2015年CRI More Efforts Urged to Help Teachers（在线收听）

Scholar Liu Chengyun says early-childhood education is something that is on-the-radar here in China.

"Primary and secondary education is getting more attention in the country, as more and more people realize it is the base of overall education quality. Cultivating talent depends not only on universities, but also primary and secondary schools."

However, surveys among primary and secondary school teachers suggest this understanding has not necessarily translated into results.

A survey conducted by the 21st Century Education Research Institute, an educational think-tank here in China, has found most teachers in the primary and secondary school system say they believe low salaries and a broken evaluation system are still holding back development.

Xiong Bingqi with the 21st Century Education Research Institute says rural teachers are the worst off.

"Some local governments only think about how to improve school facilities, while paying much less-than-expected attention to teachers' salaries, their work evaluation and their future development."

Of the roughly 13 million Chinese primary and secondary school teachers in China, more than 3 million are working in rural areas.

Professional evaluations are one of the few ways for them to advance or get more money.

But Xiong Bingqi says the current evaluation system puts teachers in the countryside at a disadvantage.

"The system only favors urban teachers and those who have strong ties with the authorities. And because academic papers play a key role in assessing teachers' work, rural teachers often find it difficult to achieve high scores, as their topic range is limited due to their lack of contact with urban areas."

Professor Xiong Bingqi says its time for education authorities to address the issue before it becomes too late.

"The latest survey shows more than 80 percent of teachers in Chinese primary and secondary schools are under pressure at work, mostly because of the evaluation process. Some have resorted to cheating on the process to obtain higher scores. We've also noted decline in passion and even loyalty to the job among teachers. Authorities should understand how important it is to solve problems for teachers and protect their rights."

Ahead of Teachers Day, Chinese President Xi Jinping wrote a reply letter to teachers in southwest province of Guizhou.

He spoke highly of the contribution made by those teaching in remote rural areas.

Premier Li Keqiang is also promising more help for rural teachers, and at the same time, is warning local officials not to cut back on education spending.

Changes to the professional evaluation system for primary and secondary school teachers are also being made.

It's expected the changes could allow a primary school teacher with a high professional ranking to earn as much as a college professor.

For CRI, I'm Qi Zhi.