In ancient China, women were excluded from any standard education. Women did not need to know how to read and write since their main function in society was to be virtuous wives and caring mothers. It was even considered better if a woman did not know much, as she would not be able to challenge any man, especially her husband. Therefore, there was never any formal education for women until the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) and only those parents who were rich enough to “waste” money on the education of their daughters would hire private tutors for their girls.
Even though poor women were deprived of the right to receive any standard education, some still found a way. They created their own language—nushu; as of now, it is the only written language developed by women that has been discovered in the world.