The China Educational Development Yearbook, Volume 1

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The Astrolabe

An ancient instrument for solving problems of location and distance, as well as time

Astrolábon órganon is the word used in Ptolemaeus Syntaxis 5.1 to describe a form of armillary sphere consisting of both fixed and rotating rings for determining the ecliptic co-ordinates of stars. Also called astrolabe were two-dimensional representations of the celestial sphere: over fixed disks with a representation of the horizon of the earth (in each case for a specific geographic latitude) and its parallels up to the zenith lies a rotating representation of the heavens (called ‘spider’ or ‘net’) with zodiac and indicators for some of the brightest stars. On the back is an indicator (‘alidade’) with visor plates for calculating the height of the stars. The astrolabe allows its user to determine the hours of day and night, the positions of stars, and the height and depth of objects on earth (mountains, buildings, wells). The oldest extant descriptions of the flat, planispheric astrolabe come from Iohannes Philoponus, 6th century AD, and (in Syrian) from Severus Sebokht, c. 660 AD. Indirect references may date back as early as Theon (4th cent.). Between the 8th and the 9th centuries the Arabs appropriated the knowledge of the astrolabe. At the end of the 10th century and again in the 12th century, they passed it on to Western Europe, where astrolabes were constructed up until the 17th cent. Today, one Byzantine astrolabe (from 1062) is extant, as are some 750 Arabic-Islamic astrolabes and approximately the same number of European astrolabes.

This information is abstracted from Brill's New Pauly, the English edition of the authoritative Der Neue Pauly, Encyclopaedia of the Ancient World. The encyclopaedic coverage and high academic standard of the work, the interdisciplinary and contemporary approach and clear and accessible presentation have made the New Pauly the unrivalled modern reference work for the ancient world. For more information see www.brillsnewpauly.com or visit our website catalog: www.brill.nl/bnp
Brill’s New Pauly and the complete original Der Neue Pauly, the recognized standard reference works for students and scholars of the ancient world are also available online. This dual-language edition offers basic and advanced search facilities and is fully browsable. New English translations are added as they become available. See www.paulyonline.brill.nl for more information and a demo version.

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Publications & Services> Advanced Search> The China Educational Development Yearbook, Volume 1

The China Educational Development Yearbook, Volume 1

Chief Editor: Yang Dongping; Deputy Chief Editors: Chai Chunqing, Zhu Yinnian

Books

Available
Publication year: 2009


Series:	The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Yearbooks: Educational Development, 1
ISBN-13 (i)The ISBN (International Standard Book Number) has been changed from 10 to 13 digits on 1 January 2007:	978 90 04 17178 7
ISBN-10:	90 04 17178 9

Cover:	Hardback
Number of pages:	xxvi, 366 pp.
Google Book Search:	View this book at Google Book Search

List price:	€ 119.00 / US$ 169.00

Table of contents

Introduction
Gerard Postiglione

Educational Reform in China: An Overview
Yang Dongping
Funding for Compulsory Education in Rural Areas
Cheng Gang
Early Childhood Education in China: Problems and Solutions
Chu Zhaohui
Issues Involved When Seeking Balanced Development of Urban and Rural Compulsory Education
Fan Weichen
Compulsory Education for Migrant Children: A Case Study
Han Jialing
Educating the Children of Migrant Workers in Rural Areas
Ye Zhong, Tu Xiaoming
Curriculum Reform amid Controversy
Zhai Jinyu
The Current Situation of Rural Substitute Teachers in China
Zhu Yinnian
The Reform of China’s University Entrance Examination System
Wang Xiong, Zhu Zhengbiao
Chinese Ethnic Minorities and Bilingual Education
Teng Xing, Hai Lu
Improving the Quality of Higher Education in China
Shen Yushun
Bureaucracy in Chinese Universities
Xiong Bingqi
The Debt Crisis in China’s Colleges and Universities: Causes, Resolutions and Contradictions
Lin Li
Employment Issues Facing China’s College Graduates
Tian Yongpo
Reform of Financial Aid to University Students: Policy for Enhancing Equity
Shen Hong, Wei Li
The Development of Private Schools in China
Hu Wei, Xie Ximei and Chai Chunqing
Reform of Vocational Education in China
Xing Hui, Li Shiwei
Art Education in China
Li Gongming, Hu Bin
The Societal Push to Develop the Education System in 2007
Wang Sheng
The Current Status and Future Prospects of Education Legislation
Song Yanhui
The Innovation of Local Educational Systems
Cong Chunxia
Educational Corruption in China
Ren Jianming
The Remedy for Undesirable Academic Practices
Jing Jianbin
Satisfaction with Chinese Education: A 2007 Survey
21st Century Education Development Research Institute：Horizon Research Consultancy Group
Confucius Institutes and International Promotion of the Chinese Language
Wang Yan
Hong Kong and Macao University Recruitment of Mainland Chinese Students
Li Mei, Xue Wenzheng
A 2007 Summary of the Education System in Hong Kong
Zhao Zhenzhou
A Summary of Education in Taiwan in 2007
Huang Kunjin
The 2007 Almanac of Chinese Education
21st Century Education Development Research Institute

Readership

All those interested in developments in education and education policy in China. Also an excellent primary source for examining how researchers, policy makers, and educators in China discuss and analyze educational issues confronting their country.

About the author(s)

Yang Dongping is professor of education at the Beijing Institute of Technology.

Editorial Board

International Advisory Board:Jing Lin is Professor of International Education Policy at University of Maryland at College Park. She has published four books and numerous articles on Chinese education and society, focusing on social changes, school reform, equity issues and innovations in education. She has also published two books on peace education, entitled Love, Peace and Wisdom in Education (2006), and Transforming Education for Peace (2008). Gerard Postiglione is Professor and Head, Division of Policy, Administration, and Social Science, Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong. He is editor of the journal Chinese Education and Society, and former Director of the Wah Ching Centre of Research on Education in China. His most recent books are Making Tibetans in China (Routledge, 2009) and Border Crossing in East Asian Higher Education (Springer, 2009).

China’s education system has grown increasingly complex, creating the need for an annual critical review of the education system by China’s top scholars. The Blue Book of Education, as it is known in Chinese, has gained a reputation for offering the most penetrating perspective in China on educational reform and development. In this important English translation combining the Blue Books published in 2007 and 2008, the issues, developments, challenges, and crises in Chinese education are comprehensively discussed and critically analyzed. This volume’s incisive contributions address a wide range of pressing issues including: debt caused by the expansion of higher education, quality of education, employment of graduates, corruption of scholarship, education for migrant children, the gap between policy and practice in bilingual education for minority students, the popularization of no-fee compulsory education in rural areas, reform of the national university examination system, and thorny problems faced by private daycares and private schools. The volume is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the perspective of some of China’s most critical scholars about the most pressing challenges facing education.

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