The Phenomenon of Preschool Academicisation in China and the Double Reduction (双减) Reform: Statistical Analysis and Interpretation

Abstract

The relevance of this study stems from the widespread phenomenon of academisation in Chinese preschool education and the insufficient attention paid, within Ukrainian pedagogical scholarship, to the actual impact of the "Double Reduction" reform on the early childhood education sector of the People's Republic of China. The article aims to identify cause-and-effect relationships between the systemic factors driving the academisation of preschool education in China, the regulatory mechanisms of the "Double Reduction" reform, and its real-world outcomes — including those of a paradoxical nature. Methods. The study employs comparative statistical analysis of official data from China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Ministry of Education for the period 2019–2023, documentary analysis of regulatory texts, and a critical synthesis of peer-reviewed literature indexed in Web of Science, Scopus, and CNKI for 2020–2026. Results. The findings demonstrate that the academisation phenomenon is the product of three interrelated systemic factors: a structural one, a market-driven one, and an informational one. Statistical evidence reveals that the number of kindergartens in China declined from 294,800 (2021) to 274,400 (2023), predominantly due to contraction in the private sector, while preschool enrolment rates rose to 91.1%. The reform is shown to operate through four interconnected regulatory levels — prohibitive, normative, qualitative, and structural — yet generates three systemic paradoxes: the redistribution rather than elimination of educational inequality, the unregulated proliferation of informal tutoring, and the declarative nature of quality standards unsupported by adequate resourcing. Conclusion. The study concludes that the "Double Reduction" reform constitutes an effective normative instrument, yet remains insufficient without concurrent reform of the university entrance examination system. A three-tier analytical model — "goal — mechanism — effect" — is proposed as a framework for evaluating early childhood education reforms.