Xu Xianchun: Core Essentials, Theoretical Characteristics, and Practical Requirements of Xi Jinping's Important Expositions on Coordinated Development of Education, Science and Technology, and Talent
Education, technology, and talent [1] constitute the foundational and strategic pillars of Chinese-path modernization. The report to the 20th CPC National Congress dedicated a specific chapter to these themes, providing a systemic layout that deepened and expanded the overall framework of the Party and state’s work in the New Era. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee further made strategic arrangements for the integrated reform of systems and mechanisms in education, technology, and talent, unifying them under the construction of systems and mechanisms that support comprehensive innovation. This fully reflects the high degree of importance and profound reflection that the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has placed on coordinating these three elements. An in-depth study, comprehension, research, and interpretation of Xi Jinping’s important expositions on coordinating education, technology, and talent will help effectively strengthen our political, ideological, and active consciousness in their implementation.
I. The Core Essence of Xi Jinping’s Important Expositions on Coordinating Education, Technology, and Talent
Since the 18th CPC National Congress, Xi Jinping has engaged in unremitting exploration regarding the coordination of education, technology, and talent, putting forward a series of new ideas, viewpoints, and judgments characterized by the spirit of the times and Chinese features. These important expositions profoundly answer the fundamental questions of why and how to coordinate education, technology, and talent in the New Era, deepening our understanding of the laws governing their development. In terms of their core essence, they are primarily manifested in the following ten aspects:
First, adhering to "strengthening the centralized and unified leadership of the Party," which defines the fundamental guarantee for coordinating education, technology, and talent in the New Era. The most essential characteristic of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the leadership of the Communist Party of China; the greatest advantage of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the leadership of the Communist Party of China. Xi Jinping has emphasized the need to "maintain the Party's comprehensive leadership over the cause of education," firmly grasping the Party’s right to lead educational work so that the field of education becomes a strong fortress for upholding Party leadership. He stressed "maintaining the Party's comprehensive leadership over the cause of science and technology," improving the leadership system for technological work to ensure it always advances in the right direction. He also emphasized "maintaining the Party's comprehensive leadership over talent work," strengthening political guidance for talent, supporting and helping talent in all aspects, and doing everything possible to cultivate and achieve the potential of talent. These important expositions point to the crux and lifeblood of coordinating the three elements, emphasizing the extreme importance of the Party's centralized and unified leadership, thereby making the political guarantee for this coordination more firm and powerful.
Second, adhering to "taking education, technology, and talent as the foundational and strategic pillars for building a modern socialist country in all respects," which defines the strategic position of this coordination in the New Era. Standing at the height of the great cause of building a strong country and national rejuvenation, Xi Jinping has profoundly answered the question of the vital status and major role of education, technology, and talent in the overall work of the Party and the state. Regarding the importance of educational development, he noted: "Education is a matter of great significance for the country and the Party." Regarding the importance of technological innovation, he noted: "Maintain the core position of innovation in the overall landscape of China’s modernization drive." Regarding the importance of talent cultivation, he noted: "In the final analysis, competition in comprehensive national strength is a competition for talent." Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that "we must insist that technology is the primary productive force, talent is the primary resource, and innovation is the primary driver," and "insist on the priority development of education, self-reliance and strength in science and technology, and the cultivation of talent as the lead driver." He specifically pointed out: "Promoting Chinese-path modernization is inseparable from the strategic support of technology, education, and talent." These important expositions clarify the internal connection between education, technology, and talent and Chinese-path modernization, marking a new height for these sectors in the New Era and making their strategic position more prominent.
Third, adhering to the "Four Orientations"—namely, "facing the frontiers of world science and technology, facing the main economic battlefield, facing the major needs of the country, and facing the life and health of the people"—which defines the value orientation for coordinating these elements in the New Era. This is the starting point and goal of China's cause in education, technology, and talent, vividly manifesting the Party’s fundamental purpose and its original aspiration and founding mission. When arranging educational work, Xi Jinping pointed out the need to "adhere to a people-centered approach to developing education," "guided by technological development and national strategic needs," and "enhancing education’s ability to serve economic and social development." In discussing technological innovation, he pointed out the need to "adhere to the strategic guidance of the 'Four Orientations'" and to "strengthen the deployment of the entire chain and the layout across all fields of technological innovation, comprehensively enhancing technological strength and innovation capabilities." When summarizing experience in talent work, he noted that the "Four Orientations" are "the target and direction for doing talent work well," emphasizing that "we must support and encourage the vast number of scientists and technology workers to keep up with the global trends of technological development, benchmark against first-class levels, and respond to the urgent and long-term needs of national development" to continuously advance into the breadth and depth of science and technology. These important expositions clarify the major question of the direction in which education, technology, and talent should strive, making the value orientation of their coordination more distinct.
Fourth, adhering to "combining and coordinating the building of a leading country in education, a leading country in technology, and a leading country in talent as an integrated whole," which defines the goals and tasks of this coordination in the New Era. Based on the grand vision of advancing socialist modernization in stages and appropriately adjusting the goals and steps of our struggle, our Party formulated a "two-step" strategic arrangement for comprehensively building a great modern socialist country, explicitly including the completion of a leading country in education, technology, and talent within the overall goal of basically achieving socialist modernization by 2035. Xi Jinping pointed out: "The leading country in education we want to build is a socialist leading country in education with Chinese characteristics. It must take the Party's comprehensive leadership over education as the fundamental guarantee, the cultivation of virtue and people [2] as the fundamental task, the education of people for the Party and talent for the country as the fundamental goal, the service of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation as an important mission, the modernization of educational concepts, systems, structures, content, methods, and governance as the basic path, and the support and guidance of Chinese-path modernization as the core function, ultimately resulting in education that satisfies the people." He further noted: "The leading country in technology we want to build should possess world-leading technological strength and innovation capabilities, supporting the overall leap in economic strength, national defense strength, and comprehensive national strength, increasing human well-being, and promoting global development." Based on the current development of China's talent work, he clearly proposed the goal of "accelerating the construction of world-important talent centers and innovation hubs." Xi Jinping specifically emphasized: "Building a leading country in education, technology, and talent possesses internal consistency and mutual support; they must be combined organically and advanced in a coordinated manner to create a multiplier effect for promoting high-quality development." These important expositions clarify the internal relationship and functional mechanisms of building these three types of "leading countries," making the goals clearer and the requirements more specific.
Fifth, adhering to "achieving the effective linkage of the strategy for invigorating the country through science and education, the strategy on developing a quality workforce [3], and the innovation-driven development strategy," which defines the strategic basis for coordinating these elements in the New Era. As early as May 1995, the Party and the state made the major decision to implement the strategy for invigorating the country through science and education. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, Xi Jinping has noted many times: "China will firmly implement the strategy for invigorating the country through science and education, always placing education in a strategic position of priority development, continuously increasing investment, and striving to develop education for all and life-long education to build a learning society." Regarding technological innovation, he proposed: "We must deeply implement the innovation-driven development strategy, promoting innovation in technology, industry, enterprise, markets, products, business formats, and management, so as to accelerate the formation of an economic system and development model led and supported primarily by innovation." Regarding talent cultivation, he noted: "Maintain the strategic position of talent-led development" and "deeply implement the strategy on developing a quality workforce in the New Era." He specifically emphasized: "To base ourselves on the new stage of development, implement the new development philosophy, construct a new development pattern, and promote high-quality development, we must deeply implement the strategy for invigorating the country through science and education, the strategy on developing a quality workforce, and the innovation-driven development strategy." These important expositions reflect top-level design and overall deployment at the strategic level, making the strategic measures for this coordination more scientific and the support more solid.
Sixth, adhering to "following the requirements for developing new quality productive forces and smoothing the virtuous cycle of education, technology, and talent," which defines the key link for coordination in the New Era. New quality productive forces are characterized by high technology, high efficiency, and high quality; they represent an advanced productivity state where innovation plays the leading role and which conforms to the new development philosophy. Xi Jinping pointed out that new quality productive forces "are birthed by revolutionary technological breakthroughs, the innovative allocation of factors of production, and deep industrial transformation and upgrading; they take the leap in the optimization and combination of laborers, means of labor, and objects of labor as their basic connotation, and the substantial increase in total factor productivity as their core indicator. Their hallmark is innovation, their key lies in high quality, and their essence is advanced productivity." He emphasized the need to develop new quality productive forces according to local conditions, focusing on clearing the bottlenecks and obstacles that constrain their development and promoting a virtuous cycle between education, technology, and talent. These important expositions clarify the inherent requirements and key focal points for the high-quality development of these three sectors, making the main direction of their coordination more prominent and the work focus more concentrated.
Seventh, adhering to "deepening the comprehensive reform of education, technology, and talent," which defines the fundamental path for coordination in the New Era. Reform is the key to liberating and developing social productive forces and the fundamental driving force for national development. Xi Jinping emphasized the need to deepen educational reform and innovation, "cooperatively promoting the reform of cultivation methods, schooling models, management systems, and security mechanisms, resolutely breaking down all ideological barriers and institutional defects that restrict the high-quality development of education, and comprehensively improving the modernization of the educational governance system and governance capacity." Regarding the reform of the technological system, he called for "clearing the channels from technological strength to industrial, economic, and national strength, releasing innovation vitality through reform, accelerating the establishment and improvement of a national innovation system, and allowing all sources of innovation to flow fully." Regarding the reform of the talent development system and mechanism, he noted the need to "accelerate the formation of a cultivation mechanism conducive to the growth of talent, a usage mechanism conducive to making the best use of talent, an incentive mechanism conducive to talent displaying their skills, and a competitive mechanism conducive to talent standing out." Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the need to "deepen the integrated reform of systems and mechanisms for education, technology, and talent, and improve the collaborative cultivation mechanism between science and education." These important expositions reveal the necessary path for the reform and development of these sectors, making the momentum for their coordination stronger and their vitality more explosive.
Eighth, adhering to "forming a basic system that supports comprehensive innovation," which defines the institutional guarantee for coordination in the New Era. Institutional issues are more fundamental, global, stable, and long-term. Xi Jinping pointed out the need to "highlight the main line of institutional construction and continuously improve the institutional framework." On a series of important occasions, he has repeatedly emphasized the need to establish and improve a scientific evaluation system, refine incentive systems such as technological awards, income distribution, and the granting of rights to achievements, strengthen the legal protection of intellectual property rights, and ensure the coordinated development of policies and systems to create a favorable innovation ecosystem. He noted: "We must stay close to the goal of building a leading country in education, deepen the reform of educational evaluation in the New Era, and construct an educational evaluation system that involves diverse subjects, conforms to China's realities, and possesses world-class levels." "We must reform the technological evaluation system, establishing a classified evaluation system oriented toward the quality, contribution, and performance of technological innovation, and correctly evaluate the scientific, technical, economic, social, and cultural value of technological innovation results." "We must innovate the talent evaluation mechanism, establishing and improving a technological talent evaluation system oriented toward innovation capacity, quality, and contribution, and forming and implementing an evaluation system conducive to technological talent engaging in dedicated research and innovation." He specifically emphasized: "We must take the reform of the salary distribution system for university teachers and researchers as an important handle [4] for coordinating the development of education, technology, and talent, gradually establishing a salary system that stimulates innovation vitality, is oriented toward the value of knowledge, is regulated and orderly in management, and balances security with incentives." These important expositions clarify the principles and focus of institutional building, making the institutional guarantee for this coordination more solid.
Ninth, upholding the "deep practice of the concept of building a community with a shared future for humanity" defines the open landscape for coordinating education, science and technology, and talent in the New Era. In today's world, various innovation elements are interdependent and mutually reinforcing; the globalization of innovation has become an unstoppable trend. Xi Jinping has consistently operated from the strategic height of building a community with a shared future for humanity, repeatedly emphasizing the strengthening of international cooperation in education, science and technology, and talent. Regarding education, he asserts that "we must remain unshakable in expanding the opening up of education to the outside world," and "improve the strategy for educational opening, coordinating the two major tasks of 'bringing in' and 'going out' [5], effectively utilizing world-class educational resources and innovation elements to make our country an important global education center with powerful influence." Regarding science and technology, we must "actively integrate into the global innovation network, deeply participate in global science and technology governance, and work hand-in-hand with all countries to create an open, fair, just, and non-discriminatory environment for international scientific and technological development, jointly addressing global challenges such as climate change, food security, and energy security." Regarding talent, we must "persist in gathering the world's brightest minds and putting them to use," "implement more proactive, open, and effective talent recruitment policies," and "increase the intensity of opening up talent to the outside world." These important expositions clarify the importance and necessity of strengthening international cooperation across these three fields, making the open character of their coordination even more distinct.
Tenth, "vigorously promoting the spirit of the educator," "vigorously promoting the spirit of the scientist," and "cultivating a culture of innovation" define the spiritual guidance for coordinating education, science and technology, and talent in the New Era. Engaging in innovation and creation requires not only material guarantees but, more importantly, spiritual incentives. The spirit of the educator, the spirit of the scientist, and the spirit of innovation are precious spiritual assets accumulated—and unique spiritual temperaments forged—through our country’s practical work in education, technology, and talent. Xi Jinping, integrating the developments of the times, has profoundly elucidated the contemporary connotations of these spirits. He noted: "We must implement the action of 'casting the soul and strengthening the teacher' through the educator spirit, and strengthen the construction of professional ethics and conduct among teachers." He has repeatedly emphasized the need to promote the spirit of the scientist, strengthen the construction of work styles and academic integrity, and bravely scale the heights of world science and technology. He particularly proposed: "Persist in cultivating a culture of innovation, inherit the innovative genes of fine traditional Chinese culture, and create a favorable environment that encourages exploration and tolerates failure, making the reverence for science and the pursuit of innovation a widespread practice throughout society." These important expositions reveal the role of the educator spirit, the scientist spirit, and the innovation culture as ideological guides and spiritual incentives, raising the spiritual power of coordinating the three to new heights.
In sum, the ten aspects mentioned above profoundly elaborate on a series of theoretical and practical issues concerning the fundamental guarantee, strategic status, value orientation, goals and tasks, strategic basis, key links, fundamental paths, institutional guarantees, open landscape, and spiritual guidance for coordinating education, science and technology, and talent in the New Era. They clarify the basic paths and major measures for coordinating the three, possessing strong political, ideological, instructional, and practical character. Xi Jinping’s important expositions on coordinating education, science and technology, and talent are an organic component of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, serving as the fundamental compliance and action guide for the development of these undertakings in the New Era.
II. The Theoretical Characteristics of Xi Jinping’s Important Expositions on the Coordination of Education, Science and Technology, and Talent
Xi Jinping’s important expositions on the coordination of education, science and technology, and talent are a major achievement of combining the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s specific realities and fine traditional Chinese culture [6]. They are both a continuous lineage and an expansion of the theoretical achievements regarding education, science and technology, and talent formed by our Party through long-term exploration, demonstrating clear and prominent theoretical characteristics.
First, deep theoretical origins. Xi Jinping’s important expositions on coordinating education, science and technology, and talent possess deep roots in Chinese civilization. The Chinese nation has always valued education, regarding it as a major matter of state governance and national stability. "Revering education and encouraging learning is the great foundation of the state; promoting the virtuous and nurturing talent is the primary task of governance" [7]. During the Western Zhou period, the "official schools" required students to master the "Six Arts" (ritual, music, archery, charioteering, calligraphy, and mathematics), which in modern terms means emphasizing both knowledge and skills, as well as the humanities and sciences. Intellectual concepts in fine traditional Chinese culture—such as benevolence, people as the foundation, integrity, justice, harmony, and "Great Unity" (大同, dàtóng)—have been core contents of education throughout various dynasties. The custom of "respecting teachers and valuing education" is deeply rooted in the spiritual world of the Chinese nation, and the concepts of "teaching according to the student’s ability" and "teaching and learning benefiting each other" have been passed down for generations. Ancient Chinese science and technology led the world for a long time, with inventions symbolized by the "Four Great Inventions" making significant contributions to human civilization. Our ancestors "investigated the boundary between heaven and man and examined the nature of things to attain knowledge" [8], creating abundant results in astronomy, mathematics, medicine, and agronomy, manifesting an excellent tradition of revering science and seeking practical application. The Chinese nation has always emphasized "nurturing talent and creating scholars," believing that "when a state has many virtuous and capable scholars, its governance will be robust," leaving behind many anecdotes and allusions about recommending and employing the virtuous. Since ancient times, China has emphasized that "establishing virtue comes first" and "self-cultivation is the foundation," advocating that through "preaching the Way, imparting knowledge, and resolving doubts" and "teaching through tasks while illustrating through virtue," one leads others to the Great Way and awakens Great Wisdom, enabling them to become "pillars of the state." These traditional ideas provide rich historical and cultural nourishment for our Party to promote the development of education, science and technology, and talent.
Marxist theories of education, science and technology, and talent provide ideological guidance for our Party’s exploration and practice. The basic framework of Marxist educational theory was established by the classical writers’ views that the essential attribute of education is its social nature (and its class nature in class societies); that comprehensive education should promote the free and comprehensive development of the individual; and that the combination of education with productive labor is the only method for producing well-rounded individuals. Classical Marxist writers attached great importance to the role of science and technology, regarding science as "a historically dynamic and revolutionary force" and noting that "productive forces also include science." Aiming for human liberation and comprehensive development, they pointed out that human capacity is the public display of human essential power, proposed that "everyone should indisputably have the right to fully develop their talents," emphasized that humans are the most active factor in the productive forces, and believed that popular management of the state would only become possible once a large number of qualified professional and technical personnel were trained. These theoretical perspectives provide the "living source water" [9] for our Party’s advancement of these undertakings.
During various historical periods of the Chinese revolution, construction, and reform, our Party has consistently attached great importance to and promoted work in education, science and technology, and talent through unremitting exploration. Mao Zedong proposed that education must be combined with social practice and labor, noting that "the battle for science and technology must be fought, and it must be fought well," and emphasizing that "the proletariat cannot build socialism without its own massive technical and theoretical contingents." Deng Xiaoping proposed that "education should face modernization, the world, and the future," and emphasized "respecting knowledge and respecting talent." Jiang Zemin led the formulation and implementation of the strategy of "rejuvenating the country through science and education" (科教兴国), emphasized promoting quality-oriented education, noted that "human resources are the primary resource," proposed that science and technology are "the concentrated expression and primary symbol of advanced productive forces," and launched the construction of the national innovation system. Hu Jintao pointed out that "cultivating virtue and nurturing people" (立德树人) is the fundamental task of education with Chinese characteristics, emphasized that the development of education must adhere to a people-centered approach, formulated the grand goal of implementing the innovation-driven development strategy and building an innovative country, and proposed adhering to a scientific outlook on talent while vigorously implementing the strategy of strengthening the nation through talent. These ideas provide the most direct ideological sources for Xi Jinping’s coordination of these fields.
Second, a solid foundation in practice. In today's world, the "changes unseen in a century" are accelerating in an all-around and deep-seated manner. Changes in the world, the times, and history are unfolding in unprecedented ways, with intensifying competition and maneuvering between major powers and frequent local conflicts and turbulence; the world has entered a new period of upheaval and transformation. A new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation is developing deeply; industrial intelligence, integration, and "greenification" are in the ascendant; and global industrial and supply chains are undergoing profound adjustments. Suppression and containment of China by the United States and Western countries continue to escalate, as they engage in tactics like "building walls," "decoupling," and "severing chains," generalize the concept of national security, implement long-arm jurisdiction, and restrict technological and cultural exchanges by any means necessary. China’s development has entered a period where strategic opportunities coexist with risks and challenges, and uncertain, unpredictable factors are increasing.
From the perspective of the domestic situation, as socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered the New Era, the principal contradiction in Chinese society has changed. The people’s longing for a better life has become stronger, with expectations for more equitable and higher-quality education, more flexible and full employment, more stable and abundant income, science and technology that better benefits the people's livelihood, and a more stable and orderly society where everyone can display their skills and find their proper place. China is at a critical period for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and the role and status of education, science and technology, and talent within the overall work of the Party and the state have become more prominent and important. At the same time, problems of unbalanced and inadequate development remain salient: economic quality and efficiency are not yet high enough, technological innovation capacity is not yet strong enough, there are weak links in the high-quality education system, and the cultivation of high-quality talent has become more urgent. China’s historical position, socioeconomic conditions, and the practice of work in education, science and technology, and talent have placed new and higher requirements on their coordination.
Facing a complex domestic and international environment, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has placed education, science and technology, and talent in a more central position within the overall cause of the Party and the state, launching a series of major measures with global and forward-looking significance and carrying out foundational work of a pioneering nature. In education, the Party Central Committee made the major decision to accelerate educational modernization and build a leading country in education, unswervingly implementing the strategy of rejuvenating the country through science and education, adhering to "cultivating virtue and nurturing people," strengthening ideological and political work in schools, and vigorously promoting comprehensive reform in the field of education. China has built the world's largest education system, and the overall level of educational modernization has entered the upper-middle ranks of countries globally. In science and technology, the Party Central Committee adheres to science and technology as the primary driving force for development, deeply implements the innovation-driven development strategy, proposes the strategic task of accelerating the construction of an innovative country, focuses on promoting high-level scientific and technological self-reliance, and continues to deepen the reform of the scientific and technological system, driving China's scientific endeavors to achieve historical successes and undergo historical transformations. In talent, the Party Central Committee made the major assessment that talent is a strategic resource for achieving national rejuvenation and winning the initiative in international competition. It made major deployments for the all-around cultivation, introduction, and use of talent, adhered to the strategic position of talent-led development, accelerated the construction of national strategic talent forces, deepened the reform of talent development systems and mechanisms, and focused on creating an environment that identifies, loves, respects, and utilizes talent. China’s talent work now stands at a new historical starting point. Xi Jinping’s important expositions on the coordination of education, science and technology, and talent were formed during this magnificent and great process; they are original theoretical achievements born of the requirements of the times and practical development, and they represent the scientific summary and theoretical sublimation of fresh experience in the work of the New Era.
Third, a rigorous internal logic. The ten "upholds" of Xi Jinping’s important expositions on coordinating education, science and technology, and talent constitute its "four beams and eight pillars" [10]. Each "uphold" has its own positioning and attributes, playing a unique role within the entire system. Each contains a series of closely linked and interconnected ideological viewpoints. They work together and influence each other to form an organically unified theoretical system. We can understand the internal logic of Xi Jinping’s important expositions from three levels.
The first through third "upholds" define the nature and direction of the coordination from the height of political leadership. These three hold a commanding and overarching position within the expositions, possessing fundamental, decisive, and global instructional significance. They must not be abandoned, deviated from, or violated for a moment; otherwise, the consequences would be catastrophic. Certain Western countries’ schemes to divide and "Westernize" China use the denial of the CPC's leadership, the disparagement of the socialist system with Chinese characteristics, and the smearing of the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics as their most threatening habitual means, in a vain attempt to disrupt our thinking. It is precisely from the strategic height of the long-term stability of the Party and the state that Xi Jinping first emphasizes firmly grasping the correct political direction. Whether this great task of coordination can be handled well depends most crucially on whether the political guarantee is strong and whether the direction is correct. Specifically, this means adhering to the fundamental guarantee of the Party's centralized and unified leadership, adhering to the basic and strategic supporting role of education, science and technology, and talent, and adhering to the value orientation of the "Four Facings" [11]. These three "upholds" are essentially the overall requirements placed on this work by the great cause of building a strong country and national rejuvenation; they are the overarching principles that define and ensure the forward direction of the coordination.
The fourth through seventh "maintaining" points [12] are deployed sequentially from the dimension of operational layout, centering on the key tasks of coordinating education, science and technology, and talent. In the New Era, the overarching goal of coordinating the development of education, science and technology, and talent is to organically combine and integrally promote the construction of a leading country in education, a leading country in science and technology, and a leading country in talent. This overarching goal serves to "grasp the lead to deploy the net" [13]; all aspects of work in the fields of education, science and technology, and talent must be carried out under, advanced toward, and strengthened around this objective. The strategy for invigorating the country through science and education, the strategy on developing a quality workforce [14], and the innovation-driven development strategy define the strategic measures for building these three types of leading powers. These three major strategies constitute the "boats and bridges" [15] for crossing the river; coordinating their implementation defines the strategic base point for their synthesis and points toward the methods and paths for their effective linkage. The principle that "developing new quality productive forces is an intrinsic requirement and an important focus for promoting high-quality development" reflects that, in terms of coordinating the three, we must smooth the virtuous cycle between education, science and technology, and talent according to the developmental requirements of new quality productive forces. This clarifies the key links of this coordination from the brand-new perspective of new quality productive forces. To advance this coordination, we must firmly grasp the core element of innovation, focus on new quality productive forces, and take the accelerated development of these forces as a vital support. Further comprehensively deepening reform is both a practical continuation of the comprehensive deepening of reform since the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee and a new chapter of the times for advancing Chinese-path modernization on the new journey. Deepening the integrated reform of education, science and technology, and talent is a requirement of the times posed by further comprehensively deepening reform; its purpose is to drive development through reform and innovation, resolutely breaking down all outdated ideas and institutional defects to provide a powerful impetus for coordination.
The eighth through tenth "maintaining" points reinforce the guarantee conditions and spiritual power for coordinating education, science and technology, and talent from the perspective of creating a favorable ecosystem. Institutional competition is a major aspect of competition in comprehensive national strength, and institutional advantage is a vital edge for a country to gain strategic initiative. To promote this coordination, we must take institutional building as the main thread, reinforcing institutional guarantees according to the principle of "combining breaking and establishing, and establishing before breaking." We must accelerate the formation of fundamental systems that support comprehensive innovation, thereby better transforming institutional advantages into governance efficacy. China’s work in education, science and technology, and talent does not exist in isolation from the world. Faced with a new round of opening up and the continuous increase of external instability and uncertainty, we must accelerate high-level opening up, enhance our capacity for self-development through openness, and promote the building of a community with a shared future for humanity through open cooperation, ensuring that innovation results benefit people of all nations. Actively participating in global governance of education, science, and talent and promoting a new pattern of all-dimensional, multi-tiered, and diversified international cooperation essentially creates favorable external conditions for the coordination of these three fields. The cause of innovation breeds an innovative spirit and culture, which in turn lead the cause of innovation. Promoting the spirit of educators and scientists and nurturing a culture of innovation aims to create a dense atmosphere of innovation throughout society, providing proactive spiritual strength and ideological guidance for creation, thereby pooling the majestic force to build a leading country in education, science and technology, and talent.
Fourth, scientific ideological methods. Xi Jinping’s important expositions on coordinating education, science and technology, and talent contain not only theoretical innovations and practical layouts but also scientific ideological methods. These have greatly expanded the breadth and depth of the Party’s understanding of this coordination in the New Era, demonstrating immense power of truth.
First is a resilient strategic focus. Xi Jinping has coordinated the strategic overall situation of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the world's profound changes unseen in a century. He has gained deep insight into domestic and international development trends, scientifically grasped the opportunities and challenges facing education, science and technology, and talent, and explored the internal laws of their coordination with great historical initiative, immense political courage, and a strong sense of mission. This reflects the strong determination and firm will of the Party Central Committee. Second is a rigorous systemic concept. Xi Jinping has always deployed these sectors using a systemic approach, emphasizing proactive thinking, holistic planning, strategic layout, and integrated advancement. He emphasizes comprehensive policy-making, synergy, and working in the same direction, providing scientific ideological and working methods. Third is a clear development orientation. The shortcomings and weak links in China’s education, science and technology, and talent sectors are problems that have emerged during development and must be resolved through development. Xi Jinping adheres to the new development philosophy as a guide, using developmental methods to solve difficulties on the path forward, constantly opening new fields and tracks, and shaping new drivers and advantages. Fourth is a strong sense of innovation. "Innovation is the primary driver of development and the most critical factor in a country's comprehensive national strength and core competitiveness." Xi Jinping has vigorously promoted innovation in theory, practice, systems, and culture to provide powerful momentum and institutional guarantees. Fifth is a broad global vision. Open cooperation is an inevitable requirement for learning from the achievements of global civilization and growing stronger through external exchanges. Xi Jinping has always focused on the future of humanity with a grand global perspective, promoting international cooperation with an open and inclusive mind to turn China’s education, science, and talent sectors into a globalized force with international influence.
III. Practical Requirements of Xi Jinping’s Important Expositions on Coordinating Education, Science and Technology, and Talent
Theory comes from practice and in turn guides it. Looking ahead, we must firmly grasp the practical requirements of these expositions, anchoring ourselves to the goals of building a leading country in education, science and technology, and talent. We must integrally deploy the "education chain," "innovation chain," and "talent chain," promoting their systematic sharing, synergistic advancement, and efficient integration to effectively drive deep fusion.
(1) Taking education as the precursor and cornerstone of deep integrated development. Although education, science and technology, and talent carry different missions, they are intrinsically linked, mutually dependent, and mutually reinforcing. Xi Jinping pointed out: "Scientific and technological innovation depends on talent, and talent cultivation depends on education." From the dialectical mechanism of their interaction, education is a prerequisite—a solid support for technological innovation and a foundational project for talent cultivation. This requires us to prioritize education as the "first move" [16] in the overall coordination.
First, creating national strategic educational forces. The Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has clearly proposed the goals of strengthening national strategic technological forces and national strategic talent forces. China’s education has entered a critical period of transitioning from being large to being strong. We must strive to build national strategic educational forces that match our technological and talent strengths. These forces primarily include high-level research universities, "Double First-Class" [17] initiative universities, and high-level educational institutions with strong leading potential, as well as entities like national laboratories, research institutes, and leading innovative enterprises that fulfill educational functions. We must formulate medium- and long-term development plans to cultivate top-notch talent and foster innovation, striving to make China an important global education center.
Second, nurturing new drivers for educational development. High-quality development requires deepening integrated educational reform. First, we must focus on cultivating innovative consciousness and capability, advocating an atmosphere where "creation is everywhere, every day, and in everyone." Second, we must establish effective mechanisms where talent cultivation and technological innovation support each other, optimizing disciplines to meet national strategic needs and promoting the integration of vocational and general education, industry and education, and science and education. Third, we must optimize the spatial layout of education, integrating resources to align with international innovation centers like Beijing, Shanghai, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Fourth, we must accelerate the construction of a high-quality education system. This involves building an equitable basic public education service system, strengthening foundational education, and promoting the high-quality development of preschool, compulsory, and vocational education. We must support the differentiated and characteristic development of universities and advance educational digitalization to empower the construction of a leading country in education.
(2) Taking science and technology as the driver and lead for deep integrated development. Currently, the structural contradiction of supply-demand mismatch between China’s education/talent cultivation and technological innovation is a prominent bottleneck. We must follow Xi Jinping’s approach of "insisting on the requirements of scientific and technological innovation as the lead," using science and technology as the breakthrough point to ensure efficient coordination.
First, firmly grasping the "ox's nose" [18] of scientific and technological innovation. At the current stage, we must use technological innovation as the "baton" and "traffic light," taking the achievement of high-level self-reliance and strength in science and technology as the general program. Specifically, this means optimizing disciplines and talent models based on new global trends and key core technologies. In practice, this requires using the direction of technological innovation to lead educational and talent innovation, ensuring they are organically combined to realize deep integrated development.
Second, accelerate the realization of high-level sci-tech self-reliance and self-strengthening. High-level sci-tech self-reliance and self-strengthening are of decisive significance for enhancing our country’s capacity for survival, development, competitiveness, and sustainability. Xi Jinping noted: "Broadly speaking, high-level sci-tech self-reliance and self-strengthening are the keys to achieving our goals." High-level sci-tech self-reliance and self-strengthening represent a strategic choice by the Party and state to proactively recognize, respond to, and seek changes [19], moving in accordance with the times and circumstances. It is an inevitable requirement placed upon sci-tech innovation in the new development stage. First, we must create a systematic, institutionalized, and collaborative strength in national strategic sci-tech. "The competition among the world’s sci-tech powers is a contest of national strategic sci-tech strength." We must strengthen the building of national strategic sci-tech strength, improve the new-type whole-of-nation system [20], refine the system of national laboratories, and optimize the positioning and layout of national research institutions, high-level research universities, and leading sci-tech enterprises. We must perform integrated planning for the spatial layout of regional innovation forces and accelerate the formation of a new pattern where various innovation subjects coordinate and innovate together, thereby improving the overall efficacy of the national innovation system. Second, we must deeply implement the innovation-driven development strategy, strengthen original and pioneering sci-tech breakthroughs, and resolutely win the battle for key core technologies. We should increase the degree of organization in basic research, promote the high-quality development of basic research, and strive to produce more "0 to 1" original results. Third, we must "solidly promote the deep integration of sci-tech innovation and industrial innovation to assist the development of new quality productive forces." Increasing the supply of high-quality sci-tech is the foundation of this integration. We must increase research and development efforts in key areas and weak links of the modern industrial system, cultivate and develop emerging and future industries, and use new technologies to consolidate and enhance advantageous industries while transforming and upgrading traditional industries. Strengthening the dominant position of enterprises in sci-tech innovation is the key to this integration. We must cultivate and expand leading sci-tech enterprises and accelerate the construction of innovation consortia led by backbone sci-tech enterprises, supported by universities and institutes, participated in by upstream and downstream firms, and characterized by the deep integration of "government, industry, academia, research, application, and finance." Promoting the transformation and application of sci-tech achievements is the pathway for integration. We must strengthen the construction of the national technology transfer system, targetedly improve the efficiency of achievement transformation in universities, and explore new models that push forward technology transfer, scientific research, and talent cultivation as an integrated whole. Fourth, we must continue to deepen the reform of the sci-tech system. We should improve systems for sci-tech evaluation and the transformation and application of achievements, increase efforts to reform the mechanism for the allocation and use of fiscal sci-tech funds, and actively promote the reform of granting rights to service-related sci-tech achievements to fully stimulate the vitality of innovation and creation. Fifth, we must expand international sci-tech exchanges and cooperation in all directions, make maximum use of global innovation resources, and enhance our country’s leadership and voice in global sci-tech governance.
(3) Using talent as the coupling and linkage point for the deep integrated development of the three sectors
An undertaking of a thousand years is based on talent. The tight bond between sci-tech and education is talent; it is the coupling point for the deep integrated development of education, sci-tech, and talent. Cultivating talent is the common task and focal point of building a leading country in education, sci-tech, and talent, as well as an inherent requirement and essential component [21] of their effective linkage and virtuous cycle. We must persist on the path of independent talent cultivation, focusing on creating a massive, structurally sound, and high-quality innovative talent pool to better support educational development and innovative breakthroughs.
First, based on the current state of education, sci-tech, and talent work, we must strengthen the top-level design for talent work. One aspect is adhering to the principle of the Party managing talent, improving the leadership system and operational mechanisms for Party management of talent. We must give full play to the Party's core leadership role in overseeing the overall situation and coordinating all parties, improve scientific decision-making mechanisms, optimize division of labor and collaboration mechanisms, refine communication mechanisms, and strengthen supervision and implementation mechanisms to achieve integrated linkage and coordinated efficiency in all links of talent work. Another aspect is consciously planning talent work from the strategic height of the integrated development of education, sci-tech, and talent. We must grasp the general direction of talent work serving economic and social development and promoting well-rounded human development. Closely centering on building the new development pattern and achieving high-quality development, we must formulate talent development plans, clarify strategic goals, key tasks, and guarantee mechanisms, and advance the building of various talent pools as a whole. Additionally, we must persist in advancing with the times and anchor the cultivation of talent to the direction of sci-tech innovation. Based on global sci-tech development trends, we should systematically analyze the development status and gaps in our country’s talent across all sectors, focus on major national strategic needs, and cultivate national strategic talent and talent in urgent demand in a targeted manner to provide personnel support for winning the battle for key core technologies.
Second, focusing on the developmental needs of education, sci-tech, and talent, we must deepen the reform of the systems and mechanisms for talent development. Currently, we are in a historical period where a new round of world sci-tech revolution and industrial transformation intersects with our country’s acceleration of building a new development pattern and efforts to promote high-quality development. The international strategic gambit surrounding talent is unprecedentedly fierce; the tracks and competition in the talent field are showing new trends and characteristics, making the reform of talent development systems and mechanisms increasingly urgent. One priority is adhering to high-end leadership and strengthening national strategic talent forces. Xi Jinping pointed out: "Strategic talent stands at the international sci-tech frontier, leads independent sci-tech innovation, and undertakes national strategic sci-tech tasks; they are an important force supporting our country’s high-level sci-tech self-reliance and self-strengthening. Building strategic talent forces must be grasped as a top priority." We must improve the strategic layout of talent, strive to cultivate more masters and strategic scientists, create first-class sci-tech leaders and innovation teams, foster a massive pool of young talent, and cultivate large numbers of outstanding engineers, "Great Country Craftsmen," [22] and highly skilled personnel. Furthermore, we must improve the mechanisms for talent cultivation and utilization and the governance system for talent development. This involves improving the cultivation mechanism, basing talent work on self-cultivation, focusing on improving the autonomous and controllable capacity of talent supply, and creating an independent cultivation model conducive to the large-scale emergence of innovative talent. We must refine the utilization mechanism, making full and flexible use of talent, simultaneously promoting reforms in services such as household registration and personnel archives, and innovating mechanisms for the smooth flow of talent. In particular, we should focus on opening channels for talent exchange between universities, research institutes, and enterprises, and deepen talent exchange and collaboration between the eastern, central, and western regions. We must persist in delegating power to employers and "untying the hands" of talent, deepening reforms in research funding and project management, optimizing and integrating talent programs, and building a scientifically standardized, open, inclusive, and efficient talent development governance system. Finally, we must improve competition-incentive mechanisms and talent evaluation systems. This includes refining the "Open Competition" (Jiebang Gua Shuai) and "Horse Racing" (Sai Ma) [23] systems, implementing goal-oriented "Military Order" (Jun Ling Zhuang) [24] systems, and establishing management mechanisms where authority and responsibility are unified, and incentives and constraints are equally weighted. We must persist in combining the "breaking of the four-onlys" and "breaking of the five-onlys" [25] with the "establishment of new standards," scientifically setting talent evaluation indicators and cycles, and accelerating the construction of a talent evaluation system oriented toward innovation ability, quality, effectiveness, and contribution. We should also deepen the reform of the personnel and remuneration system, especially pushing forward the reform of the salary distribution system for researchers, university teachers, and corporate innovation teams. This includes refining the mechanism where factors of production such as labor, knowledge, technology, management, capital, and data participate in income distribution, and establishing a flexible and diverse remuneration system to further mobilize the enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity of all innovation subjects.
On the New Journey of the New Era, we must persist in taking Xi Jinping’s important discourse on the integrated planning of education, sci-tech, and talent as our guide. We must grasp implementation with the "spirit of driving a nail" [26], and strive to write a brand-new chapter in building a leading country in education, sci-tech, and talent.