China

Abstract Out-of-field (OOF) teaching is a pervasive reality in education, especially for mathematics instruction. Research has documented OOF teachers’ pedagogical challenges and knowledge gaps. However, a singular focus on remediating these deficits may overlook OOF teachers’ prior knowledge. Grounded in the Landscapes of Practice (LoP) framework, this study takes an asset-oriented approach to teachers’ diverse disciplinary backgrounds. It provides an alternative lens to explore the latent educational value of teachers’ diverse disciplinary backgrounds. We aim to understand how OOF mathematics teachers negotiate their prior knowledge within entrenched educational systems. To explore this dynamic, we conducted a two-phase ethnographic study in three schools in Northwest China. The findings reveal divergent patterns of mutual shaping between OOF mathematics teachers and school mathematics communities. These teachers used knowledgeability to translate prior disciplinary expertise into mathematics Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK); also, knowledgeability and social skill supported the teaching group’s adoption of a translated practice. Ultimately, we advocate for an asset-oriented professional development programme that helps teachers translate prior disciplinary knowledge into mathematics PCK and possibly fosters organisational renewal. ...

Abstract Discipline and order hold high value in China, with teachers prioritizing classroom management strictly. Drawing on a longitudinal ethnographic study conducted in an elementary school in China, this article examines the social construction of the “troublemaker” identity. Grounded in Becker’s labeling theory, we track the trajectory of students from their initial entry into school to the eventual solidification of their deviant roles. The findings reveal a cumulative “making” process. Initially, organizational climate and teacher judgements generate situational labels for minor non-conformity. Over time, students internalize these labels, manifesting secondary deviance through either active resistance or passive self-abandonment. Finally, mechanisms of retrospective validation, social quarantine, and institutional calcification trigger a feedback loop that permanently cements their deviant status. We argue that the “troublemaker” is not an inherent trait but an institutional product. This research highlights the critical power of teacher authority in shaping students’ identity. ...

A review of Jia, Li, and Cousineau’s landmark data-driven account of China’s national college entrance examination, arguing that the gaokao is best understood not merely as an educational sorting mechanism but as the archetype of a totalizing social tournament that organizes the entire political economy.

Abstract Previous research has emphasized male tourists paying local women for sex while abroad. Recent studies reveal a shift: sex workers themselves travel on short tourist visas to provide services, often returning multiple times yearly to the same locations. Our research examined 19,608 posts and 49,008 pictures from a popular forum in Macao, a gambling hub in Asia. Through combined text mining and facial recognition analysis of online solicitations, we uncovered distinct patterns in sex worker visits. Sex workers showed significantly higher likelihood of returning within 7-day periods, aligning with Macao’s visa policies. We built social networks using recognized sex workers, phone numbers, and posting accounts. This allowed us to develop metrics that assess organized crime involvement in online solicitation. Results revealed escalating third-party involvement throughout the study period. Professional brokers increasingly operated posting accounts, while shared phone numbers became more prevalent. Our analysis used a 30-day sliding window to examine recurrence factors. This approach confirmed both the 7-day periodicity and strong positive correlations between organized crime metrics and sex worker return rates. ...

Abstract This paper examines the rapid growth of China’s science and technology (S&T) sector within the broader context of higher education, focusing on Hong Kong’s crucial yet understudied role in this transformation. While conventional narratives emphasize China’s relationship with the United States, our analysis reveals Hong Kong’s distinct contribution as a vital bridge in China’s scientific development. Drawing on comprehensive data from the Web of Science, institutional archives, university leader biographies, and PhD dissertation records, we identify three key patterns. First, Hong Kong ranks as one of mainland China’s key international collaborators in S&T alongside established nations like the UK, Japan, and Germany, though the U.S. remains the dominant partner. Second, this collaboration shows clear temporal characteristics, with partnerships intensifying during the 1990s as Hong Kong’s research doctoral programs matured and mainland students sought advanced training. Third, the collaboration exhibits distinct geographical patterns, with Beijing maintaining centrality despite distance, while Guangdong leverages its proximity to Hong Kong. Our findings challenge the perception of Hong Kong as merely a finance-driven city, revealing its role in fostering a robust academic community that facilitated knowledge transfer between mainland institutions and global scientific networks. This relationship thrived despite cultural and ideological differences, combining mainland China’s motivated talent pool with Hong Kong’s academic freedom and international connections. By documenting this understudied dimension of China’s educational development, this paper offers new insights into the forces behind the country’s emergence as a global scientific power. ...

Abstract Typically understood through a universal-statist framework, modern schooling in contemporary China often contributes to the disenchantment of ethnic students. Based on year-long research in a Tibetan-serving secondary school, we provide additional insight in this discussion. We argue that to treat disenchantment as a fixed state ignores the space-temporal quality of human action. The school’s social process is multiple and momentary in nature and often undermines the seemingly linear educational programming. Under the rigid school setting emerge social spaces that expand beyond academic lessons. In those spaces, students continue to interact among themselves and with teachers, where withdrawal and marginalization happen alongside negotiation, appropriation, and participation. While disenchantment anchors the classroom experience of many, it interpenetrates and enmeshes with other aspects of student lives and is interwoven over time. By considering this complex interplay of disenchantment we upend the notion of disenchantment as a singular state, and illustrate this idea through two examples. ...

A review of Le Lin’s study of China’s Supplementary Education Industry, arguing that the sector’s meteoric rise under legal ambiguity is best explained by a theory of opportunism, while raising underexplored questions about what the industry’s instrumental approach implies for the future of the teaching profession.

A review of Zachary Howlett’s ethnography of China’s Gaokao, arguing that the exam’s meritocratic promise conceals deep structural inequality while its remarkable social endurance demands more explanation than the book provides.

Abstract The Political Economy of Vocational Education and Training. Beijing Cultural Review, August 2022, pp. 110-118. A journal version and a full-length version are available.