Promoting the Connotative Development of Ideological and Political Course Construction in Higher Education Institutions

General Secretary Xi Jinping, in his important instructions on the construction of ideological and political courses in schools, pointed out that we should explain principles thoroughly, penetratingly, and vividly, uphold fundamental principles and break new ground to promote the connotative development of ideological and political course construction, and continuously enhance the pertinence and appeal of ideological and political courses. This scientific thesis provides methodological guidance for the connotative development of ideological and political course construction in higher education institutions.

习近平总书记对学校思政课建设作出重要指示指出，把道理讲深讲透讲活，守正创新推动思政课建设内涵式发展，不断提高思政课的针对性和吸引力。这一科学论断为高校思政课建设内涵式发展提供了方法论指导。

Explaining Principles “Thoroughly” to Achieve Theoretical Depth

把道理“讲深”以实现理论性

Based on the logical requirements of the integrated construction of ideological and political education across primary, secondary, and higher education, university-level ideological and political courses focus on conducting theoretical study. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “The essence of ideological and political courses is to explain principles.” Explaining principles “thoroughly” means delving deeply into the essence of things, exploring the process of their formation and the objective laws of their development. Thus, it is evident that “explaining thoroughly” actually contains the requirement of “explaining accurately.”

基于大中小学思想政治教育一体化建设的逻辑要求，大学的思政课重在开展理论性学习。习近平总书记指出：“思政课的本质是讲道理。”把道理“讲深”就是要深入研究事物的本质，探究事物的形成过程及其发展的客观规律，可见，“讲深”其实蕴含着“讲准”的要求。

Explaining principles “thoroughly” first requires clarifying “what it is.” Textbooks are the most authoritative basis for teachers to explain principles, so ideological and political course teachers must intensively study textbooks to accurately grasp the content system, key points, and difficult points, and then reconstruct teaching content by combining students’ concerns about social hot topics and their learning patterns, thereby achieving the transformation from the textbook system to the teaching system. At the same time, according to the basic Marxist principle that “social being determines social consciousness,” the dominant ideological theory of the state will advance with the times as social practice continuously develops. Therefore, in the process of transforming the textbook system into the teaching system, ideological and political course teachers should promptly and accurately integrate the Party’s innovative theoretical armament and the remarkable achievements of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era into the course teaching system in an organic manner, continuously enhancing the ideological content and pertinence of ideological and political theory teaching in higher education institutions. Secondly, explaining principles “thoroughly” requires clarifying “why it is so.” Compared with the emphasis in secondary school ideological and political courses on rote memorization of “what it is,” university-level ideological and political courses should, using the methodology of unifying history and logic, clarify the deep-seated academic reasoning behind “what it is” — that is, “why it is so.” Only in this way can we continuously enhance university students’ theoretical thinking ability and theoretical critical ability, thereby achieving the high-level goals of university ideological and political course teaching. Therefore, on the one hand, ideological and political course teachers should deeply study the basic theories of Marxism and the theoretical achievements of adapting Marxism to the Chinese context, master the Marxist worldview and methodology, and use the Marxist worldview and methodology to analyze real social problems, thereby enhancing the depth of ideological and political course teaching. On the other hand, they should deeply study the relevant theories from other disciplines — such as history, culture, politics, economics, and international relations — that are involved in the textbook content, so as to enhance the breadth of ideological and political course teaching. To explain principles “thoroughly,” on the basis of clarifying “what it is” and “why it is so,” it is also necessary to clarify “how it is possible” based on practical logic. For example, the first ideological and political course that students take upon entering university, “Ideological Morality and Rule of Law,” is first and foremost a theoretical course. This requires teachers to explain clearly, regarding the key and difficult points of each chapter, the Marxist theoretical exposition of the issue in question. Secondly, all content in the “Ideological Morality and Rule of Law” course aims to solve China’s problems, so it should return to the process of China’s historical development to explain the historical development logic of the issue. Finally, based on practice and facing the future, it should guide students to learn to use laws to analyze the future development direction of the issue.

把道理“讲深”首先要讲清楚“是什么”。教材是教师讲道理最权威的依据，所以思政课教师要精耕教材以准确把握教材的内容体系与重点难点，然后结合学生关注的社会热点与学习规律重构教学内容，从而实现教材体系向教学体系转换。与此同时，按照马克思主义“社会存在决定社会意识”的基本原理，国家主导意识形态理论会随着社会实践的不断发展而与时俱进。因此，思政课教师在把教材体系转换为教学体系的过程中，应及时准确地将党的创新理论武装和新时代中国特色社会主义取得的举世瞩目成就有机融入课程教学体系，不断提高高校思想政治理论课教学的思想性和针对性。其次，把道理“讲深”要讲清楚“为什么”。相较于初高中阶段思政课侧重对“是什么”的硬性记忆，大学阶段的思政课更应该以历史与逻辑相统一思想为方法论讲清楚“是什么”背后“为什么”的深层次学理，只有这样才能不断提升大学生的理论思维能力与理论批判能力，从而达成大学思政课教学的高阶性目标。因此，思政课教师一方面要深入研究马克思主义基本理论和马克思主义中国化的理论成果，掌握马克思主义的世界观与方法论，并运用马克思主义世界观与方法论分析社会现实问题，从而增强思政课教学的深度；另一方面要深入研究教材内容所涉及的历史、文化、政治、经济、国际关系等其他学科的相关理论，以增强思政课教学的广度。要把道理“讲深”要在讲清楚“是什么”和“为什么”的基础上基于实践逻辑讲清楚“何以可能”。例如，学生进入大学后学习的第一门思政课“思想道德与法治”，首先是理论课，这就要求教师针对每章的重难点讲清楚马克思主义对于该问题的理论阐释；其次，“思想道德与法治”课所有内容都以解决中国问题为宗旨，因此应回归到中国历史发展的过程阐释该问题的历史发展逻辑；最后，立足实践、面向未来，引导学生学会运用规律分析该问题未来的发展方向。

Explaining Principles “Penetratingly” to Achieve Thoroughness

把道理“讲透”以实现彻底性

“Explaining thoroughly” is the foundation of “explaining penetratingly.” Explaining principles “penetratingly” means using thorough theory to resolve students’ doubts, because “theory can convince the masses once it seizes them; and it seizes the masses once it is thorough.” [1]1 This is a quotation from Marx’s *A Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right: Introduction* (1844).

“讲深”是“讲透”的基础，把道理“讲透”就是要以透彻的理论解答学生的疑惑，因为“理论只要说服人，就能掌握群众；而理论只要彻底，就能说服人”。

First, explaining principles “penetratingly” requires “adapting to events to transform,” so as to enhance the pertinence of ideological and political course teaching in higher education institutions. Teachers of ideological and political courses in higher education institutions should integrate social practice, guide university students to pay timely attention to family affairs, national affairs, and world affairs, and more importantly, use Marxist theory to penetratingly analyze the “principles” behind the “events,” enabling students to experience the truth power of Marxism, thereby enhancing university students’ identification with Marxism. Secondly, explaining principles “penetratingly” requires “advancing with the times to progress,” so as to enhance the appeal of ideological and political course teaching in higher education institutions. Marx said: “Every era always has its own problems, and the philosophy of every era must focus on and reflect on the major problems of that historical period.” On the new journey of the New Era, facing new situations and new tasks, teachers of ideological and political courses in higher education institutions should promptly grasp the personality traits and growth patterns of university students in the New Era. From the perspective of unifying the state’s need to cultivate qualified builders and successors for socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era with the need for university students to grow into new-era figures, they should use the basic Marxist stance, viewpoint, and method to penetratingly respond to and resolve the various ideological confusions and practical problems encountered by university students in the process of growing and maturing, thereby enhancing university students’ sense of gain from ideological and political course teaching. Finally, explaining principles “penetratingly” requires “innovating according to circumstances to be new,” so as to highlight the innovativeness of ideological and political course teaching in higher education institutions. The *Records of the Grand Historian* states: “Those skilled in warfare guide the momentum and turn it to their advantage.” [2]2 This is a classical allusion from the *Records of the Grand Historian* (Shiji), a foundational Chinese historical text by Sima Qian (c. 145–86 BCE). The phrase means to guide a situation in a favorable direction by leveraging existing momentum. Today, the changes unseen in a century are accelerating, the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered a critical period, and a new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation is deepening. Teachers of ideological and political courses in higher education institutions should use thorough theory to clearly explain the principle that “the reason why the Communist Party of China can succeed and why socialism with Chinese characteristics works is, in the final analysis, because Marxism works, and because Marxism adapted to the Chinese context and the needs of the times works,” thereby enhancing university students’ identification with the Communist Party of China and the socialist system with Chinese characteristics.

首先，把道理“讲透”要“因事而化”，以增强高校思政课教学的针对性。高校思政课教师应融合社会实践，引导大学生及时关注家事、国事、天下事，更要运用马克思主义理论透彻分析“事”背后的“理”，让学生体会马克思主义的真理力量，进而增进大学生对马克思主义的认同。其次，把道理“讲透”要“因时而进”，以提升高校思政课教学的吸引力。马克思说：“每个时代总有属于它自己的问题，每个时代的哲学都要关注和思考那个历史时期重大的问题。”新时代新征程，面临新形势新任务，高校思政课教师要及时掌握新时代大学生的性格特点与成长规律，从国家培养新时代社会主义合格建设者和接班人的需求与大学生成长为时代新人的需求相统一的视角，用马克思主义基本立场、观点、方法透彻回应、解答大学生成长成才过程中遇到的各种思想困惑和现实问题，进而提升大学生对思政课教学的获得感。最后，把道理“讲透”要“因势而新”，以彰显高校思政课教学的创新性。《史记》有云：“善战者因其势而利导之。”当今，世界百年未有之大变局加速演进，中华民族伟大复兴进入关键时期，新一轮科技革命和产业变革深入发展，高校思政课教师要用透彻的理论讲清楚“中国共产党为什么能，中国特色社会主义为什么好，归根到底是马克思主义行，是中国化时代化的马克思主义行”的道理，提高大学生对中国共产党和中国特色社会主义制度的认同。

Explaining Principles “Vividly” to Achieve Liveliness

把道理“讲活”以实现鲜活性

“Explaining vividly” is based on “explaining thoroughly” and “explaining penetratingly.” Explaining principles “vividly” means promoting the popularization and life-oriented transformation of Marxist theory, just as Lenin said: “The highest degree of Marxism equals the highest degree of popularization and simplicity.” [3]3 This is a paraphrase of a statement by Vladimir Lenin, emphasizing the need to make Marxism accessible to the masses. According to the Marxist theory of human essence, humans are “real, concrete individuals.” Explaining principles “vividly” should therefore take university students — “real, concrete individuals” — as the starting point, return to the real-life world of university students to promote the connotative development of ideological and political theory course construction in higher education institutions, and enable university students to grow into comprehensively developed individuals.

“讲活”以“讲深”和“讲透”为基础，把道理“讲活”就是要推动马克思主义理论的通俗化与生活化，正如列宁所言：“最高限度的马克思主义等于最高限度的通俗和简单明了。”依据马克思主义关于人的本质理论，人是“现实的具体的人”，把道理“讲活”就应该以大学生——“现实的具体的人”为出发点，回到大学生的现实生活世界来推动高校思想政治理论课建设内涵式发展，使大学生成长为全面发展的人。

First, explaining principles “vividly” requires excavating case materials from the real-life world of university students. Marx pointed out: “The ideal is nothing else than the material world reflected by the human mind and translated into forms of thought.” [4]4 This is a quotation from Marx’s afterword to the second German edition of *Capital*, Volume I (1873). This reveals that the formation of theory begins with humans’ perceptual knowledge of the objective world, and conversely, in the process of learning theory, humans naturally have an affinity for perceptual knowledge. Therefore, teachers of ideological and political courses should seek daily life materials from the real-life world of university students, integrate the essence of Marxist thought with the value concepts that university students use daily without conscious awareness, allowing Marxism to enter the daily life of university students and thereby become a value they use daily without conscious awareness. Secondly, explaining principles “vividly” requires transforming textbook language and academic language into the everyday language of university students. Since ideological and political course teaching should return to the daily life of university students, the teaching language should also shift from abstract textbook language and academic language to the everyday language of university students, making Marx speak everyday language and speak Chinese, thereby enhancing the appeal of ideological and political course teaching. This discourse expression, based on life narratives, fundamentally follows the law of development from perceptual knowledge to rational knowledge on the basis of practice. Finally, explaining principles “vividly” requires keeping pace with the rapid development of network information technology and innovating the network expression methods of mainstream discourse. Historical materialism holds that social being determines social consciousness. The rapid development of internet technology has profoundly changed people’s lifestyles and ways of thinking, and has also given rise to the emergence of network discourse. As typical “digital media natives,” post-2000s university students have a natural affinity for the internet. Therefore, teachers of ideological and political courses should keep pace with the times, understand the cognitive characteristics and learning patterns of university students in the New Era, become familiar with network language, deeply explore the characteristics and advantages of the network discourse system, promote the synergistic integration of the mainstream discourse system and the network discourse system, and enhance the infectiousness of ideological and political course teaching in higher education institutions.

首先，把道理“讲活”要从大学生的现实生活世界挖掘案例素材。马克思指出：“观念的东西不外是移入人的头脑并在人的头脑中改造过的物质的东西而已。”这揭示出，理论的形成始于人对客观世界的感性认识，反过来，人在学习理论的过程中自然会对感性认识具有亲近性。因此，思政课教师要从大学生的现实生活世界中寻找日常生活素材，把马克思主义思想精髓同大学生日用而不觉的价值观念融通起来，让马克思主义进入大学生的日常生活，进而成为大学生日用而不觉的价值观。其次，把道理“讲活”要把教材语言、学术语言转换成大学生的日常生活用语。既然思政课教学要回归大学生的日常生活，那么教学语言也应该由抽象的教材语言和学术语言向大学生的日常生活语言转变，让马克思说家常话，说中国话，从而增强思政课教学的吸引力。这种以生活叙事为基础的话语表达从根本上遵循了实践基础上从感性认识上升到理性认识的发展规律。最后，把道理“讲活”要紧跟网络信息技术的快速发展，创新主流话语的网络表达方式。唯物史观认为，社会存在决定社会意识，互联网技术的快速发展深刻改变了人的生活方式和思维方式，也催生了网络话语的产生。作为典型“数媒土著”的“00后”大学生对网络有着天然的亲和力，所以思政课教师应与时俱进，了解新时代大学生的认知特点和学习规律，熟悉网络语言，深入挖掘网络话语体系的特点和优势，推动主流话语体系与网络话语体系的协同融合，增强高校思政课教学的感染力。

(The author is a lecturer at the School of Marxism, Tianjin University of Technology and Education.)

（作者系天津职业技术师范大学马克思主义学院讲师）

Online editor: Tongxin

网络编辑：同心