Secondary education, teachers in China

China: Secondary education, teachers was 7.41 million in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
7.41 million
Change on year
up 2.2%
World rank
1st
of 201 countries
All-time high
7.41 million
in 2024
All-time low
983,294
in 1970
Years of data
51
1970–2024

Secondary education, teachers in China, 1970–2024

02.0M4.0M6.0M8.0M197019972024

Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Analysis

The most recent figure for secondary education, teachers in China is 7.41 million, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 51 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.2% on the previous year and up 19.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, secondary education, teachers in China peaked at 7.41 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 983,294, in 1970.

China ranks 1st of 201 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 51 years of available data.

Secondary education, teachers in China, year by year

Annual values for Secondary education, teachers in China, 1970 to 2024.
Year Value Change
1970 983,294
1971 1.21 million +23.3%
1972 1.37 million +12.9%
1973 1.70 million +24.4%
1974 1.75 million +2.9%
1975 1.85 million +5.4%
1976 2.16 million +17.1%
1977 2.81 million +29.8%
1978 3.27 million +16.5%
1979 3.28 million +0.2%
1980 3.19 million -2.8%
1981 3.17 million -0.6%
1982 3.01 million -5.1%
1983 2.87 million -4.6%
1984 2.85 million -0.6%
1985 2.88 million +1.0%
1986 3.04 million +5.4%
1987 3.20 million +5.4%
1988 3.37 million +5.1%
1989 3.50 million +4.0%
1990 3.55 million +1.3%
1991 3.63 million +2.4%
1992 3.70 million +1.8%
1993 3.78 million +2.2%
1994 3.84 million +1.6%
1995 3.91 million +1.9%
1996 4.10 million +4.8%
1997 4.22 million +2.9%
2000 4.76 million +12.9%
2001 4.57 million -4.0%
2002 4.79 million +4.8%
2003 5.14 million +7.2%
2006 5.77 million +12.2%
2007 6.22 million +7.9%
2008 6.34 million +2.0%
2009 6.39 million +0.7%
2010 6.42 million +0.4%
2011 6.43 million +0.2%
2012 6.55 million +1.9%
2013 6.23 million -4.9%
2014 6.21 million -0.3%
2015 6.23 million +0.4%
2016 6.22 million -0.2%
2017 6.27 million +0.8%
2018 6.36 million +1.5%
2019 6.47 million +1.8%
2020 6.59 million +1.8%
2021 6.84 million +3.8%
2022 7.06 million +3.2%
2023 7.25 million +2.7%
2024 7.41 million +2.2%

China compared with similar countries

  • China's 7.41 million is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 34,286, 216.1× the median. (57 countries reporting)
  • China's 7.41 million is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9,892, 748.9× the median. (34 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Secondary education, teachers in China changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
1977 +29.8% 2.16 million 2.81 million

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 2.04 million 983,294 3.28 million 10
1980s 3.11 million 2.85 million 3.50 million 10
1990s 3.84 million 3.55 million 4.22 million 8
2000s 5.50 million 4.57 million 6.39 million 8
2010s 6.34 million 6.21 million 6.55 million 10
2020s 7.03 million 6.59 million 7.41 million 5

Countries ranked near China

  1. 2 India 7.31 million compare
  2. 3 Pakistan 2.04 million compare
  3. 4 United States 1.74 million compare

See the full ranking of 246 places →

More education data for China

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is secondary education, teachers in China?
Secondary education, teachers in China was 7.41 million in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
What is the highest secondary education, teachers recorded in China?
The highest recorded value was 7.41 million in 2024.
What is the lowest secondary education, teachers recorded in China?
The lowest recorded value was 983,294 in 1970.
How does China rank for secondary education, teachers?
China ranks 1st out of 201 countries with data for 2024.
Is secondary education, teachers rising or falling in China?
Over the last ten years it is up 19.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this China data come from?
The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Secondary education, teachers. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Secondary education, teachers in China. Statizoid, drawing on Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/secondary-education-teachers/china/

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About this data

Indicator
Secondary education, teachers
Source
Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
246 places, 7,677 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

Secondary education, teachers refers to the total number of teachers at secondary level, including full-time and part-time teachers.