Gao Jinhui, member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and member of the Legislative Assembly of Macao, principal of Pui Ching Middle School in Macau
The government work report releases important education policies and provides solid support for the strategy of rejuvenating the country through science and education
This year's government work report has released a number of important education policy signals, including mentioning that it is necessary to continue to "deeply implement the strategy of rejuvenating the country through science and education and strengthen the basic support for high-quality development", which is in line with the report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, and fully reflects the importance of the overall promotion of education, science and technology, and talents, as well as the emphasis on high-quality development. Here are some of the key points I think:
(1) In-depth implementation of the strategy of rejuvenating the country through science and education: Adhere to the integrated promotion of the construction of a strong country through education, science and technology, and talent, and the integrated deployment and implementation of the innovation chain, industrial chain, capital chain, and talent chain, deepen the comprehensive reform of education, science and technology, and talents, so as to provide a strong impetus for modernization.
(2) High-quality development as the lifeline of education: emphasizing that high-quality development is the core of the development of all types of education at all levels, and paying attention to the quality of education itself, reflecting the characteristics of a strong country in education.
(3) Vigorously develop digital education: As an important part of the construction of digital China, digital education is an important platform to open up a new track for education development, shape new advantages for education development, and provide better education.
(4) Formulate and implement the outline of the plan for the construction of a strong country in education: accelerate the construction of a strong country in education, and provide strong support for the construction of a modern socialist country and the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
(5) Strengthen the construction of a high-quality education system: fully implement the party's education policy, adhere to high-quality development as the lifeline of all levels and types of education, promote the integration of ideological and political education in primary and secondary schools, improve the conditions for running rural boarding schools, continue to deepen the "double reduction", and promote the inclusive development of preschool education.
(6) Accelerate the promotion of high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-reliance: strengthen the layout of the basic research system, aim at the major national strategic needs and industrial development needs, deploy and implement a number of major scientific and technological projects, strengthen the protection of intellectual property rights, and formulate policies and measures to promote the transformation of scientific and technological achievements.
(7) All-round training and good use of talents: implement more active, more open and more effective talent policies, promote the construction of high-level talent highlands and platforms for attracting and aggregating talents, and accelerate the construction of national strategic talent forces.
(8) It is estimated that more than 11.7 million college graduates will be graduates this year: strengthen policies and measures to promote youth employment, and optimize employment and entrepreneurship guidance services.
These policy signals and changes reflect the mainland's emphasis on education, science and technology, and talents, as well as its firm determination to promote the country's overall development through educational modernization. At the same time, the report's special emphasis on digital education shows that China is keeping up with the pace of digital transformation in the field of education and is committed to using new technologies to improve the quality and efficiency of education.
In addition, as an indispensable part of the national education system, Macao's education must make good use of its unique position and advantages under the "One Country, Two Systems" principle to strengthen educational cooperation with cities in the Greater Bay Area, especially in the areas of innovation and technology education and higher education, so as to provide high-quality talents for the country's rapid development, in line with the strategy of rejuvenating the country through science and education and the goal of building a strong country in education.
Colleges and universities should focus on high-quality development and comprehensively promote educational reform and scientific and technological innovation
In the new era, as an important part of the national innovation system, colleges and universities play an increasingly prominent role in education reform, scientific and technological innovation and talent training. Colleges and universities should actively respond to the national strategy of rejuvenating the country through science and education, take high-quality development as the core, comprehensively promote educational reform and scientific and technological innovation, and cultivate high-quality talents who can adapt to new quality productivity.
Attach importance to the cultivation of "new quality productivity", that is, the productivity with new technologies, new economies and new forms of business as the core, covering many fields such as new energy, new materials, advanced manufacturing and electronic information. The education system should carry out reform and innovation in building a system of independent talent training and deepening the cultivation of top-notch innovative talents.
First of all, colleges and universities need to consider education, science and technology, and talent development as a whole, form a synergistic effect, and promote the deep integration of education and economic and social development under the guidance of the strategy of rejuvenating the country through science and education. On this basis, we should pursue the high-quality development of education and cultivate high-quality talents with innovative spirit and practical ability.
Strengthening basic research and innovation is the key to improving the scientific research level of universities, promoting colleges and universities to play a key role in the country's educational reform and innovative development, and cultivating more outstanding talents for the country's scientific and technological progress, social development and modernization. To do this, universities need to:
(1) Encourage original innovation: support research in key technology areas to enhance the ability of independent innovation.
(2) Promote the transformation of achievements: work closely with enterprises to promote the application and industrialization of scientific and technological achievements.
(3) Deepen the combination of production, education, research and application: strengthen the training of school-enterprise joint talents, and enhance the synergy between education and industry.
(4) Optimize talent policies: attract and cultivate high-level talents, especially leading talents in science and technology and innovative teams.
(5) Expand international cooperation: strengthen international scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation, enhance international vision, and participate in international competition and cooperation.
(6) Pay attention to educational equity: improve educational conditions in rural and remote areas to ensure that every child can receive fair and quality education.
(7) Strengthen the construction of teachers: improve the teaching and scientific research ability of teachers, and build a high-quality and professional teaching team.
(8) Reform the education evaluation system: establish an evaluation system oriented by innovation value, ability and contribution, and optimize the incentive mechanism.
Colleges and universities should formulate specific measures in accordance with the outline of the national plan for building a strong country in education to ensure that the development of education is synchronized with the national strategy and contribute to the realization of the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
"New Quality Productivity" points out the direction for the high-quality development of education in Macao
In September last year, President Xi Jinping mentioned "new quality productivity" for the first time, and this year's government work report has included this major concept at the top of the top ten tasks of the year, fully reflecting the importance of the central government and pointing out the direction for the high-quality development of education in Macao. "New quality productivity" is an advanced productive force dominated by scientific and technological innovation, adding scientific and technological connotation to the productive forces, getting rid of the traditional economic growth mode and the development path of the productive forces, with the characteristics of high technology, high efficiency and high quality.
With the entry into force of the Legal System of the Macao Polytechnic University and the Legal System of the University of Macau, higher education in Macao has ushered in new development opportunities. Personnel of public higher education institutions will no longer be counted as civil servants, enabling Macao universities to allocate resources and recruit talents more flexibly according to their respective development needs and financial situation. By providing greater autonomy, it will not only help to improve the quality of education, but also further optimize the allocation of human resources, meet the needs of teaching and research, stimulate the vitality of academic research, and promote the transformation of scientific and technological achievements, so as to promote the all-round development of higher education, cultivate innovative talents who can adapt to the development of new quality productive forces, and contribute to the economic development of Macao.
In the face of the requirements of the times for the development of new quality productive forces in the country, Macao's education sector and higher education institutions are shouldering a heavy responsibility and urgently need to take a series of strategic actions to cultivate high-end talents who meet the needs of the country's development, while fully anticipating and overcoming the challenges that may arise. The primary task is to build an independent talent training system, through in-depth education reform, re-examine and adjust the existing education model, especially for emerging science and technology fields, such as artificial intelligence, interdisciplinary courses and other fields of innovation and upgrading, to ensure that the training of professionals who can adapt to the needs of the development of new quality productivity.
At the same time, Macao universities should vigorously strengthen self-reliance and self-improvement in science and technology, promote the construction of high-level scientific research and innovation capabilities, encourage independent research and development, and enhance the strength of independent innovation. By actively promoting the close integration of production, education, research and application, we will build a bridge of in-depth cooperation with enterprises, accelerate the speed and efficiency of the transformation of scientific and technological achievements into real productivity, and promote the rapid development of the science and technology industry.
In the context of globalization, it is also important to broaden international perspectives. Macao's education sector should actively promote international academic exchanges and cooperation, enhance students' global competitiveness, introduce advanced educational concepts and practical experience, and contribute to the modernization of Macao's education. In terms of actively responding to the national development strategy, Macao universities should strengthen their participation in the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, give full play to their geographical advantages, integrate into the overall development layout of the country, and actively promote the modernization of education, in line with the national policy of educational technology innovation and regional coordinated development proposed by the "Two Sessions".
However, in the process of advancing these initiatives, Macao's education sector and higher education institutions may face a series of challenges. If Macao is limited by its small geographical area, the expansion of school-running space may become a bottleneck restricting the further growth of higher education institutions. How to effectively allocate limited educational resources to achieve balanced and sustainable development of higher education is also a major test.
In addition, it remains to be seen whether the current talent training structure and quality can accurately match the diversified economic development needs of Macao and even the country. The mechanism for the transformation of scientific research results into market applications needs to be improved, and it is necessary to increase R&D investment and strive for more policy support. In addition, while expanding the scale of education, how to ensure and improve the quality of education and bring it into line with the world's advanced level is also a long-term and arduous task.
Education is a long-term work, not a day's work, but requires continuous efforts and practice. In response to the country's development of new quality productive forces, Macao's education sector and higher education institutions should not only keep the whole field in mind, actively plan and implement strategic actions that meet the needs of the times, but also be calm and prudent, predict in advance and effectively solve various difficulties in the process of progress, so as to ensure that Macao and the country have made great progress in talent cultivation and jointly promote economic and social prosperity and development.
Colleges and universities need to clarify their strategic positioning and cultivate new talents required by the development of new quality productivity
In the context of the popularization of higher education, Macao's public and private universities are facing dual opportunities and challenges. First of all, the popularization of higher education has enabled colleges and universities to attract outstanding students from all over the world, enhancing the vitality of academic exchanges and international popularity. At the same time, the growing demand for diverse skills and professionals has prompted colleges and universities to flexibly adjust their curricula and improve the quality of education. On the other hand, thanks to the support of the central government and the development of the Greater Bay Area, universities have increased opportunities to participate in national and regional scientific research cooperation, and their research capabilities and conversion rates have been improved. At the same time, the Macao SAR Government has stepped up its support for higher education, optimized the allocation of educational resources, improved infrastructure, and increased investment in scientific research, creating a superior development environment for higher education institutions. For example, the Outline for the Medium- and Long-Term Development of Higher Education in Macao (2021-2030) released in December 2020 has clearly laid out the development direction of higher education and provided clear guidance for the future education blueprint. The current-term government has actively promoted the development of higher education in Macao, and has made significant progress in the scale of higher education, the level of scientific research, and the cooperation between industry, academia and research, and the international ranking of higher education institutions has risen steadily, and it has four national key laboratories and one national field observation site, and has achieved remarkable results in the development of higher education in Macao.
However, the challenges are just as obvious. With the popularization of education, the pressure of competition has intensified, especially in terms of high-quality talents, teachers, students and scientific research projects. How to take into account the expansion of education scale and the maintenance of education quality under the condition of limited educational resources, and avoid the dilution of resources, is an important issue facing all colleges and universities. In addition, in order to be unique among many colleges and universities and create a distinctive brand image and characteristic education, colleges and universities need to continuously innovate curriculum design, teaching methods and campus culture, and cultivate new talents who can meet the requirements of the development of new quality productivity.
In order to cope with the challenges and seize the opportunities, Macao universities need to clarify their strategic positioning, rely on their existing advantages, target cutting-edge technology, service industry, cultural and creative industries, and even dig deeper into local characteristics, such as tourism and gaming related management research. By strengthening the construction of advantageous disciplines and characteristic majors, we will create teaching and research fields with core competitiveness, such as the outstanding achievements of the University of Macau in smart city Internet of Things, microelectronics and traditional Chinese medicine, the advantages of Macau University of Science and Technology in space science and traditional Chinese medicine, and the characteristic disciplines of Macao Polytechnic University and Macao Tourism University are all internationally competitive and should be brought into full play.
For example, the University of Macau (UM) has worked closely with the industry in smart city and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies to promote scientific research results to the market, which has effectively promoted the moderate diversification of Macao's economy. In addition, Macao's higher education sector actively participates in the overall development plan of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, enhancing the international influence of universities through resource sharing and collaborative research and development, and providing a broad employment and learning platform for young people in Macao.
In order to cultivate high-quality talents who can adapt to the environment of globalization and scientific and technological innovation, the Macao SAR actively responds to the challenges and opportunities brought about by the popularization of higher education by optimizing educational resources, strengthening the construction of characteristic disciplines, and enhancing international exchanges and cooperation. Through legislative reforms to give higher education institutions more autonomy, as well as unremitting efforts in the in-depth integration of industry, academia and research and regional cooperation, the quality of higher education in Macao is steadily improving, and it will show stronger competitiveness and influence on the global higher education stage in the future.