Call for paper: Social Transformations in Chinese Societies

Exploring New Directions in the Revival of Confucian Education: Challenges and Opportunities in a Transforming China

The revival of Confucian education in contemporary China has gained significant momentum over the past three decades, profoundly influencing societal values and educational practices. This resurgence reflects a broader re-engagement with traditional Chinese culture, offering alternative frameworks for moral and intellectual development. However, this revival has not been without its challenges. Recent developments, including state policies, the COVID-19 pandemic, legal constraints, and internal debates within grassroots Confucian education, have brought both new obstacles and opportunities to light, requiring critical reflection and adaptation.

One major shift came with the Chinese government’s introduction of the “double reduction” policy in 2021. Designed to reduce the academic burden on students in compulsory education, this policy has placed considerable pressure on grassroots Confucian institutions, many of which operate as extracurricular programs. The policy has forced these institutions to increase transparency and compliance, resulting in closures, transformations, and heightened uncertainty among parents about continuing their children’s enrollment. This situation highlights the need for innovative strategies to sustain and promote Confucian education in alignment with state policies.

The COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated these challenges. Grassroots Confucian academies, reliant on tuition fees, faced closures and financial hardship during lockdowns. While some institutions adapted to online teaching, the core practices of Confucian education – such as classic reading and ritual instruction – are inherently experiential and difficult to replicate in virtual formats. These disruptions underscore the tension between traditional pedagogies and modern technological adaptations, raising questions about the future of Confucian educational methods.

Legal and institutional frameworks also pose significant challenges. Many grassroots Confucian schools operate outside the bounds of China’s Compulsory Education Law, leading to conflicts in curriculum design and legitimacy. Parents who opt for full-time Confucian classical education face legal and social pressures, further complicating the sustainability of these institutions. Simultaneously, the state’s emphasis on promoting “excellent Chinese traditional culture” has created a dual dynamic: fostering interest in Confucian education while intensifying competition with state schools offering standardized traditional cultural programs.

Amid these external pressures, internal debates within the Confucian education community reveal additional complexities. Divergent views on teaching methods, curriculum content, and educational objectives highlight the tensions between traditional approaches, such as extensive memorization of Confucian texts, and modern pedagogical innovations emphasizing critical thinking and understanding. These debates reflect the evolving identity of Confucian education in contemporary society and its adaptability to changing contexts.

This special issue aims to critically explore these challenges and opportunities, providing new insights into the revival of Confucian education in a transforming China. While existing scholarship has examined its historical and cultural foundations, emerging changes and their implications remain underexplored. By bringing together interdisciplinary perspectives, this special issue seeks to deepen understanding of the revival’s complexities, fostering dialogues that illuminate its future trajectory.

We invite contributors to examine these dynamics from various angles, including policy impacts, pedagogical innovations, institutional sustainability, and broader societal implications. In doing so, this special issue aspires to advance academic discourse and stimulate new directions in the study of Confucian education in contemporary China.

List of Topic Areas

Confucian education under the double reduction policy.
Confucian education in the post-pandemic era.
The integration of Confucian education and family education.
The relationship between grassroots Confucian education and state education.
Individualization and socialization in Confucian education.
The application of Confucian education in corporate culture.
The social impact of the revival of Confucian education.
Local practices of Confucian education.
The relationship between Confucian and socialist ideologies.
The international dissemination of Confucian education.

Guest Editor

Canglong Wang, University of Brighton, UK, c.wang@brighton.ac.uk

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Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”. Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.