Historical Foundation

Early Chinese Education

Reported by:
Mary Rose M. Vicencio
 Official Name: People's
China Republic of China
Form of Government:
Communist state
Capital: Beijing (Peking)
Population: 1,397,897,720
Official Languages: Standard
Chinese, Mandarin
Money: Yuan (or renminbi)
Major Mountgain Ranges:
Himalaya
Major Rivers: Yangtze, Yellow
 Stretching 3,100 miles (5,000
China kilometers) from east to west
and 3,400 miles (5,500
kilometers) from north to
south, China is a large country
with widely varying
landscapes. Its territory
includes mountains, high
plateaus, sandy deserts, and
dense forests.
China One-third of China's land area
is made up of mountains. The
tallest mountain on Earth,
Mount Everest, sits on the
border between China and
Nepal.
China China is the home of one of
the world's oldest civilizations,
but it has only recently
become a "modern" nation. In
the last 20 years, China has
changed faster than any other
country in the world.
 Official Name: People's
China Republic of China
Form of Government:
Communist state
Capital: Beijing (Peking)
Population: 1,397,897,720
Official Languages: Standard
Chinese, Mandarin
Money: Yuan (or renminbi)
Major Mountgain Ranges:
Himalaya
Major Rivers: Yangtze, Yellow
 THE DYNASTIES
ca. 1600-1050 BCE 221-206 BCE 220-589 CE 618-906 CE
Shang Dynasty Qin Dynasty 6 Dynasties Period Tang Dynasty

ca. 2100-1600 BCE 1046-256 BCE 206 BCE-220 CE 581-618 CE

Xia Dynasty Zhou Dynasty Han Dynasty Sui Dynasty

1949-present 1644-1912 1279-1368 907-960 CE

People's Republic of China Qing Dynasty Yuan Dynasty 5 Dynasties Period

1912-1949 1368-1644 960-1279

Republic Ming Dynasty Song Dynasty
 Aims of Education
The cultivation of scholar-officials, men of
virtue, and sages
Select well-educated officials to assist them in
administering their kingdoms.
Modernize technologically by imitating the
West, while maintaining all traditional aspects
of Chinese culture
 Types of Education
Oral Education
In primitive society,
knowledge was passed
on orally by elders to
their children.
 Types of Education
Formal Education
It was a privilege of the rich.

Mastering classical Chinese, which

consisted of different written and
spoken versions and lacked an alphabet,
required time and resources most
Chinese could not afford.
 Types of Education
Official School Education
It refers to a whole set of education
systems sponsored by central and
local governments of slave and
feudal societies.
 Types of Education
Official School Education
It aimed to train talent of various
kinds for the ruling classes, whose
rise and fall was related to social and
political developments in ancient
China.
 Types of Education
Private School Education
It was first initiated by Confucius in
the Spring and Autumn Period (770-
476 BC) and exercised a great
influence on the Chinese people.
 Types of Education
Education in Ancient China was focused on
memorization, tradition, and examination.
 Contents to be Studied
Moral-based concepts
Advances in maths, astronomy, art,
and military technology
Martial arts and Archery
The early form of modern Chinese
language
Chinese philosophy (Confucianism,
Taoism, Mohism, and Buddhism)
Poetry and Literature
Metaphysics
 Contents to be Studied
Classic works namely the Four Books (Great
Learning, Doctrine of the Mean, Analects, and
Mencius) and the Five Classics (Classic of
Poetry, Book of Documents, Book of Rites, I
Ching, and Spring and Autumn Annals)

Confucianism
Contents to be Studied

Confucianism
It is one of the most influential
religious philosophies in the history
of China, and it has existed for over
2,500 years. It is concerned with
inner virtue, morality, and respect
for the community and its values.
Contents to be Studied

Confucianism
It is a philosophy and belief system
from ancient China, which laid the
foundation for much of Chinese
culture.
Contents to be Studied

Confucianism
His thoughts on ethics, good
behavior, and moral character were
written down by his disciples in
several books, the most important
being the Lunyu (Analects).
Contents to be Studied

Confucianism
Confucianism believes in ancestor
worship and human-centered
virtues for living a peaceful life.
Contents to be Studied

Confucianism
Confucianism is best understood as
an ethical guide to life and living
with strong character.
Contents to be Studied
Confucius
(551—479 B.C.E.)
“Master Kong” (Chinese: Kongzi)
He was a philosopher and teacher who
lived from 551 to 479 B.C.E.
Fifth-century BCE Chinese thinker
whose influence upon East Asian
intellectual and social history is
immeasurable.
Contents to be Studied
Confucius
(551—479 B.C.E.)
The Five Virtues of Confucius included
manners, kindness, loyalty, honesty,
and knowing what is right and wrong.
Contents to be Studied

Taoism
Taoism is an ancient Chinese
philosophy and religion that
instructs believers on how to exist in
harmony with the universe.
Contents to be Studied

Taoism
Taoism (also spelled Daoism) is a religion
and a philosophy from ancient China that
has influenced folk and national belief.
Taoism has been connected to the
philosopher Lao Tzu, who around 500
B.C.E. wrote the main book of Taoism, the
Tao Te Ching.
Contents to be Studied
Taoism
Taoists believe in spiritual immortality,
where the spirit of the body joins the
universe after death.
Contents to be Studied
Taoism
The Tao Te Ching, or “The Way and Its
Power,” is a collection of poetry and
sayings from around the third and fourth
centuries B.C.E. that guides Taoist
thought and actions.
Contents to be Studied
Taoism
One of the main ideas of Taoism is the
belief in balancing forces, or yin and
yang. These ideas represent matching
pairs, such as light and dark, hot and
cold, action and inaction, which work
together toward a universal whole.
Contents to be Studied
Taoism
Taoism has temples, monasteries, and
priests who make offerings, meditate,
and perform other rituals for their
communities.
Contents to be Studied

Buddhism
Buddhism is a philosophy that focuses on
personal development and the
attainment of deep knowledge.
Buddhists seek to achieve enlightenment
through meditation, spiritual learning,
and practice.
Contents to be Studied

Mohism
Mohism emerged around the same time
as the other philosophies discussed here,
under the philosopher Mozi (c. 470-391
BCE).
Contents to be Studied

Mohism
The most well-known concept under
Mohism was “impartial care,” also
known as “universal love.”
Agencies of Education

In primitive society,
knowledge was passed
on orally by elders to
their children.
 Agencies of Education
As hieroglyphic writings emerged
3,000 years or so ago,
professional institutions emerged
aiming to teach knowledge. These
were called chengjun, the
predecessors of schools.
Formal Schools (Xiao, Xiang, and
Xu)
 Agencies of Education
East Xu - the precursors of
college, where the children of
nobility were educated.

West Xu - the precursors of

elementary schools, where the
children of ordinary citizens
studied
 Agencies of Education

State Schools - were only for

nobility and entitled elementary
school and higher-level colleges.

Village schools - were divided up

into four levels and students
continued their education when
they passed each level.
 Agencies of Education
Emperor Wu (156-87 BC) of the
Western Han dynasty (206 BC-9
AD) established government-
sponsored imperial colleges, and
teachers were selected from
among learned and accomplished
officials, who were called boshi
(present-day doctors).
Agencies of Education
The earliest known school in
ancient China was Jixia
Academy.

Confucius was a tutor in

ancient China.
 Organization of Grades
Evidence of learning in the Chinese system was
almost strictly through examinations.
 Organization of Grades
Education in traditional China was dominated
by the keju (civil service examination system)
 Organization of Grades
Essentially, the keju was a search program
based on the Confucian notion of meritocracy.
 Methods of Instruction
In primitive society, knowledge was passed on
orally by elders to their children.
Methods of Instruction
School began at around 6-7 years of age
in the local school.
Some students went to the academy for
additional studies.
From Academy, some students would go
to university with the hopes of
completing their studies to obtain a
government position.
 Methods of Instruction
Generally, the education was for male students as it
was considered shameful to not educate a boy.

Girls often did not go to

school and often handle
traditional roles in the
home.
 Methods of Instruction
Rote Memory
Rote memory is a learning technique where students
repeat certain facts or figures until it is instilled in
their memory bank.
Students were expected to memorize large
amounts of information. This contributed
to a focus on the conservation of
knowledge rather than the expansion of it.
 Financing
The Chinese education system started with
establishing formal schools during the rule of
the Xia Dynasty and then that of the Shang
Dynasty (Guo et al., 2019). During that period,
only those who belonged to the class of the
privileged could receive education to obtain
high administrative positions close to the
governmental forces.
 Outstanding Contributions
to Education
Confucianism
Chinese Philosophies
Civil Service Examination
(Keju)
Official Private Schools
 My Insights
Early Chinese Education is widely focused
on Confucianism and the teachings of
Analects as it is human-centered virtues for
living a peaceful life.
"He who learns but does not think is lost! He
who thinks but does not learn is in great
danger."

-Confucius
 Historical Foundation
Early Chinese Education

Reported by:
Mary Rose M. Vicencio
Yu, K., Stith, A.L., Liu, L., Chen, H. (2012). The Chinese
Education System – History. In: Yu, K., Stith, A.L., Liu, L.,
Chen, H. (eds) Tertiary Education at a Glance: China.
Global Perspectives on Higher Education, vol 24.
SensePublishers. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6091-
746-2_2
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