Minister of Education Huai Jinpeng made a field trip to Guizhou Province between June 30 and July 1, during which he held discussions with leading members of the Guizhou provincial government. He also chaired a roundtable on vocational education in Guizhou as well as a workshop on the employment of college graduates from six southwestern provinces.

At the roundtable, Huai shared his confidence in the bright future of vocational education in China and commended the efforts made by the Guizhou provincial government to make a sharp improvement in vocational education. The minister underlined the importance of making vocational education more adaptable to social and economic developments and trends by transforming the existing training system and improving teaching quality. He highlighted the value of developing well-rounded graduates by offering a comprehensive, content-rich curriculum with a focus on the humanities. He also noted the need to build a highly qualified teacher workforce by enhancing their sense of honor, achievement, and individual well-being.

At the workshop, Huai communicated the instructions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on facilitating the employment of new college graduates. Specifically, local Party organizations and government entities should put job assistance at the top of their agenda, providing institutional, personnel, and financial support for higher education institutions to host job fairs. Newly introduced policies for fast-tracking graduates’ employment in public institutions, such as elementary and secondary schools and state-owned enterprises, should be fully implemented. Supporting tools, guidance and counselling should be provided to graduates as they look for employment. This support could include the “24365 National Student Employment Service Platform” and publishing job postings from online job fairs.

The minister urged participants to pay special attention to providing support to graduates from disadvantaged backgrounds. He also emphasized accountability in compiling true and accurate employment statistics to serve as information for decision makers.

During his inspection trip, Huai also visited a number of high schools, colleges, research institutions, and businesses.