ABSTRACT
Children’s sport has been of increasing concern in China since the beginning of the twenty-first century. What social and cultural forces are behind the development? How did social and policy changes, in association with family, early education and sport, affect the development of children’s sport in the country? What are the future prospects? All these issues are rarely addressed by either Chinese or Western academia. Based on a massive literature review (both Chinese and English), questionnaires and interviews with kindergarten principals, teachers and parents across the country, this paper will review the development of children’s sport in China in the new century; analyse the major social forces behind the changes – such as market-oriented economic reforms, Western influence, parents anxiety for safety, state birth-control policy and educational reforms; and look at future trends and challenges in children’s sport.
