In order to solve the problem of "two skins" in talent training and industrial development, in June 2023, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Education and other eight departments jointly issued the "Implementation Plan for the Integration of Industry and Education in Vocational Education (2023-2025)" (hereinafter referred to as the "Implementation Plan"). The release of the implementation plan is about to usher in the first anniversary, what changes have taken place in the vocational education market during this period? What efforts have been made in the integration of industry and education in vocational education, and what are the results? What is the future of vocational education? A few days ago, Silver Persimmon Finance interviewed Mao Chaosheng, secretary of the board of directors of China Oriental Education Group.
Deeply cultivated for more than 20 years, to achieve the deep binding of production and education
As a veteran vocational education company, the industry leader China Oriental Education (00667. HK) has been exploring the integration of industry and education for more than 20 years. In 1991, the Second National Vocational Education Work Conference was held, which put forward the important concept of integration of industry and education for the first time. As a forward-looking educational institution, at the turn of the century, that is, around 2000, China Oriental Education actively responded to the call and began to try the practice of integrating industry and education.
"At that time, it was called order cultivation." To put it simply, it means that the employing enterprise needs employees, signs orders with the school and pays the corresponding fees, and the school conducts targeted training for students according to the needs of the enterprise, "There is not much interaction between the school and the enterprise." Mao Chaosheng recalled.
At the end of 2017, 26 years after the concept of integration of industry and education was first proposed, the General Office of the State Council issued the "Several Opinions of the General Office of the State Council on Deepening the Integration of Industry and Education", and the integration of industry and education was identified as an important part of the national education and human resources development strategy. In the following years, deepening the integration of industry and education in vocational education has been highlighted many times in relevant documents.
Resonating with the national policies, China Oriental Education has continuously iteratively upgraded its talent training model. "Order training has gradually transitioned to the stage of school-enterprise cooperation, and has entered the current stage of integration of production and education" "Now the actual scene of the enterprise, teachers, courses, and corporate culture will be integrated into the actual teaching process." Schools and businesses interact frequently. Mao Chaosheng said.
"The integration of industry and education gradually emphasizes the main role of enterprises in running schools - to promote the integration of enterprise needs into all aspects of talent training. For example, guide enterprises to deeply participate in the professional planning, textbook development, teaching design, curriculum setting, and internship training of vocational colleges, implement school-enterprise joint enrollment, support enterprises to accept students for internship training, and guide enterprises to set up apprenticeship positions according to a certain proportion of the total number of positions. Mao Chaosheng gave an example.
Sorting out the general trend of the industry and educational practice, Mao Chaosheng believes that the essence of the integration of industry and education is the deep binding of schools and enterprises. "In this way, it can not only mobilize the enthusiasm of enterprises, but also improve the matching degree and mutual selection success rate of vocational education students and employing enterprises." He said.
"What you learn is what you need" has led to a high employment rate of 95%.
The biggest advantage of the integration of industry and education is that it ensures that the learning content of students is closely linked to the market demand, so that what students learn is truly in line with the actual needs of society, that is, "what they learn is what they need". Mao Chaosheng introduced that China Oriental Education adopts a teaching method that integrates theory and practice to simulate real work scenarios. For example, the automobile maintenance training workshop is the same as the actual auto repair plant; For example, the cooking course directly introduces corporate chefs and standardized recipes, improves students' skills and job matching through practical teaching, in-depth integration of job course certificates, etc., and escorts students' employment with rich practical experience and excellent ability.
According to data from the Ministry of Education, the number of college graduates in 2023 is expected to be 11.58 million, an increase of 820,000 year-on-year, and employment is under pressure. Mao Chaosheng is proud that in this environment, as of December 31, 2023, the recommended employment rate of the seven major brands of China Oriental Education has maintained a level of nearly 95% for a long time. "Vocational education and training ultimately leads to employment." Mao Chaosheng thinks.
"Today, the integration of industry and education has become one of the trump cards of high employment rate in China's oriental education." Mao Chaosheng told Silver Persimmon Finance that through long-term and stable cooperation with Hilton Garden Inn, Grandma's House, BYD and other employment enterprises, the school is directed to provide enterprises with the talents they need to help them find employment. By 2023, there will be 408 new industry-education integration bases in China Oriental Education, and 17 colleges and universities will be listed in the "List of Engineering-University Integration Construction" of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.
As an important way for China's oriental education to promote the deep integration of education and industry, the integration of industry and education has been continuously enriched and improved in its connotation and form, and has developed from the original version 1.0 to the present, and has entered a more advanced version 3.0. "After optimization and upgrading, the fit between the classroom and the actual needs of the enterprise in version 3.0 has been significantly improved, and it is closer to the real working environment, which has been praised and recognized."
Actively explore new directions for the integration of industry and education
With the continuous development of the economy and society in mainland China and the profound changes in the market environment, vocational education is increasingly showing the distinctive characteristics of resonating with the pulse of the times. Mao Chaosheng told Silver Persimmon Finance that in the future, the integration of industry and education in vocational education will be further developed in multiple dimensions such as digital transformation, green and low-carbon, international exchanges, and learning model innovation.
For example, with the advent of the digital intelligence era, big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, etc. have put forward new requirements for the cultivation of technical talents in the new era. In order to respond to this challenge, in March 2024, Xinhua Internet Technology, a subsidiary of China Oriental Education, held a press conference for high-skill training bases and a signing ceremony for the integration of industry and education in school-enterprise cooperation in Jinan, Shandong.
At the same time, in recent years, the national and local governments have successively introduced a series of relevant policies to promote the high-quality development of vocational education. According to this, Mao Chaosheng believes that the strategic opportunity period of vocational education has come, and vocational education has entered a new historical stage of high-quality development.
"If you want to stand at the forefront of the trend in the period of strategic opportunities, you must do a good job in high-quality development, and innovation is the driving force for high-quality development." Mao Chaosheng introduced that at present, China Oriental Education has established an independent research and development institution of vocational education - China Oriental Education Research Institute, forming a "three-level research and development system" of the group's research institute, business department research and development center, and college research and development team, and the annual professional iteration rate of each brand can reach more than 30%, and the integration of production and education is explored in the direction of rail transit, health care and medical care, special equipment maintenance, etc.
"Education is a long-term success, and it is good for the present and the long term." Mao Chaosheng said frankly that in the short term, to achieve high-quality development, it will inevitably increase the operating costs of construction, teachers, research and development, etc., but in the long run, it can further build a moat and consolidate its core competitiveness and leading position in the vocational education market.
High dividends reflect the confidence of high-quality development
In the context of the high-quality development of the mainland, in order to play a leading and exemplary role, demonstrate its responsibility to investors and society, and help improve the level of the entire industry, China Oriental Education is also actively giving back to investors. According to the recently released 2023 annual report of China Oriental Education, China Oriental Education will pay a final dividend of HK$0.20 (about RMB 0.18) per ordinary share for the year 2023, with a dividend yield of 145% and a corresponding dividend yield of 8.33%.
The high dividend yield not only indicates that the company has a good and stable cash flow, but also shows that China Oriental Education has a strong ability to resist risks and is optimistic about the future profit prospects. According to the report, in 2023, the revenue of China Oriental Education will be 3.979 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 4.2%. the net increase in cash and cash equivalents was 59.983 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 106.69%;
The Company's total time deposits, bank balances and cash amounted to approximately RMB3,067 million, accounting for 33.0% of the total assets of approximately RMB9,291 million.
"The Group has sufficient funds to undertake the working capital needs of high-quality development in the future." Mao Chaosheng said. Mao Chaosheng also predicts that in the next two or three years, the group's profits will gradually recover to historical highs, and economic benefits and market competitiveness will achieve a significant jump. Facing the future, he is full of confidence.