Zhai Tingting: Advancing the Construction of the Ideological and Political Curriculum System in Universities
Fostering virtue and cultivating people [1], as the fundamental task of education, concerns the succession of the Party's cause and the future destiny of the country. The curriculum system of ideological and political courses (hereafter sizheng courses [2]) in universities carries the historical mission of cultivating the "newcomers of the era" [3]; it must not only impart knowledge but, more importantly, provide value guidance and shape students' worldviews, outlooks on life, and values. Systematically advancing the construction of the sizheng curriculum system requires us to explore implementation paths for systematized and intensive development, thereby constructing a new pattern for personnel cultivation in the New Era.
Standing at a new historical starting point, universities are actively exploring the construction of a curriculum and textbook system with Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as its core content. A new pattern has emerged, combining compulsory and elective courses and supplementing theoretical teaching with practical teaching. The concept of sizheng courses and "curriculum sizheng" [4] moving in the same direction has increasingly taken root in people's minds. As the world undergoes accelerated changes unseen in a century, the ideological characteristics, cognitive patterns, and receptivity habits of young students are undergoing profound shifts. The construction of a high-quality education system requires us to promote holistic restructuring and systemic upgrading.
Constructing a Systematized Path for Advancement
System construction represents a strategic transformation of sizheng course development from fragmentation toward integration. We must transcend traditional curriculum construction models to build a curriculum system with intrinsic logical connections. Such a system is not a simple collection of courses, but an organic whole based on the laws of personnel cultivation. While maintaining its own characteristics, every course must serve the common goal of nurturing people. Realizing this transformation requires breakthroughs in three key areas: top-level design, coordination mechanisms, and resource allocation.
Top-level design determines the direction and quality of system construction. University Party committees bear the important responsibility of overall planning and must clarify and strengthen the internal logic of compulsory courses. For example, "Ideological and Moral Character and the Rule of Law" lays the foundation for values, guiding students to establish correct outlooks on life and values and answering fundamental questions regarding the growth and success of university students. "The Essentials of Chinese Modern and Contemporary History" provides a historical perspective, allowing students to understand the inevitability of the Chinese path through the historical process, thereby enhancing theoretical persuasiveness. "An Introduction to Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era" addresses the issues of our times, helping students accurately master the latest achievements in the Sinicization and modernization of Marxism and grasp the guide for action. "Current Affairs and Policy" focuses on present realities, guiding students to perceive the national conditions and public sentiment, while improving their ability to correctly analyze domestic and international situations and understand policies. Each course constitutes a complete chain ranging from value guidance to historical cognition, and from theoretical armament [5] to practical guidance. Elective courses and practical teaching revolve around this main thread, forming a curriculum system with a "prominent trunk and lush branches."
Coordination mechanisms must break through traditional departmental boundaries to promote the deep integration of sizheng courses and "curriculum sizheng." Cooperation between Marxist Academies and professional colleges must move beyond the formal level; it requires the establishment of regularized working mechanisms and substantial collaborative advancement. Joint meetings should be held regularly to study personnel cultivation plans. Sizheng teachers must gain deep understanding of professional characteristics to tap into the sizheng elements inherent in professional knowledge, while professional teachers must enhance their awareness of personnel cultivation, emphasizing value guidance while imparting knowledge. Science and engineering majors emphasize the mission of serving the country through science and technology; humanities and social science majors focus on fostering a sense of home and country [6]; and arts majors integrate aesthetic education and cultural confidence. The diverse characteristics of different disciplines determine the variety of integration methods. The key to coordination lies in identifying the right points of connection so that the academic nature of professional courses and the value-oriented nature of sizheng education achieve organic unity.
The optimization of resource allocation is an important guarantee for system construction. The effective integration of high-quality educational resources can produce a multiplier effect. Internal university resources must break down departmental barriers for coordinated use. Documentary resources in libraries, research results in laboratories, and the disciplinary advantages of various colleges should all be transformed into vivid materials for sizheng education. This requires the establishment of cross-departmental coordination mechanisms and resource-sharing platforms. Inter-collegiate cooperation has become an important channel for resource sharing. Through the establishment of teaching alliances, universities within a region can promote mutual selection of high-quality courses, mutual hiring of outstanding faculty, and mutual recognition of teaching achievements, allowing limited high-quality resources to play a greater role. The deep development of social resources can enrich educational content. Museums, memorial halls, enterprises, and communities contain rich educational resources; universities should actively interface with them to establish long-term stable cooperation mechanisms, transforming these resources into effective carriers for personnel cultivation. Digital technology provides new possibilities for resource integration. Universities should build intelligent resource management systems to achieve precise delivery and personalized allocation of resources. They should use virtual simulation technology to create immersive learning environments, making abstract theories vivid and concrete. With the help of big data, they can accurately grasp student needs and improve the targeted nature of resource allocation. The key to technological empowerment lies in improving resource efficiency so that every student can access learning resources.
Driving Intensive Development
Intensive development [7] marks an important shift in the construction of sizheng courses. In the past, the focus was on the accumulation of quantity; now, the emphasis is on the improvement of quality. This development model highlights institutional innovation and stimulates endogenous motivation, ultimately achieving sustainable, high-quality development. Faculty development, quality assurance, and scientific evaluation constitute the core support system. These three elements coordinate and work together to drive the optimization and upgrading of the sizheng curriculum system.
The faculty development mechanism determines the quality of the curriculum. Teachers are the primary resource, and universities must establish a mechanism system to promote the professional growth of teachers. A diversified career development system can broaden the channels for teacher growth. Universities should establish multiple development paths, such as "teaching-oriented," "teaching and research-balanced," and "social service-oriented." Teachers with outstanding teaching abilities can focus on curriculum construction and pedagogical innovation; those with strong research capabilities can delve deep into academic research; and those adept at social service can strengthen practical education. Every teacher should be able to find a direction that suits them. A professional capacity enhancement system supports teacher growth in an all-around way, with systematic training plans covering multiple dimensions such as theoretical study, teaching skills, and practical exercise. Newly recruited teachers can quickly adapt to their positions through standardized training; backbone teachers can expand their academic horizons through advanced seminars; and disciplinary leaders can undertake major projects and play a leading role. A stratified and categorized cultivation model ensures that teachers at every stage of development receive precise support.
A quality assurance system ensures that teaching activities are standardized and orderly. Quality is the lifeline of sizheng courses; building a scientific and perfect quality management system is an inevitable requirement for intensive development. Standardized management of the teaching process improves the degree of curriculum regulation—from the formulation of syllabi to the writing of lesson plans, and from classroom organization to the grading of assignments—each link has clear quality standards and operating procedures. Teaching and research activities should revolve around real problems to conduct genuine research, jointly exploring teaching priorities and difficulties, sharing successful experiences, and researching improvement strategies. Peer assistance mechanisms form a learning community where experienced teachers play a role in "mentoring and coaching" [8], while young teachers bring in new concepts and methods, achieving mutual improvement through cross-learning. Feedback and improvement mechanisms ensure the continuous enhancement of teaching quality. Diverse feedback mechanisms, including student evaluations, supervisory evaluations, and peer reviews, provide a basis for teaching improvement.
Relentless reform of evaluation mechanisms leads the innovation of teaching concepts and methods. A scientific evaluation system can effectively stimulate the enthusiasm and creativity of both teachers and students. Student evaluation should move from the singular toward the plural: mastery of knowledge is no longer the sole criterion; thinking ability, practical ability, and innovative ability should all be included in the scope of evaluation. Process-based evaluation and summative evaluation should be combined, with more attention paid to students' learning engagement and degree of progress. Personalized evaluation plans should respect student differences, allowing different types of students to choose different methods to demonstrate their learning outcomes. Teacher evaluation should move from quantification toward qualification. Evaluation of teaching effectiveness should not only look at student grades but also at the growth and changes in students. The actual effectiveness of personnel cultivation should become a key evaluation dimension, and teachers' innovative exploration should be encouraged and recognized. The purpose of evaluation is to identify problems and improve teaching, rather than simple judgment of superior or inferior quality; it must promote the professional development of teachers and the comprehensive growth of students through evaluation.