我國準備起草一項有關學前教育的法律大綱
China's top legislature will begin drafting a law on pre-school education to regulate the fast-growing sector that has drawn increasing public concern.
中國最高立法機構將開始起草一項有關學前教育的法律，以規範快速增長的教育行業。
The process will be initiated in the five years starting from 2018 within the term of the sitting Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC), according to the NPC legislative agenda released this week.
根據本週公佈的全國人大立法議程，從2018年起，在第十三屆全國人民代表大會常務委員會的任期內，這一進程將在五年內啓動。
"The need to draft such a law has become pressing," said Li Lihua, an NPC deputy familiar with the legislation. "It will address all sorts of problems facing the pre-school education sector at the moment."
熟悉該法的全國人大代表李麗華表示：“起草這樣一項法律的必要性已經變得非常緊迫。它將解決學前教育部門目前面臨的各種問題。”
China has specific laws governing both mandatory and higher education, which cover elementary schools to universities of higher learning. The calls for a similar law for pre-school education have mounted in recent years as the sector has grown.
我國對義務教育和高等教育都有具體的法律，範圍涵蓋了從小學到大學的高等教育。近年來，隨着學前教育領域的發展，要求出臺類似法律的呼聲也越來越高。
In 2017, there were nearly 255,000 kindergartens across the country, taking care of 46 million children. The numbers are set to rise as the authorities aim to raise the gross national kindergarten enrollment rate from 75 percent at present to 85 percent by 2020.
2017年，全國共有近25.5萬家幼兒園，招收了4600萬兒童。政府計劃到2020年將全國幼兒園入學率從目前的75%提高到85%，這一數字將繼續上升。
Education Minister Chen Baosheng admitted in March that pre-school education is facing a myriad of problems -- from a shortage of quality teaching staff to safety loopholes, outdated teaching methods, and high costs.
今年3月，教育部部長陳寶生承認，學前教育面臨着諸多問題--從師資短缺到安全漏洞、過時的教學方法和高昂的成本。
"It is the fastest growing sector but also the one with the weakest link," Chen said.
陳寶生部長稱：“這是增長最快的行業，但也是最薄弱環節。”
The top legislature of China said it has been laying down the groundwork for the legislation since 2013. Lawmakers completed field studies in various provinces and came back with quality reports.
中國最高立法機構表示，自2013年以來，這些問題一直在爲這項立法奠定基礎。立法者在不同省份完成了實地研究，並帶回了質量報告。
The Ministry of Education has called on local education departments to push for the legislation, which it says will define the duties of government departments and help them enforce stricter measures on kindergarten operators.
教育部也呼籲地方教育部門推動這項立法。該部門表示，這項立法將明確政府部門的職責，並幫助他們對幼兒園經營者採取更嚴格的措施。
