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As China enters the period of the “15th Five-Year Plan” (2026-2030), demographic and structural conditions shaping educational development are undergoing significant change. Adjustments in the size and regional distribution of the school-age population are placing new demands on the allocation of educational resources and the organization of classroom instruction. [1]How to improve the quality of classroom teaching with existing resources and better respond to students’ individual differences has become a key question for educational reform. Thus, small-class teaching has attracted growing attention.
What Is Small-Class Teaching?
Small-class teaching generally refers to an instructional arrangement in which classes are intentionally kept small, improving the teacher–student ratio and enabling more frequent interaction and individualized guidance. Compared with traditional large-class instruction, its core advantage lies in teachers’ enhanced ability to closely observe student thinking processes, identify learning difficulties in a timely manner, and adjust instructional pacing based on individual needs.
Reducing class size not only shortens the physical and psychological distance between teachers and students, allowing for more precise observation and more responsive support, and giving introverted students greater opportunities to participate, but also encourages transformations in classroom practices and teaching methods. Classroom layouts, assignment design, and instructional formats can become more flexible and diverse. In addition, smaller classes create more favorable conditions for interdisciplinary, project-based, and other personalized forms of learning, thereby supporting improvements in educational quality at its source. [1] When teacher–student ratios are lowered and class sizes shrink, educators can spend less time managing classroom dynamics and more time engaging in meaningful interactions with each child. [2]
Whendid Small-Class Teaching Emerge?
The emergence of small-class teaching can be traced to the Class Size Reduction (CSR), most prominently represented by the United States. In the late 20th century, as access to primary and secondary education expanded, research revealed that higher enrollment rates did not necessarily translate into better learning outcomes for all students. In overcrowded classrooms, some students gradually fell behind due to insufficient teacher feedback and support.
The STAR (Student/Teacher Achievement Ratio) project in Tennessee, found through long-term tracking that small-class instruction had significant positive effects on students’ reading and mathematics achievement, with particularly pronounced benefits for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. [3]
How Can Small-Class Teaching Develop in China?
In China, the projected decline in the school-age population offers policy negotiation for advancing small-class teaching. ThePlanning Outline for Building a Leading Country in Education (2024-2035) explicitly calls for the orderly promotion of small-class teaching. [4] However, small-class teaching is not merely about reducing class size.More fundamentally, it requires a deep restructuring of instructional logic and pedagogical approaches.[5]
The challenge lies in transforming teaching practices. Teachers must develop sharper observational skills to identify student individual needs and drive classroom change. Schools, in turn, need to provide structural support, through spatial design, teacher–student interaction patterns, and assessment mechanisms, to enable personalized guidance. In this way, small-class teaching can become an effective vehicle for implementing differentiated instruction. [5] Strengthening teacher preparation and providing sustained instructional support for small-class teaching will be a critical component of future efforts to improve educational quality.
Editor | HAN Baiqing
References:
[1] Lu, S. Exploring Pilot Programs in Small-Class Teaching: “Seeing” More Students’ Needs[N]. China Education News, 2026-03-11 (2).https://paper.jyb.cn/zgjyb/html/2026-03/11/content_144741_19355522.htm.
[2] OECD. Education at a Glance 2025: OECD Indicators[R/OL]. Paris: OECD Publishing, 2025[2026-03-31].https://doi.org/10.1787/1c0d9c79-en.
[3] Mosteller, F. The Tennessee study of class size in the early school grades. The Future of Children, 1995: 113–127.
[4] The Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party & State Council. Outline of the Plan for the Construction of China into an Education Powerhouse (2024–2035). [R/OL]. (2025-01-19)[2026-03-31].http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_xxgk/moe_1777/moe_1778/202501/t20250119_1176193.html.
[5] Wang, JY. Small-Class Teaching Is Not Just “Reducing Class Size,” but “Changing the Approach”[N]. China Education News, 2026-03-07 (02).https://paper.jyb.cn/zgjyb/html/2026-03/07/content_144741_19346731.htm.
