Abstract: Mass education centers were the main organizations to educate the general public and transform the grass-roots society during the period of the Republic of China. Wuhan，as one of the major regions under the rule of the national government，was very active and did a good job in developing mass education centers，especially in the 1927—1937“golden period”of the Nanjing national government. Diversified and fruitful activities were carried out in these centers，typically in the Hubei Provincial Experimental Mass Education Center and the Hankou Municipal Experimental Mass Education Center. The main concerns of the centers include eliminating illiteracy，improving the public’s self-governance capabilities and productive skills，and helping the public stay away from unhealthy customs and habits. Although the services and activities had a strong political slant，they created a“public cultural space”indispensable to people’s social and cultural life. The centers served to popularize social education，improve public culture，and shape citizen awareness，and had basic，educational，social，and innovative features.

Key words: mass education center, period of the Republic of China, social education, mass education, national education