China moves to cut teachers' administrative workload

China is intensifying efforts to unburden primary and secondary school teachers from non-teaching tasks, introducing systematic measures to curb excessive inspections, limit campus activities and streamline administrative duties.

The Ministry of Education unveiled a new policy on Monday aimed at allowing educators to focus on teaching. A key measure requires stricter review of documents and tasks assigned to schools, prohibiting duties beyond teachers' core educational responsibilities.

Under the new rules, all inspection and appraisal activities must be included in an annual list filed with the ministry. Each school will undergo no more than one comprehensive education inspection per year, with disguised evaluations under other names explicitly banned.

A "whitelist" system will regulate non-academic activities on campus. Provincial authorities may approve up to 10 activities per semester, while individual schools will host no more than six. Teachers will also be protected from being assigned to non-educational tasks such as street patrols or festival performances.

The policy further restricts temporary transfers of teachers to government departments and limits the number of external exams hosted by schools to no more than five per year. Teachers are also exempted from work duties during official school holidays when campuses are closed.

To reduce paperwork, education authorities will consolidate digital platforms and eliminate mandatory check-ins, ranking systems, and unnecessary photo and video submissions.

Furthermore, after-school services must align with local working hours and will not affect performance evaluations. Authorities will enhance oversight and establish reporting channels for violations.