Shanghai's remarkable education story

Education has traditionally been seen as a way out of poverty, and nowhere is this truer than in China. In Shanghai, particularly, a modern education system has been evolving since the mid-19th century, and education reforms have been carried out in step with the city's growth into a global commercial and trading hub.

What is astounding about Shanghai, however, is not just that it leads education reform within China. With a per capita GDP just above high-income threshold, the city already leads the world in terms of international performance in mathematics, science, and reading among 15-year-olds, as measured by tests developed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

The city is a perfect illustration of the broad global finding that the quality of education - that is, what workers learn while in school - matters for economic growth. Higher quality education is a prominent factor in the striking success of East Asia compared to other world regions. This correlation is now recognized within the new Sustainable Development Goals adopted at the United Nations in 2015. Among other targets, the goals call for access to quality education for all by 2030 and lifelong learning opportunities. This is a major step up from the previous global target of universal access to primary education.