I am very delighted to attend this press conference. First please allow me to brief you on issues concerning the Opinions on Comprehensively Improving Conditions of Disadvantaged Compulsory Education Schools in Poverty-Stricken Areas.

党中央国务院一直对农村义务教育发展高度重视，党的十八大和十八届三中全会都对推进农村教育发展提出明确要求。今年1月，中共中央、国务院印发了《关于全面深化农村改革加快推进农业现代化的若干意见》，进一步明确要求推进城乡基本公共服务均等化，加快改善农村义务教育薄弱学校基本办学条件。中央领导同志也多次强调要办好农村义务教育，推进教育公平。　　

The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council attach great importance to the development of compulsory education in rural areas. The 18th National Congress of the Communist Party and the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party have set out clear goals for promoting education in rural areas. In January of this year, the Central Committee of the Communist Party and the State Council released Several Opinions on Comprehensively Deepening the Reforms of Rural Areas and Accelerating the Modernization of Agriculture, further emphasizing the missions of promoting equitable access to basic pubic services in urban and rural areas and speeding up improving basic education infrastructures and supplies of disadvantaged compulsory schools in rural areas. Central government leaders have also emphasized the importance of providing quality compulsory education in rural areas and promoting education equity.

近年来，在各级政府的努力下，农村教育发展取得了明显成效，逐步健全了农村义务教育经费保障机制，规范了农村学校布局调整，实施了全国中小学校舍安全工程、农村义务教育薄弱学校改造计划、农村初中改造工程等一系列重大工程项目，改善了农村义务教育学校办学条件。但是，贫困地区，包括集中连片特困地区、国家扶贫开发工作重点地区、民族地区和边境地区，经济社会发展依然相对滞后，办学成本较高，教学条件较差，寄宿制学校宿舍、食堂等生活设施不足，村小和教学点运转比较困难，教师队伍不够稳定，仍然是我国义务教育事业发展的薄弱环节，是实现义务教育均衡发展的重点和难点。为尽快改善贫困地区义务教育面貌，切实缩小区域、城乡、校际差距，大力促进教育公平，根据党中央、国务院的决策部署，教育部、发展改革委、财政部在广泛调研和征求意见的基础上制定了《关于全面改善贫困地区义务教育薄弱学校基本办学条件的意见》，已于2013年底印发。

Over the past years, with the efforts of governments at various levels, the development of education in rural areas has made remarkable achievements. We have gradually guaranteed the funding for compulsory education, better managed the layout of schools and implemented a series of key projects, including the national safe school-building project for primary and middle schools, the renovation project for disadvantaged compulsory schools and the renovation project for junior middle schools in rural areas. Through such efforts, the infrastructure of rural schools has been improved. However, in poor rural areas such as contiguous poverty-stricken areas, key areas under the poverty alleviation program of the central government and ethnic minority and border areas, economic development is relatively slow. As a result, relatively high cost for providing education, poor teaching facilities, inadequate basic infrastructure of boarding schools such as dormitories and canteens, problematic operation of village primary schools and teaching points and unstable teaching faculty have become the weak point of China’s compulsory education. This is also our major task and difficulty in promoting balanced development of compulsory education.

In order to facilitate the development of compulsory education in poverty-stricken areas as soon as possible, and to effectively narrow the regional and rural-urban gap of educational development as well as the gap between schools, and to promote education equity, the Ministry of Education, the State Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance, under the guidance of the State Council, promulgated the Opinions on Comprehensively Improving Conditions of Disadvantaged Compulsory Education Schools in Poverty-Stricken Areas in the end of 2013 based on extensive investigation.

二、主要任务

II. Major Tasks

三部委《意见》紧扣推进城乡一体化建设，统筹城乡义务教育资源均衡配置，重点向农村、边远、贫困、民族地区倾斜，提出了6项具体任务：

The Opinions promulgated by the three ministries is closely concentrated on the promotion of urban-rural integration and balanced allocation of educational resources in rural and urban areas, with the policy preference granted to the rural or remote areas, poverty-stricken areas, and ethnic minorities inhabited areas. Six tasks have been specified.

一是保障基本教学条件。教室应符合有关规范要求。要配备必要的教学仪器设备、器材、图书和合格的课桌椅，因地制宜地建设运动场地和体育设施。

Firstly, the basic teaching conditions should be guaranteed. Classrooms should meet standards and be equipped with necessary teaching tools and appliances, textbooks and materials, and qualified desks and chairs. Sports facilities and field should be installed in line with local conditions.

二是改善学校生活设施。保障寄宿学生每人1个床位。根据实际需要配备必要的洗浴设施和条件。食堂或伙房满足就餐需要。设置开水房或安装饮水设施，厕所要有足够厕位。北方和高寒地区学校配备冬季取暖设施。设置必要安全设施，维护师生安全。

Secondly, living conditions in schools should be improved. Each boarding student should be ensured with one bed. Bathing and showering equipment, dining halls or kitchens, hot water supplies and drinking facilities, as well as toilets should be installed to meet actual demand. Heating apparatus for winter should be installed in schools in northern part and frigid areas of the country. Safety devices should be installed for teachers’ and students’ safety.

三是办好必要的教学点。对确需保留的教学点，要继续办好，在教师配置、教师待遇、公用经费核定等方面，对教学点进行倾斜支持。　　

Thirdly, teaching points in rural areas should be well managed. Preferential policies in terms of teacher allocation, teacher welfare and public funds for students should be given to support teaching points that should be kept in place.

[可能很多媒体朋友知道，我们有一些教学点学生只有几个，对这样的教学点提出了一项政策，就是不足100人的按照100人的学生来核拨经费，确保教学点能够正常运转。]

四是妥善解决县镇学校大班额问题。通过科学规划学校布局、加强新建住宅区配套学校建设、采取新建、扩建、改建等措施，首先解决66人以上的超大班额问题。大班额不利于教学，更不利于学生健康成长。

Fourthly, oversized classes should be reduced in counties and towns. We should first reduce the size of classes with over 66 students by adjusting the layout of schools, building new schools for new communities, and expanding and modifying existing schools.

五是推进教育信息化。目前，国家已经为村小学和教学点配置数字教育资源接收和播放设备。下一步，稳步推进农村学校宽带网络、数字教育资源、网络学习空间建设。同时加快学籍管理等教育管理信息系统应用。就是要用信息化的手段把我们的优质教育资源辐射到村小和教学点。　　

Fifthly, IT application should be improved. Currently village schools and teaching points have been equipped with receivers and players for digital educational resources. In the future, broadband network, digital educational resources and network learning space should be improved gradually. Meanwhile, information system for education administration such as student registration should be put in place.

六是提高教师队伍素质。完善农村教师补充机制，实行公办学校校长教师交流轮岗。改革教师培养模式，面向乡镇以下农村学校培养能承担多门学科教学任务的小学教师和“一专多能”的初中教师。比如，医院有全科医生，在农村的中小学能不能有全科教师，就是这个概念。同时，在培训、职称晋升、工资待遇等方面给予农村教师倾斜支持。

Sixthly, the quality of the teachers should be improved. Mechanism for supplying sufficient new teachers should be improved in rural areas and headmasters and teachers should rotate among public schools. We should reform the training of teachers so that village primary school teachers will be able to teach more than one subject and junior middle school teachers can have expertise in one subject as well as some knowledgeable in other subjects. Meanwhile, some preference should be granted to village teachers with regard to training opportunities, promotion, salary, etc.

下一步，我们将对这项工作进行全面部署，建立有效的工作机制，确保落实到位。我相信三部委《意见》的颁布和实施，对于全面改善贫困地区薄弱学校基本办学条件，推进义务教育学校标准化建设具有十分重要的现实意义，将进一步缩小城乡教育差距，让老百姓不出村也能享受有质量的义务教育。同时，也有利于增强贫困地区发展后劲，有利于增进民族团结，维护和谐稳定，促进共同繁荣。

For the next step, we will have an overall arrangement and set up an effective working mechanism for enhancing the implementation. I am confident that the Opinions will play an important role for comprehensively improving conditions of disadvantaged compulsory education schools in poverty-stricken areas and developing standardized compulsory education. To further bridging the gap of rural-urban education development would provide the public with qualified compulsory education even in villages as well as better exploit the development potentials of poverty-stricken areas and promote the national unity, which would enhance social harmony and stability, common prosperity and development.

我愿意就大家关心的有关全面改善贫困地区义务教育薄弱学校基本办学条件方面的问题回答大家的提问。

Now, I would like to take this opportunity to answer your questions on improving conditions of disadvantaged compulsory education schools in poverty-stricken areas.

谢谢。

Thank you.