Spatial Dynamics of Higher Education in China : Can Quantity and Quality be Differentiated?

Advocating for equal opportunity and enhancing educational quality is a vital approach to tackling regional disparities in China. This study applies exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) to investigate the regional differences and changes in the spatial dimensions and dynamics of higher education supply in 31 provinces from 2001 to 2017. The results of ESDA show that higher education is strongly similar to neighboring provinces in terms of both quantitative and qualitative influences. Exploratory spatiotemporal data analysis (ESTDA) reveals that over a period of time, Chinese provinces show the same trend of growth or decline in the quantitative aspects of education as neighboring provinces, but the qualitative aspects of education are diametrically opposed. Finally, we discuss the implications of using a spatial approach to monitor educational performance and differences across Chinese provinces.