Examining Local Narratives in China’s Modernizing Education: Converged Paths in Wuhan’s Higher Education Landscapes, 1860-Present

Showcasing local evolutions of Wuhan’s education sector from the 1860s to its present, this book examines narratives and changing state-policies for China’s education modernization missions. Using a mixed-methods approach, Liu’s research provides a fresh lens through which to review China’s education transitions via Wuhan's rich tapestry manifested in its education sector. Beginning with Wuhan’s modern urbanization as a treaty port from the Second Opium War (1856-1860) to the top-down reforms for industrial and schooling changes led by Zhang Zhidong (1837-1909), the book explores the bottom-up reforms that arose at the alley market of Hanzhenjie at Hankow from the late 1970s in post-Mao China. This reform arguably heralded a set of college reforms, experimented first locally in Wuhan and nationally advocated afterward. Through these events, the author highlights how Wuhan reinforces itself in China’s education roadmap via standing at its reforming frontiers. Contributing to interdisciplinary discourses on education development and cultural identity within the context of Communicating China to an increasingly integrated world and a better future, this volume will be of interest to students and researchers interested in Chinese education policy reforms, Chinese educational history and comparative Asian education.

• Publication date: 18 August 2026
• Page count: 190
• Dimensions: Height 234 mm; Width 156 mm
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Format: Hardback
• ISBN-13: 9781041235613