Targeted Poverty Alleviation through Education: Long-term Effect of China’s “One Village One Preschool” Project on Rural Children’s Academic Achievements
-
摘要: 教育是阻断贫困代际传递、拔除穷根的治本之策。中国发展研究基金会于2009年启动了“一村一园”项目(OVOP)在教育精准扶贫方面做出了自己的一些成绩。“一村一园”项目目的是向中国贫困地区农村和少数民族地区儿童提供免费的普惠性学前教育。这是一项与中国地方政府合作的早期儿童发展干预项目,惠及中国中西部贫困地区农村处境不利的儿童。2018年,“一村一园”项目已在中国10个省(自治区)建立了约2300个山村幼儿园,免费为3至6岁的农村儿童提供接受学前教育的机会。本研究是对“一村一园”计划受益儿童和非“一村一园”受益儿童的大样本纵向追踪研究,使用减少选择偏差的数据处理方法,评估“一村一园”项目对儿童在小学阶段学业成绩的长期影响。我们的研究发现,参加"一村一园"项目的儿童学业成绩显著好于未接受过任何学前教育的儿童,并且显著好于除县城公立幼儿园以外的其他幼儿园的儿童。虽然“一村一园”受益儿童的分数没有超过资源相对更好的县城公立幼儿园的儿童,但“一村一园”受益儿童的学业成绩提高速度更快。本研究证明了为中国贫困农村儿童提供低成本、保质量的学前教育,具有长效的人力资本价值。Abstract: In 2009, the China Development Research Foundation launched the government-supported public intervention, One Village One Preschool (OVOP) project, which provided access to early childhood education (ECE) to disadvantaged rural and minority children in central and western rural China. From 2009 to 2018, OVOP established about 2300 centers in ten provinces, enrolling over 170000 rural young children, free of charge for all. We analyzed longitudinal data collected from a sample of 1962 children in one county (comparing OVOP attendees to children with no ECE, private ECE, and public ECE), using an inverse probability weighting approach to reducing selection bias in evaluating the effects of OVOP on children’s academic achievement during the first 5 years of elementary school. We found that children who attended OVOP centers attained higher scores in elementary grades than children who received no ECE or attended private township ECE. However, OVOP children scored lower than children who went to well-resourced public township ECE. In addition, the OVOP children had similar growth rates to public-ECE children; both groups improved more quickly than children in the non-ECE or private-ECE group. We conclude with a discussion of the value of providing low-cost ECE to rural children in China.1) ① 中国贫困地区,指中国部分地区人均消费未达到全国人均消费的地方,主要集中在中国的中部地区、西部山区及西南、东北地区。包括甘肃地区,云南,贵州的局部山区。其特征有:自然环境恶劣;资源缺乏,基础设施薄弱;人口增长过快,教育、卫生等基本社会服务水平太低;财政收入水平低,公共投入和基础投入严重不足。2) ② 2009年“一村一园”项目启动时,试点县名称为“乐都县”,2013年,乐都县更名为“乐都区”。因为项目延续,本文为行文方便,统一行文为“乐都区”。3) ③ 无序负担干扰是指时常出现的、让儿童感到压力甚至是不良情绪的干扰,如过重的家务、不安全感、疲劳等。儿童因过长时间行走,会产生疲劳感,如果每天都需要长时间行走,对儿童及监护人都是一种负担,可能会引起儿童及监护人放弃接受学前教育的机会。4) ④ 建档立卡指年人均纯收入低于2800元的家庭。
-
表 1 样本中不同学前教育情境儿童的人口学特征(单位:平均数(标准差)或 百分比)
全体样本
人数=1962“一村一园”
人数=647县城公立幼儿园
人数=451其他类型幼儿园
人数=667无学前教育经历
人数=197女孩比例 47% 49.1% 48.8% 43.2% 49.2% 独生子女 55.1% 55.6% 56.1% 54.6% 53.3% 留守儿童 31.7% 41.5% 22.2% 32.2% 39.4% 特殊需要儿童 6.1% 8.9% 3.1% 5.2% 7.1% 特困家庭 10.2% 16.2% 3.7% 7.2% 15.7% 父母为监护人 52.4% 43.6% 63.7% 52.5% 45.2% 母亲农业户口 75.6% 99.3% 29.1% 84.1% 95.9% 父亲农业户口 80.2% 98.4% 30.4% 82.3% 98.3% 母亲年龄 27.41(4.39) 27.11(4.45) 27.55(4.40) 27.61(4.29) 27.38(4.48) 平均分:一年级 70.79(9.26) 70.59(8.98) 73.72(9.16) 70.14(9.04) 66.92(9.56) 平均分:三年级 78.14(6.06) 78.15(5.76) 80.16(5.58) 77.70(6.14) 74.97(6.21) 平均分:五年级 77.55(6.49) 78.85(6.20) 80.28(5.72) 75.91(6.24) 72.58(5.51) 注:协变量均系在儿童小学入学时测量,结果变量分别系在儿童一年级、三年级、五年级期末考试后收集. 表 2 “一村一园”项目对儿童一年级、三年级、五年级学业成绩产生的影响:与不同类型的学前教育儿童相比
一年级 三年级 五年级 系数 标准误差 系数 标准误差 系数 标准误差 OLS 模型结果 “一村一园” 0.41*** 0.08 0.52*** 0.08 0.96*** 0.08 其他幼儿园 0.36*** 0.08 0.44*** 0.08 0.51*** 0.08 县城公立幼儿园 0.74*** 0.08 0.85*** 0.08 1.18*** 0.08 R2 0.05 0.06 0.14 IPW 模型结果 “一村一园” 0.41*** 0.08 0.53*** 0.09 0.98*** 0.07 其他幼儿园 0.36*** 0.08 0.45*** 0.09 0.54*** 0.07 县城公立幼儿园 0.75*** 0.09 0.86*** 0.09 1.20*** 0.07 注:参照组为无学前教育经验儿童组。结果变量为标准分数(z分数)。OLS模型包含表1中所列的全部协变量。IPW使用表1中全部协变量生成倾向性分数。***p<0.001, **p<0.01, *p<0.05 表 3 通过逆概率加权拟合的不同学前教育类型儿童的长期学业发展比较
学业成绩 系数 标准误差 固定效应 截距 γ00 −0.35*** 0.05 年 γ10 −0.08*** 0.02 “一村一园” γ01 0.25*** 0.07 其他幼儿园 γ02 0.34** 0.08 县城公立幼儿园 γ03 0.63*** 0.10 一村一园 年 γ11 0.13*** 0.02 其他幼儿园 年 γ12 0.04* 0.02 县城公立幼儿园 年 γ13 0.10*** 0.02 随机效应 第二层初始值 σ02 0.06 0.24 第二层变化速率 σ12 3.33 1.83 拟合优度 −2LL 16312.53 AIC 16348.53 BIC 16468.78 注:AIC=Akaike information criterion; BIC=Bayesian information criterion;参照组为无学前教育经历组,结果变量为标准化分数(z分数),分层线性模型和倾向性分数的生成使用了表1中所有的协变量;***p <0.001,**p<0.01,*p<0.05 ~ p<0.1。 -
[1] 新华网. (2017). 教育部: 到2020年全国学前教育三年毛入学率达到85%. 取自新华网(2017年9月28日): http://www.xinhuanet.com/politics/2017-09/28/c_1121741001.htm. [2] 庞丽娟, 韩小雨. (2010). 中国学前教育立法: 思考与进程. 北京师范大学学报(社会科学版),(5),14−20. doi: 10.3969/j.issn.1002-0209.2010.05.002 [3] 彭俊英, 鄢超云. (2011). 关于发展乡镇中心幼儿园的一些思考——基于对四川省30所乡镇中心幼儿园的调查. 幼儿教育,(7),10−12. doi: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-4604.2011.07.004 [4] 中华人民共和国教育部. (2017). 中国教育概况——2016年全国教育事业发展情况.取自中华人民共和国教育部网站(2017年11月10日): http://www.moe.edu.cn/jyb_sjzl/s5990/201711/t20171110_318862.html. [5] Aboud, F. E., & Hossain, K (2011). The impact of preprimary school on primary school achievement in Bangladesh. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 26(2), 237−246. doi: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2010.07.001 [6] Aboud, F. E., Hossain, K., & O’Gara, C (2008). The Succeed Project: Challenging early school failure in Bangladesh. Research in Comparative and International Education, 3(3), 295−307. doi: 10.2304/rcie.2008.3.3.295 [7] Andrew, A., Attanasio, O., Fitzsimons, E., Grantham-McGregor, S., Meghir, C., & Rubio-Codina, M (2018). Impacts 2 years after a scalable early childhood development intervention to increase psychosocial stimulation in the home: A follow-up of a cluster randomised controlled trial in Colombia. PLoS medicine, 15(4), 1−19. [8] Arbour, M., Yoshikawa, H., Willett, J., Weiland, C., Snow, C., Mendive, S.,.. & Treviño, E (2016). Experimental impacts of a preschool intervention in Chile on children's language outcomes: Moderation by student absenteeism. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 9(sup1), 117−149. doi: 10.1080/19345747.2015.1109013 [9] Baker‐Henningham, H., Walker, S., Powell, C., & Gardner, J. M (2009). A pilot study of the Incredible Years Teacher Training programme and a curriculum unit on social and emotional skills in community pre‐schools in Jamaica. Child: Care, Health and Development, 35(5), 624−631. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2214.2009.00964.x [10] Berlinski, S., Galiani, S., & Manacorda, M (2008). Giving children a better start: Preschool attendance and school-age profiles. Journal of public Economics, 92(5−6), 1416−1440. doi: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2007.10.007 [11] Bernal, R., & Fernández, C (2013). Subsidized childcare and child development in Colombia: effects of Hogares Comunitarios de Bienestar as a function of timing and length of exposure. Social Science & Medicine, 97, 241−249. [12] Bowne, J. B., Yoshikawa, H., & Snow, C. E (2016). Experimental impacts of a teacher professional development program in early childhood on explicit vocabulary instruction across the curriculum. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 34, 27−39. doi: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2015.08.002 [13] Britto, P. R., Yoshikawa, H., & Boller, K (2011). Quality of Early Childhood Development Programs in Global Contexts: Rationale for Investment, Conceptual Framework and Implications for Equity. Social Policy Report, 25(2), 1−31. doi: 10.1002/j.2379-3988.2011.tb00067.x [14] Gan, Y., Meng, L., & Xie, J (2016). Comparison of school readiness between rural and urban Chinese preschool children. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 44(9), 1429−1442. doi: 10.2224/sbp.2016.44.9.1429 [15] Leyva, D., Weiland, C., Barata, M., Yoshikawa, H., Snow, C., Treviño, E., & Rolla, A. (2015). Teacher–child interactions in Chile and their associations with prekindergarten outcomes. Child Development, 86(3), 781-799. Retrieved from: http://www.qnzk.org/DocView.aspx?chnid=2&docid=1690. [16] Luo, R., Zhang, L., Liu, C., Zhao, Q., Shi, Y., Rozelle, S., & Sharbono, B (2012). Behind before they begin: The challenge of early childhood education in rural China. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 37(1), 55−64. doi: 10.1177/183693911203700107 [17] Malmberg, L. E., Mwaura, P., & Sylva, K (2011). Effects of a preschool intervention on cognitive development among East-African preschool children: A flexibly time-coded growth model. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 26(1), 124−133. doi: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2010.04.003 [18] Mwaura, P. A., Sylva, K., & Malmberg, L. E (2008). Evaluating the Madrasa preschool programme in East Africa: A quasi‐experimental study. International Journal of Early Years Education, 16(3), 237−255. doi: 10.1080/09669760802357121 [19] Noboa-Hidalgo, G. E., & Urzua, S. S (2012). The effects of participation in public child care centers: Evidence from Chile. Journal of Human Capital, 6(1), 1−34. doi: 10.1086/664790 [20] Opel, A., Ameer, S. S., & Aboud, F. E (2009). The effect of preschool dialogic reading on vocabulary among rural Bangladeshi children. International Journal of Educational Research, 48(1), 12−20. doi: 10.1016/j.ijer.2009.02.008 [21] Raine, A., Mellingen, K., Liu, J., Venables, P., & Mednick, S. A (2003). Effects of environmental enrichment at ages 3–5 years on schizotypal personality and antisocial behavior at ages 17 and 23 years. American Journal of Psychiatry, 160(9), 1627−1635. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.160.9.1627 [22] Rao, N., Sun, J., Pearson, V., Pearson, E., Liu, H., Constas, M. A., & Engle, P. L (2012). Is something better than nothing? An evaluation of early childhood programs in Cambodia. Child Development, 83(3), 864−876. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2012.01746.x [23] Sylva, K., Melhuish, E., Sammons, P., Siraj-Blatchford, I., & Taggart, B. (Eds.). (2010). Early childhood matters: Evidence from the effective pre-school and primary education project. New York: Routledge. [24] Vernon-Feagans, L., Garrett-Peters, P., Willoughby, M., Mills-Koonce, R., & Family Life Project Key Investigators (2012). Chaos, poverty, and parenting: Predictors of early language development. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 27(3), 339−351. doi: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2011.11.001 [25] Wang Pengcheng, Gong Xin. (2018). Family Income and Preschool Attendance: An Empirical Research based on CFPS Survey Data. Exploring Education Development, 15, 18−26. [26] Wong, H. L., Luo, R., Zhang, L., & Rozelle, S (2013). The impact of vouchers on preschool attendance and elementary school readiness: A randomized controlled trial in rural China. Economics of Education Review, 33, 53−65. doi: 10.1016/j.econedurev.2013.03.004 [27] Yoshikawa, H., Weiland, C., Brooks-Gunn, J., Burchinal, M., Espinosa, L., Gormley, W., Ludwig, J., Magnuson, K., Phillips, D. & Zaslow, M. (2013). Investing in our future: The evidence base on preschool education. Retrieved from: https://www.fcd-us.org/assets/2016/04/Evidence-Base-on-Preschool-Education-FINAL.pdf. [28] Zhang, L. (2013). Preschool experience, school readiness, self-regulation, and academic achievement: A longitudinal study in rural China. Hong Kong: HKU Theses Online (HKUTO). [29] Zhang, S. (2017). Effects of attending preschool on adolescents’ outcomes: Evidence from China. Applied Economics, 49(27), 2618−2629. doi: 10.1080/00036846.2016.1243217