The amount of state investment in education reflects the scale of state investment in education. The proportion of education investment in fiscal expenditure or gross national product reflects the relationship between education investment and national economy and the level of education investment. The quantity and proportion of national education investment are restricted by many factors such as national historical and cultural traditions, politics, economy, population and so on. Then, according to China's national conditions, what are the characteristics and problems of China's education investment?
First of all, since the reform and opening up, China's education investment has increased greatly, but it still can't meet the needs of education development.
China is the most populous country in the world, and its education scale is huge. 1994 1994, there were 277 million students in schools of all levels and types (21660,000 students in ordinary schools) and more than 3 million teaching staff. Although the largest education system in the world is supported by relatively few funds, the amount of education funds is also huge.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, until 1978, the proportion of education funds in the national budget to the total national financial expenditure has been hovering at 4-7%, never exceeding 8%. The proportion of education infrastructure investment in the national budget to the total national infrastructure investment has also been below 20%. For a long time, the base of education funds is too low and the funds for running schools are insufficient, which leads to a very weak material foundation for education.
Since the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council have identified the development of education as one of the strategic priorities of national economic construction, and the absolute investment in education has increased at a relatively fast speed. If the influence of price is not considered, the total national financial expenditure on education is1174.7 billion yuan, which is10.33 times higher than the 503.9 billion yuan in 1989, with an average annual growth of 26.6%. 1994 national budget expenditure on education reached 88.40 billion yuan, an increase of 7. 17 times compared with108.2 billion yuan, and an increase of 2.22 times compared with 1989 of 39.77 billion yuan, with an average annual growth rate of 24.4%. The proportion of budgeted education expenditure in the national financial expenditure has increased from 8.92% in 1980 to 12.64% (see Annex I).
Schedule 1: 1980 to 1994 Proportion of education expenditure to gross national product and national financial expenditure.
Unit: 100 million yuan
(attached {Figure})
Source: China Education Comprehensive Statistical Yearbook (1994) edited by the State Education Commission, P3 Higher Education Press, 1995.3. 1994. For the data, please refer to Statistics of Education Funds in China 1994P2 China Statistics Publishing House 1995.9.
Although the education expenditure has greatly increased since the Third Plenary Session of the Central Committee of 1980, China's public education expenditure is still one of the lowest in the world. According to the statistics of UNESCO 1993, the world average public education expenditure in 199 1 year accounts for 5. 1% of the gross national product, of which the developed countries account for 5.3%, the developing countries for 4. 1% and the least developed countries for 3.3. If non-state financial education expenses such as factory and mine education expenses, urban and rural education surcharge, social fund-raising, education funds and tuition and fees paid by students are included, it is only about 3%, which is still the lowest level in the world.
Schedule 2: 1980- 199 1 year public education funds.
Dollars (billion) account for 10% of the gross national product.
(attached {Figure})
Source: UNESCO World Education Report 1993 p94.
In addition, it should be pointed out that in recent years, although the per capita education expenditure at all levels in China has increased year by year, the actual benefits of limited education expenditure and education infrastructure investment have been greatly reduced due to the rapid rise in prices. The actual growth rate of education investment has not increased much, and some of them are still negative. For example, from 1.990 to 1.994, the average expenditure of local colleges and universities in China is 3 1.0 1.78, 3,429.87, 3,874.98, 3,894.63 and 4,058./kloc respectively. However, from 199 1 to 1994, the inflation rate (price increase) of commodities is 3.4%, 6.4%, 14.7% and 21.7% respectively [3]; If the inflation index is deducted, the public expenditure of 1993 1994 has not increased, but has decreased.
There is a sharp contradiction between the insufficient investment in education funds and the needs of education development. Outstanding performance in schools of all levels and types, the shortage of necessary teaching instruments and books, the shortage of official and business expenses required for school teaching activities, and the nationwide arrears of wages for primary and secondary school teachers. The more these contradictions are in poor areas, the sharper they become.
Secondly, from the perspective of educational investment structure, the allocation of financial education funds to higher education in China is basically similar to that in the world, but the per capita investment of primary and secondary school students is quite different.
According to the statistics of UNESCO 1993, the investment in preschool and primary education in China accounts for 32.7% of the total daily expenditure in 1990, middle school accounts for 34.4%, and higher education accounts for 18.6%, which is at a medium level compared with some developed and developing countries in the world (see table 3). However, judging from the proportion of actual education expenditure in China's budgets at all levels, the share of higher education funds is higher than that of UNESCO.
Table 3: Percentage of education at all levels in daily expenditure in some countries
(attached {Figure})
Selected from UNESCO World Education Report1993p151-154.
From the internal structure of education, the scale of higher education in China is much smaller than that of primary and secondary education. Judging from the proportion of the annual average cost of primary, secondary and university education, the proportion of the annual average cost of primary, secondary and university education in China is1:2.28: 29.34; 1993 is1:1.73:17.93 (see table 4), which is largely due to the reduction of public funds per student and the transfer of some expenses to students' families. In addition, the growth rate of primary and secondary school funding is slightly higher than that of colleges and universities.
Schedule 4: Per capita education expenditure of local school students
Unit: Yuan
Primary school, general middle school, vocational middle school, normal university1990105.40 240.1344.153101.78/. 63 464.49 14 1 1.63 3429.87 1992 139.35 300.96 526.5438+0585.9438+0 3874.99856686
Source: Comprehensive Statistical Yearbook of China Education compiled by State Education Commission (1994) p3 Higher Education Press.
According to the statistics of UNESCO, the ratio of the average daily cost of college students to the per capita GNP in 1990 was 0.05:0. 15: 1.93 (or 1:3:38.6), which was the most disparity among countries (see table 5). Although the per capita expenditure of college students is higher than that of primary and secondary school students, the gap is far greater than that of developed countries and other developing countries.
Schedule 5: Proportion of per capita daily expenditure of students in some countries to per capita GNP (1990) National preschool, primary school, middle school and university USA 0. 13 0.35 0.2 1 Brazil 0.13/kloc-0. Kloc-0/. 1.654389 Korea 0.120.1.06 France 0. 19 0.27 0.4 1 UK 0.
Source: Selected from World Education Report1993p155—159.
Generally speaking, the change of the proportion of international education investment structure is in line with the development of education and economy. In countries with low level of economic and educational development, the proportion of students receiving primary education in the total number of students in higher education is far greater than that in the other two stages. At this time, the focus of education investment is primary education. With the development of economy, the proportion of education investment will be adjusted with the basic popularization of primary education and the development of secondary and higher education. With the continuous improvement of GNP per capita, the gap in the proportion of investment in higher education will narrow, and the gap in the per capita funding of higher education will also narrow. Wang Shanmai and Sun Yuping of Beijing Normal University made a statistical analysis of countries with different per capita GNP and reached the above conclusion.
Third, the economic development in the eastern and western regions of China is unbalanced, and there are obvious differences in educational investment between regions.
China is a vast country with obvious regional differences, and the economic development in the eastern coastal areas and the central and western regions is unbalanced. By 1993, the eastern region has accounted for 60. 1% of the national output, while the western region only accounts for 13. 1%. From the per capita GNP, the eastern region is 4580 yuan, the western region is 1408 yuan, and the eastern region is 3.25 times that of the western region [4]. There are also great differences in education funds between regions. In terms of per capita expenditure on compulsory education, 1993 was 628.68 yuan in Beijing, 704.77 yuan in Shanghai, 40 1.66 yuan in Tianjin, 18 1.70 yuan in Guangxi, 205.65 yuan in Ningxia and Gansu. That is to say, the investment in compulsory education in developed coastal areas is much higher than that in poor and backward provinces, both in total and in average. It is difficult for China's rural poverty-stricken areas to realize the "two basics" at the end of this century, the gap between the input intensity of compulsory education has widened, and it is more difficult for poverty-stricken areas to achieve universal compulsory education. In the process of realizing the transformation of socialist market economy, in recent years, the difference of education funds between regions has obviously expanded.
Fourth, the source of education funds has gradually formed a new pattern of multi-channel education from a single channel.
Before the Third Plenary Session, the source of education funds in China was relatively single, mainly relying on state input. The reform and development in the past ten years have gradually formed a situation of multi-channel financing for running schools. From 1986, the total amount of extra-budgetary education investment accounted for less than 24% of education investment, and it has exceeded 4 0% by 1994. From 1989 to 1994, the proportion of education funds in the total expenditure of education funds in China's fiscal budget has decreased year by year, from 66.88% in 1989 to 59.38% in 1994. During the period of 1994, the share of funds allocated in China's fiscal budget in the total education expenditure was 59.38%, and the share of tuition and miscellaneous fees paid by individuals in the total education expenditure increased from 8.22% in 1993 to 9.87%. Social donations and fund-raising account for 6.55% of the total education expenditure, enterprises account for 5 .99%, and school-run enterprises, work-study programs and social services account for 4.08%. The funds for running schools by social organizations and individual citizens account for 0.72% of the total education expenditure, which is more than double the 0.3 1% in 1993. Taxes and fees collected by governments at all levels for education (including urban education surcharge and rural education surcharge) account for 8.92% of the total expenditure share of education funds, and other education funds account for 3.96% [6]. The above statistics show that China has formed a multi-channel financing system with national financial allocation as the main part, supplemented by taxes, fees, industries, society and foundations. It is an inevitable way to solve the shortage of education funds in China at this stage by changing the state financial allocation to multi-channel financing of education funds.
Five, the reform of education investment management system has achieved remarkable results in expanding local education decision-making power and diversified financing, but there is still a clear disconnect between the allocation and use of funds.
Before the Third Plenary Session of the Communist Party of China, the allocation of education funds in China was made by the central government, managed by the local financial departments and arranged by the education departments. Since the reform and opening up, China's financial system has experienced three gradual and in-depth reforms in the early, middle and late 1980s, which are marked by "eating in different kitchens", "taking responsibility at different levels" and "taking responsibility for everything". Accordingly, the education system has promoted the reform of the education investment system, including the system of running schools at different levels by the central and local governments, managing schools at different levels, and taking responsibility at different levels. Education funds are raised by governments at all levels accordingly, and financial management is responsible at different levels. At present, the responsibility of government investment in basic education is shared by the central government, provincial governments and local finance, mainly local governments, and the central and provincial governments subsidize it by transferring special funds. Higher education is managed by the central government and all provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government. State funds come from central and local governments. Among them, the funds of colleges and universities directly under the State Education Commission and other central ministries and commissions are allocated by the Ministry of Finance to the State Education Commission and other central ministries and commissions, and then to colleges and universities. The funds of local colleges and universities are allocated by provincial finance departments, and a few are allocated by regional or county-level finance. At present, the allocation method of "comprehensive quota plus special subsidy" is implemented for higher education funds, and the principle of "once and for all, without overspending and surplus retention" is implemented.
The problems of this educational investment management system are mainly manifested in the separation of educational financial power and administrative power, and the division of government educational investment, which makes the macro-control functions of education management departments such as planning, budgeting, distribution and supervision unable to be fully exercised. The combination of unification and decentralization of education funds weakens the macro-control function of the central and provincial governments on education investment, and it is difficult to adjust the surplus and deficiency between schools and regions, and the difference in education investment level between regions is widening day by day.