A Textual Analysis of Teacher Burden Reduction Policies in Chinese Primary and Secondary Schools: A Policy Tools Perspective

Reducing the burden of teachers in primary and secondary schools is not only the foundation of China's teaching workforce in the new era, but also a key factor in achieving high-quality educational development. According to the theory of Policy Tools, this study employs Nvivo 12 plus qualitative software to encode and quantitatively analyze 30 teachers' burden reduction policy documents and task lists issued across China, constructing a two-dimensional analysis framework of teachers' burden reduction policies. The findings reveal that teacher burden-reduction policies exhibit diversity in policy instruments, with most interventions targeting social affairs, while policy texts tend to be homogenized. However, several issues persist, including imbalanced application of policy instruments, uneven distribution of policy construction elements, and a narrow focus in burden-reduction areas. In order to optimize these policies, it is necessary to enhance the coordination of policy instrument allocation, refine the structural design of policy elements, and balance the distribution of policy discourse power, thereby advancing the high-quality development of China's primary and secondary school teaching workforce.