China to Scale Up High-level Education Opening Up

China's State Council has issued an outline plan for the development of the education sector during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), focusing on building a strong, globally competitive educational system to underpin the country's modernization drive.

By 2030, China will have essentially completed constructing a high-quality education system, establishing a society of lifelong learning and enhancing the influence, competitiveness, and voice of its education sector on the global stage.

A total of 23 key tasks have been laid out in five aspects: fostering virtue through education, strengthening education's supporting role for the development of science and technology and human resources, improving the quality of education as a kind of public service, building a higher-caliber teaching workforce, and scaling up high-level education opening up.

International exchanges and cooperation in basic research will be deepened while leading research universities will be supported to initiate or participate in international big science programs and projects. World-class science and engineering universities from overseas are encouraged to establish joint education programs in China, and international training programs for outstanding talents will be launched.

Chinese education brands with global influence will be built. Cooperative mechanisms with European and American countries will be developed and consolidated, while deepening collaboration with neighboring nations, countries participating in Belt and Road cooperation, and other Global South countries. The focus will be on sharing Chinese standards and solutions in areas such as vocational education, basic education, engineering education, artificial intelligence education, and teacher development.

The plan emphasizes active participation in and leadership of global education governance. Multilateral platforms including international organizations will be fully leveraged to advance cooperation with UNESCO and other international bodies, as well as multilateral frameworks such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

The plan also introduces the Global Impact Enhancement Plan for Chinese Education. Key measures to be taken abroad include establishing an elite engineer training program, science and technology backyards, and traditional Chinese medicine education centers, as well as establishing or upgrading approximately 20 Luban Workshops (Chinese vocational workshops.)

Additionally, demonstration zones for international education cooperation and exchange bases for Chinese and foreign youth will be set up. Major international conferences, hosted or co-hosted by China such as the World Digital Education Conference, the World Chinese Language Conference, and the World Vocational and Technical Education Development Conference, will continue.

Source: Science and Technology Daily