Relevance: The Ought Value Orientation On Evaluation Of Educational Preferential Policies For Ethnic Groups In China

Educational preferential policies for ethnic groups in China is started in the context of unbalance development of education, in order to support the development of minority education, the government promulgates a series of policies for favorable properties of education of minority students and areas inhabited by the minority ethnic groups. Relevance of educational preferential policies is not only the starting point and destination of educational preferential policies for ethnic groups in China, but also assurance of the effectiveness of practice of those policies. Based on the literature review of related researches and using of comparative analysis, the ought value orientation on evaluation of educational preferential policies for ethnic groups in China is discussed. Study concluded that the existing policy evaluation orientations, for example, equalization, differences, diverse, are all involved with the pursuit of relevance. And only the evaluators hold a relevance value, could they grasp the positioning and significance of education preferential policies and practices for ethnic groups in balanced the development of education in China accurately.The evaluation of educational preferential policies for ethnic groups is value-laden, which is base on the theoretical basis of facts and values cannot be dichotomy. In the evaluation of educational preferential policies for ethnic groups, there are tangles among the standard of fact and value. And there are different values in the development process of four generations evaluations. Educational preferential policies for ethnic groups are the result of value choice, as which is started to solve practical problems for the educational development of ethnic groups. Preferential is the main characteristics of educational preferential policies for ethnic groups, whereas educational equity as the ultimate value orientation. Overall, the educational preferential policies for ethnic groups are integrated of rationality and purposiveness. As ethnic policies, they are intended to promote ethnic development through the development of education; as education policies, they aims to promote the balanced development of education; as preferential policies, they treat policy stakeholders in the form of taking an active differential treatment; and ultimately they aims to achieve justice. Affected by the value-laden of educational preferential policies for ethnic groups, different understand of evaluators, and evaluation technology development, there are kinds of different value orientations in the evaluation of educational preferential policies for ethnic groups, such as equality, diversity, and multi-concept. In fact, behind these three value orientations, there is a value pursuit of relevance.In the relevance evaluation of educational preferential policies for ethnic groups in China, we should obey these four principals:evaluate adequacy and necessity of the policies; consider process and results of the policy; follow the unity of facts and value of the policies; and integrate the policy text and its practice. Rationality and purposiveness are two levels of the relevance evaluation of educational preferential policies for ethnic groups in China. The rationality level included the necessary and sufficient of those policies. One standard of rationality level is adequacy, which included directly target goals and indirect ones; the other standard if necessity, which included utilization and value of those policies. The standards of purposiveness evaluation included the power of implementation and responsiveness of the policy. The former is belonging to the top-down perspective, which is an important way to determine the effectiveness of those policies; while the later mainly take from engagement of stakeholder of those policies, and it is belonging to a bottom-to-top perspective. Thus, constructing standards system for relevance evaluation of educational preferential policies for ethnic groups in China provides reference for the evaluation of educational preferential policies and practice for ethnic groups in China.