BECE. Newsletter 

Vol.17, No.2, 2024, BECE 1872 

 

 

 

 

Do New Gaokao Schemes Increase Students’ 

Autonomy in Subject Selection: An Empirical 

Analysis Based on the CatBoost 

Regression Tree Model 

By Zhou, J., Shan, Z., & Qin, H. 
Correspondence to: Hongxia Qin, Xiamen University, China. E-mail: 

qinghx99@126.com 

N CHINA, the college entrance examination (also known as Gaokao) is an 

event of paramount importance to the public. In the context of educational 

reform, the new Gaokao schemes are undergoing adjustments and improve-

ments. The issue of whether the new Gaokao schemes are effective in sup-

porting autonomous subject selection of students is pending further research. 

This article is an empirical investigation of the issue based on data from 

2022’s “Gaokao reform questionnaire survey” of college students who have 

gone through the whole process of the high-stakes examination.  

 Research Findings: 

• The new Gaokao schemes have increased students’ autonomy in 

subject choice. The “3 + 3” and “3 + 1 + 2” patterns, as new 

Gaokao models, showed no significant differences in the effects 

on student autonomous subject selection, but both outperform-

ing the prior “3 + X” model.  

• The expanded rights of students to subject choice did not lead to 

an enhancement of their subject selection abilities, but con-

versely, a certain degree of decline in this regard. Facing more 

choices and the increased configurations of subjects, the student 

could not make a legitimate decision on their own but had to 

seek advice of others. 

• The new Gaokao schemes intensified the conflicts between the 

intentions of the student, parents, and senior secondary teachers 

in electing subjects. The discrepancies between the needs of 

student school progression, development, and future employ-

ment compromised students’ autonomy in subject choice while 

exacerbating their worries about this issue. 

• From the standpoint of enhancing students’ autonomy in subject 

selection, the “3 + 1 + 2” scheme was the most rational choice, 

favorable for the stable and sustainable reform of Gaokao. 

I 

mailto:qinghx99@126.com


 

Vol.17, No.2, 2024, BECE 1873 

In brief, the new Gaokao scheme involves both students’ rights to 

subject choice and their selection capacities. A blind expansion of students’ 

autonomy in subject selection without regard to their selection abilities is not 

beneficial to their post-choice academic adaptation. Authorities concerned 

should provide students with more support in improving their capability of 

electing subjects by providing guidance on subject selection know-how and 

developmental planning in order to help them make better use of their selec-

tion autonomy and reach equilibrium between the freedom of development 

and optimization of development. 

 
Source: Journal of East China Normal University, 2024; 42(3):12-25.