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Policy Implementation Gaps in Compulsory Education for Migrant Children: a Case Study of Jinan

Author(s)

Wang Qi

Affiliation(s)

School of Political Science and Law, University of Jinan, Jinan, Shandong, China *Corresponding Author

Abstract

The compulsory education policy for migrant children is a major livelihood policy involving the vital interests of tens of millions of school-age children and hundreds of millions of migrant people. At the national level , a policy framework of "Two Priorities," "Two Inclusions," and "Two Unifications" has been established, but the process of moving from central decision-making to local implementation still faces many practical obstacles. Taking Jinan City as a case, this paper uses policy text analysis and comparative analysis to systematically compare the most recent enrollment policy documents of the 13 districts and counties under its jurisdiction for 2025. First, it reveals inter-district policy differences along three dimensions : access conditions, policy instruments, and admission methods. It finds that the compulsory education policy for migrant children in Jinan City presents a fragmented pattern of "unified commitment at the municipal level but decentralized implementation at the district level," with significant differences across districts in aspects such as guardian conditions, social insurance years, housing requirements, and scoring standards. Second, it analyzes the practical challenges of policy implementation at three levels: fragmentation of access conditions, structural imbalances in resource allocation, and the absence of supervision and accountability mechanisms. It points out that inconsistent access conditions across districts create unequal opportunities, and the points-based system produces implicit exclusion of vulnerable groups despite the appearance of formal equality. Third, it identifies the institutional roots of the challenges along three dimensions: central-local fiscal relations, institutional path dependence, and the lack of supervision mechanisms. Finally, it proposes policy recommendations in three areas: lowering enrollment barriers, improving funding guarantees, and establishing oversight and accountability mechanisms. This study provides a city case study for understanding policy implementation deviations in local government, and also offers a reference for optimizing compulsory education policies for migrant children in similar cities.

Keywords

Migrant Children; Compulsory Education; Policy Implementation Gaps; Enrollment Barriers; Jinan

References

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