On the Relations Between the Rank and Age Structure of Teachers in Institutions of Higher Education

Ranking and age structure are two important factors affecting the composition and expansion of teachers in institutions of higher learning. Generally speaking, the former influences the teachers' accomplishments and level of placement, and the latter affects their vitality and the development of their potential. The age and rank structures of teachers in different types of institutions are different because the quality and role of these institutions are different, but they share one thing in common: each has to solve satisfactorily the relations between age and ranking. To reform one structure without changing the other will not bring the desired results. However, age structure and the title structure of teachers are governed by different factors, and the solution of the relations between the two is a highly complicated one. The ranking of teachers is mainly decided by their scholastic attainments and the duties they perform. For instance, both at home and abroad, we can see that there are more teachers with senior ranks in better colleges and universities offering more graduate and research, and fewer senior teachers in the less prestigious ones. The age structure of teachers is mainly governed by the basic law of man's physical and mental development as well as the objective law of the growth and circulation of skilled personnel. It is independent of human will. To handle the relations between the rank and age structure, it is necessary to have a clear understanding of the objective law governing the growth of teachers and the social demands made on the different types of institutions of higher learning. It is also necessary to understand these two structures separately and identify the ideal arrangement. We will explore and try to understand and solve these problems by taking the key teachers colleges in our province as an example.