China ranked No.1 on the 2013 Global Teacher Status Index released by the Varkey GEMS Foundation.

The study compared teachers' status in 21 countries and believed that China has the highest respect for teachers because there is a strong cultural emphasis on the importance of education.

It was based on surveys of 1,000 adults in each of the countries.

Besides, about 50 percent of parents in China would encourage their children to become a teacher while only 8 percent would do so in Israel.

The Varkey GEMS Foundation is a not-for-profit organization established to improve the standards of education for underprivileged children through projects encouraging enrolment in schools, worldwide teacher training programmes and advocacy campaigns.

   UK

UK [cscss.com.cn]

Index ranking: 36.7

Average teacher salary: US$33,377

PISA ranking: 10