The Ministry of Education has launched a new nationwide initiative titled the “Year of Strengthening Regulation in Basic Education,” aimed at enhancing governance and ensuring fair, student-centered schooling practices across the country.

As part of efforts to implement the 2024–2035 Master Plan on Building China into a Leading Country in Education and its Three-Year Action Plan, the campaign is building upon the results of the 2024 regulatory reform initiative.

The campaign has set out five overarching goals: promoting student-centered education, curbing harmful practices, strengthening legal and institutional foundations, fostering a healthy and equitable educational environment, and increasing public satisfaction with basic education.

Key priorities include consolidating effective governance practices, addressing persistent challenges in school management, building institutional capacity for ethical and rule-based education, and leveraging digital technologies such as AI and big data to improve educational oversight and efficiency.

The campaign has also introduced a 16-point negative list, highlighting prohibited practices such as promoting anti-government or revisionist ideologies, organizing frequent unauthorized testing, squeezing students’ break time between classes, early start or late end to school terms, and exploitative behavior around school uniforms or tutoring during holidays. Schools are also barred from imposing unreasonable rules or neglecting responsibilities in areas like food safety and textbook procurement.

The MOE has urged local authorities to clarify responsibilities, strengthen coordination mechanisms, and improve transparency by encouraging the public to monitor progress.