Research on Measuring the Quality and Balanced Development of Basic Public Education in China:A Case Study of Hubei Province

Abstract

China is currently at a crucial stage of transitioning from a major educational country to a powerful educational nation. Promoting the high-quality and balanced development of basic public education is the core task, yet there are still disparities in the distribution of high-quality educational resources between regions and between urban and rural areas. This paper takes Hubei Province as the research subject and, based on the three theories of educational equity, equalization of basic public services, and high-quality development, constructs an evaluation index system encompassing economic scale, population size, school size, funding investment, and teacher resource guarantee. Utilizing the Theil index method and based on relevant statistical data from 2005 to 2024, this paper measures the level of high-quality and balanced development of basic public education. The measurement results show that from 2005 to 2023, the Theil index of GDP, population size, funding investment, and teacher resources in Hubei Province exhibited an overall downward trend, indicating that the overall differences in the impact of various factors on the high-quality and balanced development of basic public education have gradually decreased, and resource allocation is tending towards equilibrium.This study provides a reference for assessing the high-quality and balanced development of basic public education nationwide and offers data support for formulating and adjusting relevant policies.