively promoted teacher exchange and rotation, so as to increase the number of teachers and improve the quality of teaching.
Gently open the door and walk into the third-grade classroom of Fanggaoping Campus of Wenjin Middle School in Tuanfeng County, Huanggang City. The students are concentrating on English class.
Li Si, a 33-year-old teacher, touched the screen of the all-in-one teaching machine with her finger, and a beautiful English song played.
"These children have a weak English foundation, so I try to speak as slowly as possible, and at the same time use interactive teaching methods such as games, music, and stories to stimulate their interest in learning." Li Si said that after a year of teaching students in accordance with their aptitude, most students now dare to speak in class I spoke English loudly and my grades improved a lot.
The Fanggaoping campus of Wenjin Middle School was originally a township junior high school with only three classes and more than 120 students.
Because it is located in a rural area, the conditions are difficult and it is difficult to attract young people. Eighty of the original 15 teachers in the school are born in their 60s.
As the first batch of pilot units for the construction of educational consortiums in Hubei Province, Wenjin Middle School has formed an integrated teaching consortium with four junior high schools including Fanggaoping, Linshanhe, Dandian and Yilihehe in recent years, and has successively selected 19 young and middle-aged key teachers. Go to these campuses for exchange and teaching.
In February 2023, Li Si learned that the school was going to send her to Fanggaoping Campus for a three-year rotation. She had some concerns: How would she take care of her child when he just entered kindergarten?
Can round-trip transportation expenses, various benefits, etc. be implemented?
Will being far away from the main campus affect your own development?
Soon, these concerns were dispelled one by one.
Rotation can lead to a stable life.
In order to facilitate the care, Li Si took the child to the kindergarten in Fanggaoping Town.
The school arranged a free transitional room for her so that the elderly at home can live together and help her take care of the children and do housework.
Benefits are guaranteed.
The Education Consortium regularly organizes various campuses to carry out joint teaching seminars, exchange training, etc. Li Si has to travel to the county town from time to time. “The school provides us with transportation subsidies based on the distance from different campuses to the main school. Class subsidies, performance rewards, etc. are also guaranteed. "
Development is on track.
Due to his outstanding teaching performance during the rotation, Li Si's 2023 assessment result was "excellent". "For being rated as outstanding, the county education department will award him with a commendation, which is also a bonus in the professional title evaluation."
He Lantian said that in the autumn semester last year, there were more than 1,200 teachers in Huanggang City who rotated from urban areas to rural areas.
Both downward rotation and upward communication.
"This question is a bit abstract. Would it be better for students to understand it if I ask it another way?" "I suggest that when teaching this knowledge point, you should interact more with students and listen to their thoughts."... Before entering the lesson preparation room, the enthusiasm The sound of discussion has already reached my ears.
In the lesson preparation room of Huashan Road Primary School in Jimo District, Qingdao City, several teachers are sitting around discussing teaching problems.
Young teacher Wang Xiaoyan sat in the middle, sometimes nodding in agreement, sometimes immersed in recording.
In June 2021, Xiabo Primary School in Jimo District was incorporated into the Huashan Road Primary School Education Group as a new school. Subsequently, 8 teachers were selected in batches to carry out exchange studies at Huashan Road Primary School, and Wang Xiaoyan was one of them.
"Xiabo Primary School is small, with only one or two classes in each grade. As a math teacher, I prepare lessons by myself with the teaching materials in mind. In Huashan Road Primary School, the teachers prepare lessons together, study the teaching materials and discuss problems face to face. , make progress together." Wang Xiaoyan said.
At Huashan Road Primary School, Wang Xiaoyan also recognized her "master" - Fang Qianqian, the leader of the mathematics subject group who had won the first prize in the Qingdao City Quality Course Competition.
When she was at Xiabo Primary School, Wang Xiaoyan was able to take charge of her classroom teaching. Unexpectedly, after listening to her class, Fang Qianqian frankly pointed out that her teaching methods were old-fashioned: "It can't all be done by the teacher. Students are an important aspect of teaching activities. We must let them They get involved and express themselves.”
Later, Wang Xiaoyan often went to Fang Qianqian's class to observe and learn, and she also learned to ask questions during class to guide students to discuss.
"Slowly, my classroom became active, and the children were learning happily in the classroom. I was also named an outstanding teacher in Jimo District in 2022." Wang Xiaoyan said.
"We regularly guide member schools to send teachers to the main school for exchange studies for more than one year, giving full play to the role of key teachers from the main school in teaching and helping exchange teachers from member schools grow into talents." said Ma Ruixia, principal of Huashan Road Primary School.
"We will continue to improve the group-based school-running mechanism, allocate teachers scientifically and rationally, promote exchanges and interactions between member schools and teachers from the main school, and achieve mutual learning and common improvement." said Jiang Yuanshao, director of the Qingdao Municipal Education Bureau.
Unified management
Promote balanced development and respect individual characteristics
In the early morning, several parents of students served as school counselors and greeted the children at the school gate with smiles; during class, they sat in the back row of the classroom to observe; during lunch, they ate with their children to experience the dining environment and share the food. Process... As long as parents apply, the school will arrange such "parent office activities at school" in a timely manner to facilitate parents to comprehensively observe their children's growth and participate in and supervise the school's daily teaching management.
This activity was launched in Qingdao No. 53 Middle School in 2022 and received high praise from all parties, and was soon promoted to other campuses of the education group to which the school belongs.
Why can good systems be implemented quickly?
Thanks to flat management.
"Our education group has 4 campuses, 9 grades, and 94 classes. According to the traditional management model, the implementation of a task needs to be communicated to all grades, which is inefficient, let alone promoting it in different campuses." Qingdao No. 5 Wang Shengwen, the principal of Thirteen Middle School Education Group, introduced that the group has established and improved the school division management system. The first to fifth grade of elementary school are the basic division, the sixth grade and the first grade of junior high school are the connecting division, and the second and third grade of junior high school are the graduation division. The curriculum has been set The rights, performance evaluation rights, activity organization rights, etc. are transferred to the head of the school department, and the head of the school department can report to the principal and implement them directly.
"The four campuses are managed under a unified model, and the 'parents-in-school office activities' have achieved good results and have been praised by many parents. I summoned the heads of departments in each campus and mobilized them to promote the implementation, and it was soon fully rolled out within the group." Wang Shengwen said.
It is necessary to have unified management and respect differences in school conditions.
Jiulongpo District Xiejiawan Education Group was established in 2019. It currently includes 1 main school, 5 integrated school member schools, and 1 alliance member school.
"The schools in the group originally had very different school conditions. We respect the school-running characteristics of the member schools, adapt to school conditions, maintain school characteristics while promoting balanced development, and take into account commonality and individuality." said Liu Xiya, chief principal of Xiejiawan Education Group .
In March 2022, the Education Committee of Jiulongpo District issued the "Opinions on Promoting the Group-run Education of Primary and Secondary Schools", and Xiejiawan Jinmao Primary School became an integrated member school of the Xiejiawan Education Group.
Xiejiawan Jinmao Primary School was formerly a school for children of Chongqing Construction Industry (Group) Co., Ltd., and about one-third of the teachers were factory employees.
"Based on the school situation, we emphasize cultivating students to develop the habit of loving labor and forming a sunny mentality." Yang Yongcai, secretary of the Party branch of Xiejiawan Jinmao Primary School, pointed to the old machine tools placed on campus. "Chongqing Construction Industry (Group) ) Co., Ltd. has a rich history of development, and the school actively explores red resources to teach children about revolutionary history and provide good ideological and political courses."
Learning from the advantages of the main school and maintaining its own characteristics, Xiejiawan Jinmao Primary School has made significant progress. Parents' satisfaction with the school's teaching reached 96.5% in the 2022-2023 school year, a year-on-year increase of 10 percentage points.
"Group-based education cannot be managed in a 'one-size-fits-all' manner." Wang Jiashi, director of the Education Committee of Jiulongpo District, said that in recent years, Jiulongpo District has deeply implemented the "one school, one product" characteristic development action and encouraged the head schools of each education group to strengthen the standardized management of member schools. , to form a relatively unified education and teaching style, and at the same time encourage member schools to cultivate and carry forward their own characteristics based on their own actual conditions, and promote the formation of a school-running pattern in which "each excels in its excellence, each appreciates its beauty, and the beauty is shared."
High-quality expansion
Focus on the quality of running schools and strengthen assessment and evaluation
The class bell rang. Sun Weixiong, the vice principal of Bajiaoting Middle School in Huangmei County, walked into the main control room, turned on the computer, clicked the mouse, and entered the classroom inspection system.
On the big screen, images of classrooms are displayed in real time, and the teacher's lecture voice is clearly audible.
He immediately carried out inspections on the arrival of teachers, class discipline, classroom teaching, etc. in each campus of the education consortium, and recorded the classes with good and poor classroom performance of teachers and students one by one on the class inspection registration form for feedback after class.
"This classroom inspection system has covered all classrooms in all campuses of the education consortium, and can comprehensively supervise and manage classroom order." Shen Yuchun, secretary of the Party Committee of Bajiaoting Middle School, introduced that school leaders, directors of academic affairs offices and other cadres are scheduled according to the schedule and take turns to the main control unit every day The office conducts online class inspections and listens to classes for no less than 3 minutes for key classes. "The Academic Affairs Office provides feedback on the class inspections every week and notifies relevant teachers and grade leaders of existing problems for rectification. At the end of the semester, teachers' performance is reviewed When evaluating and assessing, the results of the inspection are also an important basis.”
With the implementation of group school running, whether the teaching quality of member schools can be improved is the focus of parents' attention.
Wu Xudong, vice chairman of the Huangmei County CPPCC and director of the Education Bureau, introduced that the county is exploring the establishment of an online class and school inspection system to promote normalized remote supervision through digital empowerment. “To date, a total of more than 30 million yuan has been invested to achieve the goal of improving the quality of primary and secondary schools and kindergartens in the county. All 3,046 classrooms and function rooms are equipped with integrated teaching equipment, and relevant schools have established an online class patrol system."
Ensuring the quality of school running is inseparable from the "baton" of assessment.
In July 2021, after the Primary School Affiliated to Jiulongpo District of Sichuan International Studies University joined the High School Affiliated to Sichuan Foreign Studies University Education Group, the quality of schooling and parent satisfaction have continued to improve.
“As the head school of the group, we spend real money and sincerely help our member schools.” Tang Gang, principal of the High School Affiliated to Sichuan Foreign Language School, said that the school sent the director of the teaching and research office to serve as the vice principal of teaching at the Kowloon Affiliated Primary School of Sichuan Foreign Language School, and sent key teachers for exchanges and rotations to provide Funds are used to improve infrastructure. "Based on the improvement of the member schools led by the main school, Jiulongpo District regularly conducts assessments and evaluations of the education group to encourage us to actively drive member schools to improve the quality of school running."
Wang Jiashi introduced that in recent years, Jiulongpo District has improved the supervision and evaluation system, using group-based school running as a key assessment indicator to test the quality of school running, and allocating relevant special funds in stages based on the performance evaluation results of different education groups.
Assessing the main school also encourages the development of member schools.
"Students, we will learn the 'Pythagorean Theorem' in this class..." In Classes 702 and 703 of Wenhua Junior High School in Qingdao West Coast New District, students stared at the big screen and listened to online lectures by Wenhui Middle School mathematics teachers.
"Since last year, we have deepened our curriculum construction and relied on the smart education platform to build a high-quality curriculum development, sharing, and delivery mechanism. Teachers not only teach on-site, but also teach online, and students in multiple classes within the group can learn simultaneously." Qingdao West Coast New District Culture Niu Xiuli, principal of Hui Middle School, introduced that as a member of the Qingdao Junior High Experimental School Education Group, Wenhui Middle School has won the recognition of parents with its high-quality educational resources and excellent teaching quality, and has grown into a regional high-quality school.
In August 2021, a new education group was established with Wenhui Middle School as the main school and Wenhua Junior High School as the member schools.
In recent years, Qingdao has established a dynamic adjustment mechanism for education groups. Member schools with good quality and high reputation are allowed to apply to the group's main school and form a new education group with the approval of the education department to increase the number of high-quality educational resources. .
"Each member school has a promising future. Based on high-quality and characteristic development, we are committed to comprehensively improving the quality of school running, not leaving any school behind, promoting the continuous expansion of the total amount of high-quality educational resources, and the balanced and optimized allocation of regional educational resources. "Jiang Yuanshao said.
Reporters Li Rui, Fan Haotian and Liu Xinwu