The number of full-time kindergarten teachers in China decreased by nearly 220,000 last year.
According to Yicai’s report, based on the 2025 National Educational Development Statistical Bulletin released by China’s Ministry of Education, there were a total of 2.6126 million full-time preschool education teachers in China. In 2024, the number of full-time preschool teachers was 2.8319 million. This means that last year, the number of full-time kindergarten teachers decreased by 219,300.
The report analyzes that changes in the population structure have had a significant impact on teacher-training colleges and university preschool education programs, which mainly cultivate kindergarten teachers.
China’s National Bureau of Statistics announced in January that China’s total population decreased by 3.39 million last year to 1.40489 billion. This drop is greater than 2024’s decline of 1.39 million and marks the largest yearly decrease since China’s population began to decline in 2022.
The total number of newborns dropped sharply from 9.54 million in 2024 to 7.92 million last year, making the birth rate the lowest since records began in 1949; at the same time, the number of deaths increased from 10.93 million in 2024 to 11.31 million. The annual population mortality rate was 8.04‰, and the natural population growth rate was minus 2.41‰.