Primary, secondary schools to place greater focus on science

Students Huang Lichen and Huang Qiuhui perform an experiment in Qianjiang Middle School in Laibin city, South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, Dec 28, 2023. China's top education authority has issued a guideline to enhance science education in primary and secondary schools, emphasizing a more comprehensive curriculum, a stronger teaching workforce and better integration of science education resources. The guideline builds on ongoing efforts to improve science education, including the establishment of 125 national science education experimental zones and 994 experimental schools under construction. "Promoting high-quality development in science education requires designing a comprehensive system, training highly qualified science teachers, creating robust education resources and leveraging digital tools to develop open science courses," Minister of Education Huai Jinpeng said at a December conference on science education. The document emphasizes strengthening theoretical research on science education through collaboration among universities, research institutes and natural science foundations, as well as fostering international exchanges.