Education in China

Zhou dynasty (1045 BC to 256 BC)

Mar 9, 1045

During the Zhou Dynasty (1045 BC to 256 BC), there were five national schools in the capital city, Pi Yong (an imperial school, located in a central location) and four other schools for the aristocrats and nobility, including Shang Xiang

Confuscius (551 BC - 479 BC)

Mar 10, 1300

Confucius who was the founder of Confucianism, was a Chinese philosopher who made a great impact on later generations of Chinese, and on the curriculum of the Chinese educational system for much of the following 2000 years.

Ch'in dynasty (246 BC - 207 BC)

Mar 10, 1450

education through this period was a luxury, during the Ch'in dynasty, a hierarchy of officials was set up to provide central control over the outlying areas of the empire.

Han dynasty (206 BC- 221 AD)

Mar 10, 1500

During the Han Dynasty, boys were thought ready at age seven to start learning basic skills in reading, writing and calculation.

Emperor wudi 124 BC

Mar 10, 1600

In 124 BC emperor Wudi established the emperial academy the curriculum of which was the five classics of the Connfucius.

End of Han dynasty (220 AD)

Mar 10, 2220

By the end of the Han Dynasty the Academy enrolled more than 30,000 students, boys between the ages of fourteen and seventeen years.

Nine rank system (220 AD to 280 AD)

Mar 10, 2220

The Nine rank system was a civil service nomination system during the Three Kingdoms and the Southern and Northern Dynasties (420-589 AD) in China.

End of Nine rank system (280 AD)

Mar 10, 2280

The Nine Rank System was eventually superseded by the Imperial examination system for the civil service in the Sui Dynasty (581-618 AD)