ICT in Rural Schools & Teacher Education

European Union (EU)-China Gansu Basic Education Project

Using Distance Education and ICT to Improve Access, Equity and the Quality in Rural Teachers' Professional Development in Western China
(see also: Strengthening Basic Education: an EU-China joint project in Gansu Province)

Who are in the project:
EU and Chinese government and Gansu provincial government

What is the project about:

• Goal: To improve quality in basic education as a means of alleviating rural poverty in the poorest 41 of Gansu Province's 86 counties.
• Jointly funded by the EU (€ 15 million) and the Chinese Government (€ two million) and implemented by Gansu Provincial Government from October 2001 until March 2007.
• Main emphasis: Human resource development for teachers, head-teachers, and administrators, focusing on the new national curriculum, new teaching methods, the use of ICT, and educational management.
• Established a system of ICT-supported Teachers' Learning Resource Centres (TLRCs) for the professional development.
• Equipments provided for TLRCs: 2 computers, a modem, laser printer, CD-player and writer, data storage items (HD and CDROM), TV, satellite dish receiving software, digital camera, and some consumables.
• Learning resources provided for TLRCs: 231 audio and video CDs, books, and guides, and furniture. 5 modules (print-plus-video) for teachers and 3 for hear-teachers that were produced locally.

Where will the project go:
This project is to set up 686 TLRCs at central schools in townships for the 41 counties, and then makes opportunities available for rural teachers' professional development, benefiting the mobilization of teachers, the generation of activities at the TLRCs and local level, and the changes in knowledge, skills, attitudes, and mindset of teachers and head-teachers.