In order to further improve the quality level of after-school services and guide the after-school service work in various localities, the General Office of the Ministry of Education and other four departments jointly issued the "Notice on Further Standardizing the Work Related to Compulsory Education After-school Services" (hereinafter referred to as the "Notice"). The "Circular" puts forward five "strict prohibitions" and one work requirement for compulsory education schools to carry out after-school service work, namely, it is strictly forbidden to arbitrarily expand the scope of after-school services, it is strictly forbidden to force students to participate, it is strictly forbidden to increase the burden of students' homework, it is strictly forbidden to charge fees arbitrarily in the name of after-school services, and it is strictly forbidden for unqualified institutions and personnel to enter the school to provide after-school services, and require all localities to conduct a comprehensive investigation of the implementation of after-school services in the region, and adjust and improve after-school service policies and measures.
The Notice is the first national-level policy document dedicated to guiding after-school services since the promulgation of the "double reduction" policy. The "Notice" clearly requires compulsory education schools not to step on the "red line" in after-school service work, which is of great significance to promoting the orderly, standardized and high-quality development of after-school services.
Since the implementation of the "double reduction" policy, China's compulsory education after-school service work has achieved great results: the "National "Double Reduction" Effectiveness Survey Report released in 2022 shows that nearly ninety percent of students have participated in after-school services, 890% of students and 884% of parents are satisfied with the after-school services. While the rapid development of after-school services has also exposed some problems that need to be solved urgently, such as the unclear time and scope of after-school services, students' involuntary participation in after-school services, the "increase of learning burden" after participating in after-school services, the arbitrary charging of after-school services, and the uneven teaching quality of third-party institutions. Based on the current problems in the implementation of after-school services in compulsory education schools in China, the "Notice" puts forward targeted requirements and improvement measures.
After-school services should be carried out clearly and in a clear manner to avoid arbitrary expansion. After-school services in compulsory education schools are systematic learning activities carried out during the school day and after the completion of the national curriculum and school teaching plan. Some schools include early morning supervision, lunch breaks, and even recess activities into the scope of after-school services, which blurs the educational attributes of after-school services, increases the workload of teachers, and reduces the recognition of after-school services by the masses.
After-school services should be voluntary and meet the needs of parents and students. The "double reduction" policy and related documents clearly point out that students' participation in after-school services should adhere to the principle of voluntary. Some schools have forced or disguised compulsory students to participate in after-school services, such as not allowing parents to pick up their children before the end of after-school services, and not providing school bus pick-up. Schools should carry out diversified activities that students and parents can choose to participate in independently and are beneficial to students' development, so as to enhance the attractiveness of after-school services and meet the diverse needs of students and their parents.
After-school services should promote the all-round development of students and avoid increasing the burden on schools. At present, the after-school services of compulsory education schools have basically achieved full coverage of the "5+2" model. After-school services are generally divided into two sections, the first is for school teachers to provide students with subject knowledge and homework and other tutoring and answering questions, helping students complete homework in school, and check and fill in the gaps;The second paragraph is a variety of stylistic and hobby activities. However, some schools still adhere to the educational concept of only grades and only advancement, and organize make-up classes, exams and even new classes during after-school service hours, which increases the burden of schoolwork on students and greatly reduces the effectiveness of reducing the burden on schools. Schools should adhere to the concept of cultivating people with virtue and all-round development, and provide students with a variety of popular science, labor and social practice activities, so that students can exercise their physical fitness, develop their specialties, cultivate the spirit of scientific innovation, and improve their hands-on operation ability during after-school service hours.
After-school services should adhere to the public welfare nature and improve the mechanism for sharing funds. After-school service is a public service product designed to solve the "three-and-a-half problem" and promote the all-round development of students. Some schools charge exorbitant fees for after-school services, causing dissatisfaction among parents. After-school services should adhere to the public welfare attributes, and after-school service funds should be mainly borne by the first financial department. **Where the level of financial security is low, the student's family can appropriately share part of the expenses. The provincial level should formulate a unified after-school service fee standard, and should also reduce or exempt after-school service fees for families of students with financial difficulties, and strictly supervise after-school service fees and the use of funds.
After-school services need to improve the access mechanism for third-party resources, and strictly review the qualifications of third-party institutions. According to a 2023 survey covering 11 provinces and cities across the country, nearly seventy percent of compulsory education schools have absorbed off-campus curriculum resources and teachers to provide after-school services. It is urgent to establish and improve the access mechanism for third-party institutions to enter the campus, set up a "black and white list" of third-party institutions, and invite educational administrators, experts, principals, front-line teachers, etc. to form a review team to review the quality of teachers, teaching materials and courses of third-party institutions. Institutions that are not up to the standard should be dismissed in a timely manner.
Schools should adhere to the red line of after-school services, establish a quality assurance system for after-school services, meet the diversified educational needs of students and their parents, reduce the motivation of students and their parents to participate in extracurricular training, and give play to the role of school education as the main front. In accordance with the requirements of the "double reduction" policy and the "Notice", on the basis of investigating the current situation and problems of after-school services in the region, all localities should promptly adjust and improve the implementation plan for after-school services, open up resource channels inside and outside the school for schools to carry out high-quality after-school services, establish a screening and review mechanism for third-party institutions to enter the campus to carry out after-school services, effectively give play to the role of public welfare extracurricular educational institutions such as the Children's Palace in school after-school services, improve the after-school service funding sharing mechanism, and realize the high-quality development of after-school services.
Author: Xue Haiping is a professor at the School of Education, Capital Normal University