Fully Leverage the Leading Role of Higher Education

When education thrives, the nation thrives; when education is strong, the nation is strong. Since the New Era, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, based on the overall strategy of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the changes unseen in a century, has made strategic deployments to prioritize education development, accelerate the modernization of education, and build a strong education nation, continuously introducing a series of major reform measures. Educational endeavors have achieved historic accomplishments and undergone transformative changes. The "Decision" of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC states: "Education, science and technology, and talent are the foundational and strategic underpinnings of Chinese-path modernization," and includes "optimizing the layout of higher education, accelerating the construction of world-class universities and advantageous disciplines with Chinese characteristics" as an important part of "deepening comprehensive education reform." General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Any strong education nation is a strong higher education nation" and "To build a strong education nation, the leading role is higher education." Today, the development of the Party and the nation's cause has a more urgent need for higher education, scientific knowledge, and outstanding talent than ever before. On the new journey, we must adhere to Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, deeply study and implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC, deeply understand the historical positioning, era responsibilities, and goals and tasks of higher education development, continuously enhance our sense of responsibility, mission, and urgency, and strive unremittingly to achieve the goal of building a strong education nation at an early date.

教育兴则国家兴，教育强则国家强。新时代以来，以习近平同志为核心的党中央立足中华民族伟大复兴战略全局和世界百年未有之大变局，作出优先发展教育、加快推进教育现代化、建设教育强国的战略部署，持续推出一系列重大改革举措，教育事业取得了历史性成就、发生了格局性变化。党的二十届三中全会《决定》提出：“教育、科技、人才是中国式现代化的基础性、战略性支撑”，并把“优化高等教育布局，加快建设中国特色、世界一流的大学和优势学科”作为“深化教育综合改革”的重要内容。习近平总书记指出：“任何一个教育强国都是高等教育强国”“建设教育强国，龙头是高等教育”。今天，党和国家事业发展对高等教育的需要、对科学知识和优秀人才的需要，比以往任何时候都更为迫切。新征程上，我们要坚持以习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想为指导，深入学习贯彻党的二十届三中全会精神，深刻认识高等教育发展的历史方位、时代责任和目标任务，不断增强责任感、使命感、紧迫感，为早日实现教育强国目标而不懈奋斗。

In the vast course of human history, education has always been the cornerstone of national rejuvenation and social progress. Since the 15th century, Britain, France, Germany, and the United States have successively risen to become world powers, and an important reason lies in their strong and leading education. To build a strong education nation, we must fully leverage the leading role of higher education, deeply recognizing that the leading role means guidance and driving force, and means a pioneering role in the great cause of building a strong nation and achieving national rejuvenation. Looking at the world, all countries regard running universities well and cultivating talent as strategic measures to promote national development and enhance comprehensive national strength, and all attach great importance to using the guiding and driving role of higher education to form comparative advantages in scientific and technological innovation and talent resources, thereby seizing the initiative in international competition. Looking to the future, China's higher education must focus on building a strong education nation, fully playing a leading role in implementing the fundamental task of fostering virtue through education [1]1 Fostering virtue through education (立德树人) is a fundamental task of Chinese education, emphasizing moral cultivation as the basis for talent development., further deepening comprehensive reform, and promoting high-level opening up, striving to open up new prospects for high-quality development, and continuously demonstrating new responsibilities and new actions for higher education.

在浩荡的人类历史长河里，教育始终是民族振兴、社会进步的基石。15世纪以来，英国、法国、德国、美国先后崛起为世界强国，一个重要原因就在于教育强、教育领先。建设教育强国要充分发挥高等教育龙头作用，深刻认识到龙头作用意味着引领带动，意味着在强国建设、民族复兴伟业中的先导性作用。纵观世界，各国都把办好大学、培养人才作为推动国家发展、增强综合国力的战略举措，都高度重视以高等教育的引领带动作用形成科技创新和人才资源的比较优势，进而占据国际竞争先机。面向未来，我国高等教育要着眼于建设教育强国，在落实立德树人根本任务、进一步全面深化改革、推进高水平对外开放等方面充分发挥龙头作用，奋力开创高质量发展新局面，不断彰显高等教育新担当新作为。

Focus on fostering virtue through education to expand the work pattern of "grand ideological and political courses" [2]2 "Grand ideological and political courses" (大思政课) refers to a broadened approach to ideological and political education that integrates classroom teaching with social practice and online platforms., cultivating pillars of talent capable of shouldering the great task of building a strong nation and achieving national rejuvenation. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "What kind of people to cultivate, how to cultivate them, and for whom to cultivate them are the fundamental questions of education and also the core issue of building a strong education nation." Fostering virtue through education concerns whether the Party's cause will have successors and concerns the future and destiny of the nation; it is the fundamental task of universities. Ideological and political courses are the key courses for implementing the fundamental task of fostering virtue through education; the role of ideological and political courses is irreplaceable, and the responsibility of the team of ideological and political course teachers is significant. University ideological and political courses must be taught well. Since the New Era, General Secretary Xi Jinping has delivered important speeches and made important instructions on the construction of ideological and political courses in schools multiple times, pointing the direction for continuously enhancing the ideological nature, theoretical nature, affinity, and targetedness of ideological and political courses. On the new journey, to deepen comprehensive education reform around implementing the fundamental task of fostering virtue through education, we must improve the mechanism for fostering virtue through education, focus on the key course of ideological and political courses, accelerate the construction of a curriculum and textbook system with Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as the core content, and continuously improve the targetedness and appeal of ideological and political courses. We must unswervingly use Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era to cultivate souls and educate people, focus on strengthening education on core socialist values, guide students to establish firm ideals and beliefs, always listen to the Party and follow the Party, and dedicate themselves to the country and the people. Deeply implement General Secretary Xi Jinping's important instructions on the construction of ideological and political courses in schools, continuously promote the reform and innovation of ideological and political courses, strengthen the construction of the team of ideological and political course teachers, establish an independent evaluation system for ideological and political course teachers, and encourage and guide teachers to become great masters who teach ideological and political courses well. Adhere to the "three-in-one" educational concept of value shaping, ability cultivation, and knowledge imparting, and build a comprehensive guidance and ideological and political work system. Innovatively carry out online ideological and political education, strengthen the construction of online education positions, use new media and new technologies to empower theoretical learning, and create more online cultural fine works that are created by young people, liked by young people, and beneficial to young people. Adhere to the simultaneous development of "five educations" [3]3 "Five educations" (五育) refers to moral, intellectual, physical, aesthetic, and labor education., promote "three comprehensive education" [4]4 "Three comprehensive education" (三全育人) refers to all-staff, whole-process, and all-round education., and strive to cultivate socialist builders and successors who are well-developed morally, intellectually, physically, aesthetically, and labor-wise.

聚焦立德树人拓展“大思政课”建设工作格局，培养堪当强国建设、民族复兴大任的栋梁之材。习近平总书记指出：“培养什么人、怎样培养人、为谁培养人是教育的根本问题，也是建设教育强国的核心课题。”立德树人关系党的事业后继有人，关系国家前途命运，是高校的根本任务。思政课是落实立德树人根本任务的关键课程，思政课作用不可替代，思政课教师队伍责任重大，大学思政课必须讲好。新时代以来，习近平总书记多次就学校思政课建设发表重要讲话、作出重要指示，为不断增强思政课程的思想性、理论性和亲和力、针对性指明了方向。新征程上，围绕落实立德树人根本任务深化教育综合改革，要完善立德树人机制，聚焦思政课关键课程，加快构建以习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想为核心内容的课程教材体系，不断提高思政课的针对性和感染力。要坚持不懈用习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想铸魂育人，着力加强社会主义核心价值观教育，引导学生树立坚定的理想信念，永远听党话、跟党走，矢志奉献国家和人民。深入贯彻落实习近平总书记关于学校思政课建设的重要指示精神，不断推进思政课改革创新，加强思政课教师队伍建设，建立独立的思政课教师评价体系，激励引导教师成为讲好思政课的大先生。坚持价值塑造、能力培养、知识传授“三位一体”教育理念，构建全方位导学思政工作体系。创新开展网络思政，加强网络育人阵地建设，利用新媒体新技术赋能理论学习，打造更多青年人创作、青年人喜欢、青年人受益的网络文化精品。坚持“五育”并举，推进“三全育人”，努力培养德智体美劳全面发展的社会主义建设者和接班人。

Firmly grasp the top priority, accelerate the construction of world-class universities and advantageous disciplines with Chinese characteristics. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must adhere to high-quality development as the lifeline of education at all levels and types" and "Take accelerating the construction of world-class universities and advantageous disciplines with Chinese characteristics as the top priority." Currently, the changes unseen in a century are accelerating, and the increase in instability and uncertainty poses new challenges to the form and development model of higher education. At the same time, new strategic opportunities, new strategic tasks, new strategic stages, new strategic requirements, and new strategic environments on the new journey all place new demands on China's higher education to achieve high-quality development. On the new journey, we must deepen comprehensive education reform around serving national strategies and economic and social development, continue to strengthen higher education as the leading force, and accelerate the construction of world-class universities and advantageous disciplines with Chinese characteristics. We must adhere to the Party's overall leadership over educational endeavors, fully implement the Party's educational policies, fully leverage the institutional advantages of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and transform confidence in the path, confidence in the theory, confidence in the system, and confidence in the culture into confidence in education and confidence in talent cultivation. Adhere to educating people for the Party and cultivating talent for the country, take improving the quality of talent cultivation as the starting point and ultimate goal of all work, and consciously transform the various advantages accumulated by the school over the long term into the effectiveness of continuously improving the quality of talent cultivation. Adhere to better serving the major strategic needs of the country, continuously produce scientific, technological, and ideological and cultural innovation achievements that can lead the world, and promote high-quality economic and social development. Unswervingly promote connotative development, pay more attention to intrinsic quality and potential exploration, properly handle the relationship between scale and quality, do things that are truly valuable and have long-term significance, and continuously improve the school's educational quality and level. Adhere to innovation as the guide, with the courage to be the first in the world to promote innovation in educational concepts, practices, and systems, fully stimulate the vitality of various innovation factors such as knowledge, talent, and technology, and form a stronger synergy for innovation. Adhere to using reform to stimulate internal development momentum, pay more attention to enhancing the systemic nature, holistic nature, and synergy of reform, rely on reform to resolve deep-seated contradictions, and comprehensively improve the school's governance level.

牢牢抓住重中之重，加快建设中国特色、世界一流的大学和优势学科。习近平总书记指出：“要坚持把高质量发展作为各级各类教育的生命线”“把加快建设中国特色、世界一流的大学和优势学科作为重中之重”。当前，世界百年未有之大变局加速演进，不稳定性不确定性的增加对高等教育形态和发展模式提出新的挑战。与此同时，新征程上新的战略机遇、新的战略任务、新的战略阶段、新的战略要求、新的战略环境都对我国高等教育实现高质量发展提出新的要求。新征程上，我们要围绕服务国家战略和经济社会发展深化教育综合改革，继续做强高等教育这个龙头，加快建设中国特色、世界一流的大学和优势学科。要坚持党对教育事业的全面领导，全面贯彻党的教育方针，充分发挥中国特色社会主义制度优势，把道路自信、理论自信、制度自信、文化自信转化为教育自信和人才培养自信。坚持为党育人、为国育才，把提高人才培养质量作为各项工作的出发点和落脚点，自觉把学校长期积累的各方面优势转化为人才培养质量不断提高的效能。坚持更好地服务国家重大战略需求，源源不断产出能够引领世界的科学技术和思想文化创新成果，推动经济社会高质量发展。坚定不移推动内涵式发展，更加注重内在品质和潜力挖掘，处理好规模和质量的关系，做真正有价值、有长远意义的事，不断提升学校的办学品位和办学水平。坚持以创新为引领，以敢为天下先的勇气推进教育理念创新、实践创新、制度创新，充分激发知识、人才、技术等各类创新要素的活力，形成更强大的创新合力。坚持以改革激发内在发展动力，更加注重增强改革系统性、整体性、协同性，依靠改革来破解深层次矛盾，全面提升学校治理水平。

Actively serve high-quality development, and continuously enhance the supporting capacity and contributive power for advancing Chinese-path modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Making a good job of serving high-quality development must be taken as an important task of building a strong education system.” Building a strong education system, a strong science and technology system, and a strong talent system are internally consistent and mutually supportive; organically combining the three and advancing them as an integrated whole can generate a multiplier effect that drives high-quality development. Universities and colleges are the junction point for developing the primary productive force of science and technology, cultivating the primary resource of talent, and enhancing the primary driving force of innovation; they are the main force in basic research and the cradle of major scientific and technological breakthroughs. Looking at the world, higher education in every country grows up in the course of serving its own national development. We must keep in mind “the great matters of the state” [5]5 “The great matters of the state” (国之大者) is a phrase used in contemporary Chinese political discourse to refer to the most important strategic issues concerning the overall interests of the Party and the country., think what the state thinks about, be anxious about what the state is anxious about, and respond to what the state needs, striving to answer the major question of “what can education do for building a strong country” and better serving high-quality development. Vigorously strengthen the construction of basic disciplines, emerging disciplines, and interdisciplinary fields; improve the university innovation system that is based on a healthy academic ecology, guaranteed by effective academic governance, and aimed at producing first-class academic achievements and cultivating first-class talent; with the sense of responsibility of “voluntarily taking on the mission” and the dauntless spirit of “fighting the tiger and going up the mountain” [6]6 “Fighting the tiger and going up the mountain” (打虎上山) is a reference to a famous scene from the revolutionary model opera *Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy*, symbolizing courage in the face of extreme danger., adhere to the fighting spirit of “the more dangerous the difficulty, the more forward we must go,” and continuously advance scientific and technological innovation and overcome “bottleneck” key core technologies. Strive to enhance the capacity for independent cultivation of top-notch innovative talents; explore undergraduate training methods that integrate the humanities and sciences and combine general education with specialized education; deeply implement the “Strong Foundation Plan” [7]7 The “Strong Foundation Plan” (强基计划) is a Chinese national program launched in 2020 to recruit and cultivate top students in basic disciplines such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, and philosophy, primarily through elite universities. to encourage outstanding students to devote themselves to basic discipline research; promote the classified cultivation of graduate students under the principle of “letting academic be more academic, letting professional be more professional”; improve the evaluation system for graduate students’ innovative achievements when applying for degrees; innovate the training mechanism that integrates scientific research and education as well as industry and education; rely on large-scale scientific research platforms and major scientific research tasks to cultivate innovative talents; and promote the full participation of industries and enterprises in collaborative education. Establish and improve the collaborative innovation mechanism of major scientific and technological innovation bases; promote the deep integration of industry, academia, and research; facilitate the high-level transformation of scientific and technological achievements; continuously produce scientific research and innovation achievements needed for national development; and in the process of serving national development, achieve new heights for first-class universities.

积极服务高质量发展，不断提升推进中国式现代化建设的支撑力、贡献力。习近平总书记指出：“要把服务高质量发展作为建设教育强国的重要任务。”建设教育强国、科技强国、人才强国具有内在一致性和相互支撑性，把三者有机结合起来、一体统筹推进，可以形成推动高质量发展的倍增效应。高校是发展科技第一生产力、培养人才第一资源、增强创新第一动力的结合点，是基础研究的主力军和重大科技突破的策源地。放眼全球，各国高等教育都是在服务自己国家发展中成长起来的。要牢记“国之大者”，想国家之所想、急国家之所急、应国家之所需，努力回答好“强国建设、教育何为”的重大课题，更好服务高质量发展。大力加强基础学科、新兴学科、交叉学科建设，完善以健康学术生态为基础、以有效学术治理为保障、以产生一流学术成果和培养一流人才为目标的大学创新体系，以“主动请缨”的责任担当、“打虎上山”的大无畏气概，坚持“越是艰险越向前”的斗争精神，不断推进科技创新、攻克“卡脖子”关键核心技术。着力提升拔尖创新人才自主培养能力，探索推动文理渗透、通专融合的本科生培养方式，深入实施“强基计划”，激励优秀学生投身基础学科研究；推进“让学术更学术、让专业更专业”的研究生分类培养，完善研究生申请学位创新成果评价制度；创新科教融汇、产教融合培养机制，依托大型科研平台、重大科研任务培养创新人才，推动行业企业全方位参与协同育人。建立健全重大科技创新基地协同创新机制，推进产学研深度融合，促进科技成果高水平转化，不断产出国家发展所需要的科研创新成果，在服务国家发展的进程中成就一流大学的新高度。

Strive to enhance international influence, and accelerate the building of a world-class education hub with strong influence. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “According to the changes and developments in the international situation, we must improve the strategy and policy of opening up in education, coordinate the two major tasks of ‘bringing in’ and ‘going global,’ effectively utilize world-class educational resources and innovation factors, and make our country a world-class education hub with strong influence.” Universities and colleges are inheritors of human civilization and an important force in promoting academic exchange, intellectual interaction, and cultural integration. The vision of a university determines the vision of the talents it cultivates; only by adhering to openness and learning from the outstanding achievements of human civilization and the beneficial experience of world higher education can a university truly achieve high-quality development. At present, the international influence of China’s higher education does not fully match its comprehensive national strength and international status; we must work hard on both “bringing in” and “going global.” We must do a good job in the major task of “bringing in,” making talent-strengthening the core strategy for university development; adopt a more proactive, more open, and more effective talent policy; increase the intensity of introducing high-level talent; gather a group of world-class top talents and first-class scholars; cultivate a group of teaching masters who devote themselves to education and young talents with innovative vitality; and build university campuses into places where world talents yearn to go and feel at ease. Strive to improve the quality of international students’ enrollment and cultivation; build a more open, more integrated, and more resilient university; and continuously enhance the attractiveness of Chinese universities to outstanding young people around the world. We must do a good job in the major task of “going global,” actively participate in global education governance; build a high-quality global partnership system; strengthen strategic cooperation with world-class universities, international organizations, or enterprises that have global influence; actively initiate and build various world university alliances; strengthen high-level cooperation and exchanges with key countries and regions, countries jointly building the Belt and Road Initiative, and neighboring countries; and strengthen the construction of overseas education bases. Accelerate the construction of China’s independent knowledge system; tell China’s stories well, spread China’s experience, and make China’s voice heard; enhance the international influence and discourse power of China’s education; fully exert the unique role of universities in people-to-people and cultural exchanges and people-to-people bonds; and make greater contributions to promoting the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

努力增强国际影响力，加快建设具有强大影响力的世界重要教育中心。习近平总书记指出：“要根据国际形势发展变化，完善教育对外开放战略策略，统筹做好‘引进来’和‘走出去’两篇大文章，有效利用世界一流教育资源和创新要素，使我国成为具有强大影响力的世界重要教育中心。”高校是人类文明的传承者，是推动学术交流、思想交汇、文化交融的重要力量。高校的办学视野决定着所培养的人才的视野，只有坚持开放，学习借鉴人类文明的优秀成果和世界高等教育的有益经验，大学才能真正实现高质量发展。目前，我国高等教育的国际影响力同我国综合国力和国际地位并不十分匹配，必须既在“引进来”上下功夫，又在“走出去”上见真招。要做好“引进来”这篇大文章，把人才强校作为学校发展的核心战略，用更加积极、更加开放、更加有效的人才政策，加大高层次人才引进力度，汇聚一批世界顶尖人才和一流学者，培育一批倾心育人的教学名师和具有创新活力的青年人才，把大学校园建设成为世界人才的向往之地、心安之处。着力提高留学生生源质量和培养质量，建设更开放、更融合、更具韧性的大学，不断增强中国大学对全球优秀青年的吸引力。要做好“走出去”这篇大文章，积极参与全球教育治理，打造高质量全球合作伙伴体系，加强与具有全球影响力的一流大学、国际组织或企业的战略合作，积极发起并建好各类世界大学联盟，强化与重点国家和地区、共建“一带一路”国家、周边国家的高水平合作交流，加强海外办学基地建设。加快建构中国自主的知识体系，讲好中国故事、传播中国经验、发出中国声音，增强我国教育的国际影响力和话语权，充分发挥高校在人文交流、民心相通中的独特作用，为推动构建人类命运共同体作出更大贡献。

The ancients said: “Revering education and encouraging learning are the great foundation of building a state; promoting talents and cultivating the virtuous are the first priority of governance.” [8]8 This quotation is from the Ming dynasty scholar Zhu Zhiyu (朱之瑜, 1600–1682), also known as Zhu Shunshui, in his work *Collected Works of Zhu Shunshui* (《朱舜水集》). In the New Era and on the new journey, we must comprehensively implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era; use the thriving development of world-class universities with Chinese characteristics to lead and drive the vigorous construction of a strong education system; use the power of education to deeply cultivate the foundation of the people’s happiness; use the strength of education to consolidate the foundation of national prosperity and strength; and provide strong support for comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation.

古人云：“敬教劝学，建国之大本；兴贤育才，为政之先务。”新时代新征程，我们要全面贯彻习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想，以中国特色世界一流大学发展的欣欣向荣引领带动教育强国建设的蒸蒸日上，以教育之力厚植人民幸福之本，以教育之强夯实国家富强之基，为全面推进强国建设、民族复兴伟业提供有力支撑。

[The author is the Secretary of the Party Committee of Tsinghua University]

【作者为清华大学党委书记】

Online editor: Ma Jingren

网络编辑：马京仁