01 December 2009
Twenty-seven-year-old Wei Ting teaches at the local primary school in her rural village in Guizhou, one of China’s poorest provinces.
When she secured her job, Wei Tang believed that, as a woman, she had gone as far as she could in her career. There would be no opportunity, for example, to become a headteacher.
“I thought the best role for a woman was to support her husband and raise the children”, she says. “As a woman, it’s enough to be good at your job. I never thought I would be able to be a leader - leaders are always men!”
A pioneer
However, a year ago Wei Tang was appointed deputy head of her school – becoming the first female senior manager of a school in the whole township.
The appointment was a result of a DFID-funded programme which aims to improve education in the poorest parts of China. As well as raising classroom standards and widening access to schooling, the programme encourages more women to take on managerial roles in the education sector.
After an initial study found that only 1% of headteachers in junior middle schools, and 3% in primary schools, were women, the programme undertook an awareness-raising exercise, designed to inform teachers, headteachers and education officials about gender equality and education.
In Yunnan Province this led to the promotion of 22 female deputy heads, while elsewhere in Guizhou Province 20 further female senior managers were recently appointed. In Sichuan Province 40 female candidates have been put forward for senior roles and at least 10 more will going up for top jobs soon.
Improving society
After she received her equality-awareness training, Wei Ting penned a letter of thanks to the organizers. “In all my 27 years this was the first time I really felt respected,” she wrote. “You let me understand that leadership doesn’t necessarily mean being tough and serious. I felt supported through your encouragement and I believe if all leaders showed your style society would be a better place!”
Ensuring that women have access to decision-making roles reduces their economic and social marginalisation - and when girls have equal access to the same educational opportunities as boys, their chances of leading prosperous, independent lives are greatly increased. The programme that benefited Wei Ting is working on both of these fronts to bring further benefits to China's poorest women and girls.
Facts and stats
- The Southwest Basic Education Project (SBEP) covers the four poorest provinces of China, comprising 7,000 schools and 77,000 teachers.
- SBEP is funded by DFID and managed by China's Ministry of Education and Provincial Departments of Education. Technical support comes from Cambridge Education and the British Council.
- DFID is providing £19 million between 2006 and 2011 to SBEP.
- Only 78% of women in rural China are literate.