A family reading event held in Chongqing to encourage children to read. (Photo/Chongqing Women's Federation)
Chongqing - Chongqing has become the only region in China to achieve full coverage of family education guidance centers, integrating family education into urban and rural community governance and basic public services, according to the Chongqing Women's Federation.
At a press conference on October 9, Li Yi, Vice President of the federation, said the city has built a comprehensive network of 21,800 family education sites across all districts and counties. The system covers urban and rural areas, directly bringing high-quality, science-based family education services to local communities.
In May 2024, the Chongqing College of Family Education was officially inaugurated at Chongqing University of Education, becoming the city's first dedicated institute in the field. This year, the Ministry of Education approved the university's undergraduate program in family education, making it the third in the country—and the first in western China—to offer the major. Focusing on family education across all life stages, the program welcomed its first 45 undergraduate students in September.
At the same time, Chongqing has also established the Chongqing Family Education Guidance Center, the Family Education Research Center, and the City's Home-School-Society Co-Education Evaluation and Monitoring Center. It has formed a group of experts, guiding the creation of 41 district- and county-level teams with more than 4,400 family education instructors. These instructors are assigned to townships, streets, and communities for guidance.
The city has taken the lead nationwide in developing a menu-style and systematic family education curriculum known as the Parents' Classroom, designed to meet the needs of new parents, ordinary urban and rural families, families with special needs, and those facing guardianship risks.
Through the "Jinguo Chongqing" digital platform, parents can interact online, request specific courses, and help improve the curriculum based on feedback. Using the app for newborn babies, the city has also sent packages of parenting guidance online to 1.12 million parents of infants aged 0–3. In addition, 178 Mom and Dad Classes have been held, serving 4,526 new parents. Li said participants described the courses as "practical and hands-on, giving us greater confidence to be our children's first teachers."
Li added that the Chongqing Women's Federation will continue to refine these services with local guidance networks staffed with certified instructors, scenario-based courses, and practical tools. It will also leverage AI-powered Q&A services to offer personalized, easy-to-use educational support for parents.