The Rise and Fall of Factory-based Schools in China.

After 1949, the Chinese government built a massive adult education system—based largely in factories and rural communes—that at times enrolled more students than the entire regular education system for youth. This paper focuses on one part of this system—adult schools inside factories. These schools...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Published in:Critical Asian Studies Vol. 57; no. 3; pp. 507 - 530
Main Author: Andreas, Joel
Format: Article
Published: Taylor & Francis Ltd Sep2025
Subjects:
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
fields @attributes:
  recordID: 1
pdfLink:
plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ssf&AN=187409346&site=ehost-live
header:
  @attributes:
    shortDbName: ssf
    uiTerm: 187409346
    longDbName: Social Sciences Full Text (H.W. Wilson)
    uiTag: AN
  controlInfo:
    bkinfo:
    jinfo:
      jid:
        14672715
        BF1
      jtl: Critical Asian Studies
      issn: 14672715
      maglogo: N
    pubinfo:
      dt: Sep2025
      vid: 57
      iid: 3
      pid: 377
      pub: Taylor & Francis Ltd
    artinfo:
      ui:
        187409346
        10.1080/14672715.2025.2492640
      ppf: 507
      ppct: 23
      formats:
      tig:
        atl: The Rise and Fall of Factory-based Schools in China.
      aug:
        au: Andreas, Joel
        affil: Johns Hopkins University
      su:
        Mao, Zedong, 1893-1976
        Adult education
        Factories
        Technical education
        Cultural Revolution, China, 1966-1976
      sug:
        subj:
          Adult education
          Factories
          Technical education
          Cultural Revolution, China, 1966-1976
          Mao, Zedong, 1893-1976
      keyword:
        adult education
        China
        Cultural Revolution
        factory-based schools
        Mao Zedong era
        adult education
        China
        Cultural Revolution
        factory-based schools
        Mao Zedong era
      ab: After 1949, the Chinese government built a massive adult education system—based largely in factories and rural communes—that at times enrolled more students than the entire regular education system for youth. This paper focuses on one part of this system—adult schools inside factories. These schools provided workers with education and technical training, but were also designed to train workers to replace incumbent factory managers, diminish class differences based on education, and reduce the gap between those who labored with their minds and those who labored with their hands. Mao Zedong emphasized these radical goals as he pushed for the rapid expansion of factory-based schools, especially during the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution. Although these radical goals were eventually abandoned, state-owned factories continued to run schools for employees well into the post-Mao era, until the industrial restructuring process that began in the 1990s. This paper considers the causes of the rise and fall of China's factory-based education system based on official publications and interviews with factory leaders and workers, including many who participated in these schools.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
    refInfo:
    copyright:
      @attributes:
        flag: N
    holdings:
      @attributes:
        islocal: N