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This chapter examines the development of a quality assurance system for undergraduate education as one aspect of the transformation of education policy in China. The central structure of the chapter is the process/stages of policy development and implementation, with particular attention to the changes over time in central control versus institutional autonomy. The Chinese government has moved to a “steering at a distance” approach with ex post accountability, giving institutions of higher education greater autonomy for undergraduate education. Government authority continues to be strong, however, even though the mechanisms of control have changed. This study provides an analysis of quality assurance in Chinese higher education and the changing relationship between government and campuses, using the lens of policy development and implementation.

Tingting Qi's chapter titled, “Moving toward Decentralization? Changing Education Governance in China After 1985,” provides the historical and policy context for the volume. This chapter integrates the post-1978 Chinese educational reforms into the socioeconomic context of China. The special contribution of this chapter is that it explores the complexity of educational decentralization in China through an in-depth analysis of changes in education finance, administration, and curriculum. Qi reviews prior studies, government documents, laws, and regulations related to Chinese education reform since 1978 within the context of education decentralization in China. Qi also demonstrates that China's educational policy reforms are moving China toward “centralized decentralization” because decentralization is driven by a common, centralized national goal of economic modernization. The chapter presents evidence that “centralized decentralization” is a strategic maneuver that maintains centralized control while providing the reform legitimacy of decentralization. By focusing on decentralization as the core of Chinese educational policy reforms, this chapter situates the following chapters within the social, cultural, and political context of post-1978 China.

Chentong Chen is an undergraduate at Nanjing Normal University studying law and English. She has research interests in education policy, education assessment and evaluation, and child development. She is currently working on two research projects: policy issues related to the college entrance exam in China, and theories and practice of preschool assessment in the U.S.