Advancing the Project of Fostering Virtue and Nurturing Talent in the New Era with the Guiding Force of Ideological and Political Education

In September 2024, in his important speech at the National Education Conference, General Secretary Xi Jinping put forward the “guiding force of ideological and political education” that a socialist education powerhouse with Chinese characteristics should possess. Around this topic, the *Guangming Daily* “Education Weekly” conducted an in-depth discussion, and the author deeply shares this sentiment. Possessing a strong guiding force of ideological and political education is a distinctive feature of a socialist education powerhouse with Chinese characteristics, ranking first among the “six forces” of an education powerhouse. It centrally embodies the political attribute of an education powerhouse and inherently answers a series of major theoretical and practical questions, such as what flag to hold, what path to take, and what kind of mental state to present on the journey of building an education powerhouse, providing a fundamental guideline for comprehensively advancing the project of fostering virtue and nurturing talent in the New Era.

2024年9月，习近平总书记在全国教育大会上的重要讲话中提出了中国特色社会主义教育强国所应具有的“思政引领力”。围绕这一话题，光明日报《教育周刊》进行了深入探讨，笔者深有同感。具有强大的思政引领力是中国特色社会主义教育强国的鲜明特征，位于教育强国“六个力”之首，集中体现了教育强国的政治属性，内在地回答了在建设教育强国征程中举什么旗、走什么路、呈现什么样的精神状态等系列重大理论与实践问题，为全面推进新时代立德树人工程提供了根本遵循。

Using the Strong Guiding Force of Ideological and Political Education to Steady the Direction of the Project of Fostering Virtue and Nurturing Talent in the New Era

以强大思政引领力为新时代立德树人工程把牢前进方向

The education powerhouse we aim to build is a socialist education powerhouse with Chinese characteristics, which must adhere to the socialist direction of running schools and use Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era to forge souls and educate people.

我们要建成的教育强国，是中国特色社会主义教育强国，必须坚持社会主义办学方向，用习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想铸魂育人。

Institutions of higher learning are the front-line positions in the ideological domain. It is necessary to enhance the pertinence and effectiveness of ideological and political education, to clearly explain and articulate Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and to further strengthen young students’ Marxist faith, confidence in socialism with Chinese characteristics, and confidence in the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

高校是意识形态领域的前沿阵地，要通过提升思想政治教育的针对性和有效性，把习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想说清楚、道明白，进一步坚定青少年学生的马克思主义信仰、中国特色社会主义信念、中华民族伟大复兴信心。

Building a socialist education powerhouse with Chinese characteristics must take upholding the Party’s overall leadership over education as the fundamental guarantee, taking fostering virtue and nurturing talent as the fundamental task, taking educating people for the Party and cultivating talent for the country as the fundamental goal, and taking serving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation as an important mission. In recent years, the Hunan Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government have issued documents such as the “Decision on Accelerating the Construction of a Strong Educational Province,” taking upholding the Party’s overall leadership over education as the fundamental guarantee, anchoring the “Three Highlands and Four New Missions” [1]1 “Three Highlands and Four New Missions” (三高四新) is a strategic blueprint proposed by Hunan Province, referring to building a highland for advanced manufacturing, a highland for scientific and technological innovation, and a highland for reform and opening up, while achieving new progress in promoting high-quality development, new steps in building a new development pattern, new breakthroughs in promoting rural revitalization, and new achievements in promoting common prosperity. beautiful blueprint, and making serving high-quality development an important task for a strong educational province.

建设中国特色社会主义教育强国，必须以坚持党对教育事业的全面领导为根本保证，以立德树人为根本任务，以为党育人、为国育才为根本目标，以服务中华民族伟大复兴为重要使命。近年来，湖南省委省政府出台《关于加快建设教育强省的决定》等文件，以坚持党对教育事业的全面领导为根本保证，锚定“三高四新”美好蓝图，把服务高质量发展作为教育强省的重要任务。

It is necessary to calibrate the political attribute of talent cultivation. Whether we can cultivate builders and successors for socialism, and whether we can cultivate new generations capable of shouldering the heavy task of national rejuvenation—these are the questions of the era for building an education powerhouse, and also a major historical test. The fundamental task of fostering virtue and nurturing talent in the New Era is to strive to cultivate generation after generation of useful talents who support the leadership of the Communist Party of China and China’s socialist system, and who are determined to strive for socialism with Chinese characteristics for life.

要标定人才培养的政治属性。能不能培养出社会主义建设者和接班人，能不能培养出担负民族复兴重任的时代新人，这是建设教育强国的时代之问，也是历史大考。新时代落实立德树人的根本任务，就是要着力培养一代又一代拥护中国共产党领导和我国社会主义制度、立志为中国特色社会主义奋斗终身的有用人才。

Using the Strong Guiding Force of Ideological and Political Education to Make the Ideological Engine of the Project of Fostering Virtue and Nurturing Talent in the New Era More Powerful

以强大思政引领力让新时代立德树人工程思想引擎更强劲

The great power of thought is centrally embodied in its influence to conform to the times and grasp trends, its penetrating power to see through the essence and grasp the fundamentals, and its driving force to solve problems and guide practice.

思想的强大伟力，集中体现在顺应时代、把握趋势的影响力，洞察本质、抓住根本的穿透力，解决问题、指导实践的推动力。

Currently, the mutual agitation of ideological cultures and the mixture of good and bad social trends on a global scale have brought certain impacts on youth groups, whose ability to discern and analyze is relatively weak. Persisting in using the Party’s innovative theories to forge souls and educate people, integrating the latest achievements of adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times throughout the entire process of talent cultivation, continuously enhancing students’ political, ideological, theoretical, and emotional identification with Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and educating and guiding young people to remove ideological barriers, dispel ideological fog, clarify vague understandings, and stimulate spiritual motivation—these are the primary tasks for comprehensively advancing the project of fostering virtue and nurturing talent in the New Era.

当前世界范围内思想文化相互激荡、社会思潮良莠不齐，给鉴别能力和判断分析能力相对较弱的青少年群体带来一定影响。坚持用党的创新理论铸魂育人，把马克思主义中国化时代化最新成果贯穿人才培养全过程，不断增进学生对习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想的政治认同、思想认同、理论认同、情感认同，教育引导青少年清除思想观念障碍、拨开思想迷雾、澄清模糊认识、激发精神动力，是全面推进新时代立德树人工程的首要任务。

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC [2]2 The 18th National Congress of the CPC was held in 2012, marking the beginning of the New Era under Xi Jinping’s leadership., Hunan has upgraded the entire project of improving the ideological and moral quality of college students to a project for improving the quality of ideological and political work in universities, inheriting and promoting fine traditional Chinese culture, and fully leveraging the important role of cultural education. The provincial Party secretary and governor have taken the lead in giving ideological and political courses in universities, establishing eight types of innovation centers for ideological and political work, such as provincial-level “Grand Ideological and Political Courses” construction innovation centers and propaganda and ideological work innovation centers, to promote the deepening of reform and innovation in ideological and political courses. They have created the “I Am the Successor” [3]3 “ online grand ideological and political classroom, promoting the Internet, this “maximum variable,” to release “maximum positive energy.” In each of the province’s 14 cities and prefectures, a community for the integrated construction of ideological and political courses in universities, middle schools, and primary schools has been established, forming a new model of joint research, joint creation, joint teaching, and joint learning for ideological and political courses across these levels.

党的十八大以来，湖南将大学生思想道德素质提升工程整体升级为高校思想政治工作质量提升工程，传承弘扬中华优秀传统文化，充分发挥文化育人的重要作用。省委书记、省长带头深入高校讲思政课，成立省级“大思政课”建设创新中心、宣传思想工作创新中心等8类思想政治工作创新中心，推进思政课深化改革创新。打造“我是接班人”网络大思政课堂，推动互联网这个“最大变量”释放“最大正能量”。在全省14个市州各建立一个大中小学思政课一体化建设共同体，形成大中小学思政课共研、共创、共教、共学的新模式。

Using the Strong Guiding Force of Ideological and Political Education to Clarify the Value Pursuit of the Project of Fostering Virtue and Nurturing Talent in the New Era

以强大思政引领力为新时代立德树人工程明晰价值追求

Values determine the different life pursuits and mental states of young students. In a fast-paced, ever-changing modern society, the relationship between “academic achievement” and “worldly success” is complex. Contemporary students face more complicated growth problems, which can easily lead to an imbalance in value choices.

价值观决定着青少年学生不同的人生追求和精神状态。在快节奏、多变化的现代社会中，“学业的成就”与“世俗的成功”之间关系复杂，当代学生面临着更为复杂的成长问题，容易导致价值选择失衡。

Based on the New Era and the new journey, vigorously promoting and practicing the core socialist values, guiding young students to correctly handle the relationship between self-value and social value, to establish great aspirations of serving the country and strengthening the nation, and to become strivers who shoulder responsibility—these are the key core of forming a strong guiding force of ideological and political education. Using typical examples to lead the way and leveraging demonstrative effects has always been an important working method of our Party. In recent years, Hunan has vigorously promoted the education system to advocate for heroes, remember martyrs, and strive to be pioneers. It has deeply advanced the “Alumni Return to Hunan” initiative, intensified the selection and promotion of advanced typical cases of college students starting businesses in Hunan, and opened the “Struggle Youth” [4] autonomous grand ideological and political classroom. It has educated and guided the vast number of students to keep in mind the “great affairs of the nation” [5], effectively enhancing the youth’s “ambition, backbone, and confidence” [6], and making daring to struggle, being brave in struggle, and being good at struggle the brightest background of life ideals.

立足新时代新征程，大力弘扬和践行社会主义核心价值观，引导青少年学生正确处理好自我价值与社会价值的关系，立报国强国大志向、做挺膺担当奋斗者，是强大思政引领力形成的关键核心。让典型引路和发挥示范作用，历来是我们党重要的工作方法。近年来，湖南大力推动教育系统崇尚英雄、缅怀先烈、争做先锋，深入推进“校友回湘”，加大大学生在湘创业先进典型选树力度，开设“奋斗青春号”自主大思政课堂，教育引导广大学生胸怀“国之大者”，切实增强了青少年的“志气、骨气、底气”，将敢于奋斗、勇于奋斗、善于奋斗作为人生理想最亮丽的底色。

(Author: Xia Zhilun, Director of the Education Department of Hunan Province)

（作者：夏智伦，系湖南省教育厅厅长）

Online Editor: Huihui

网络编辑：慧慧