Liu and Cowan offer a unique in-depth study of educational development and social transformation in rural China. It foregrounds identifiable settings and personalities, engaging readers with the voices and experiences of people who are involved with the education system.

This book explores the link between educational transformation and local economic regeneration. The research covers important phases of the educational development programme outlined by the County's tow five-year education plans. It records a wide range of perspectives on Chinese rural education from stakeholders engaged with the education service. It reveals the contingent and different factors that lie behind the complex pattern of the educational development process. This research also illustrates how education policy is administered and driven forward through the local officers working closely with school leaders.

This intriguing look at rural Chinese educational development will interest academics and students specializing in the study of education and international development, Chinese education and society, education policy studies and modern China studies

Xu Liu is an Assistant Professor at the Research Centre of Higher Education, Southern University of Science and Technology in China. She has received her PhD from the UCL Institute of Education, London. Her research interests are in educational sociology and higher education. She has worked in the field of education many years and brought an intimate, insider's knowledge to the research project.

Steven Cowan has a PhD from the UCL Institute of Education, London. He worked there as a researcher and lecturer. His research focuses on education history and Chinese studies. Steven has visited and lectured at many universities and schools across China and this first-hand experience deepened his understanding about education in China.