Targeting high-level talents in key areas requires "unconventional" training
At present, my country has cultivated more than 10 million doctoral and master's degrees. By 2020, the number of graduate students will reach 3 million. In terms of quantity, it is already a major country in graduate education.
In July 2018, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at the second meeting of the Central Committee of Finance and Economics that "key core technologies are the country's heaviest weapon".
In July 2020, General Secretary Xi Jinping gave important instructions to the work of graduate education, proposing that the reform and development of graduate education should adhere to the "four-in" policy, aiming at the frontiers and key areas of science and technology, in-depth promotion of the adjustment of disciplines, upgrading the level of tutors, and perfecting talents A training system to accelerate the cultivation of high-level talents urgently needed by the country.
The training of core technical personnel in key fields has become one of the current focus of education work.
On September 22, the Ministry of Education held a press conference on the "Opinions on Accelerating the Reform and Development of Postgraduate Education in the New Era" (hereinafter referred to as the "Opinions"), and proposed ten special actions to implement the "Opinions" to accelerate the training of talents in short supply in an unconventional way.
Why implement these ten special actions?
How should we cultivate talents in an extraordinary way?
These are related to the development direction of postgraduate education reform, and also related to the reform and innovation of future talent training methods.
Technological innovation needs talent support
Why implement the top ten special actions?
In fact, the "sprouts" have already appeared.
According to statistics, 60% of the basic research tasks in the National Science and Technology Plan and more than 80% of the projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of my country are undertaken by Chinese universities. 65% of the National Natural Science Awards and more than 70% of the National Technical Invention Awards are won by universities. It is an important force for scientific and technological innovation and provides strong support for independent innovation.
However, high-end talents and scientific research teams are still unable to meet the needs of the rapidly developing technology industry.
For the ever-increasing demand for scientific and technological innovation talents, colleges and universities need to actively seek changes, continuously explore innovative paths in the discipline layout and talent training model, and strive to improve the ability to serve the country's key core technology research.
Wu Zhaohui, president of Zhejiang University, believes: “As the main way to cultivate high-level innovative talents, postgraduate education is an important support for my country to respond to global talent competition, promote innovation-driven development, and build an innovative country.”
Hong Dayong, Director of the Department of Degree Management and Postgraduate Education of the Ministry of Education, emphasized at the above-mentioned press conference that the reform and development of postgraduate education need to face new problems and implement new tasks. The adjustment of disciplines and majors has just started, and the construction of the classified training system needs to be continuously deepened and differentiated.
In this context, it is necessary to establish a list of national key supported disciplines, improve the interdisciplinary development mechanism, study and formulate the "Interdisciplinary Setup and Management Measures", explore the establishment of interdisciplinary development zones, establish a number of interdisciplinary centers, and build interdisciplinary development It is a national-level platform to build an interdisciplinary development system that combines decentralization, regulation and order, and interconnection.
What majors may be included in this list of key national support disciplines that have not yet been released?
Chu Zhaohui, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Educational Sciences, said that the formulation of the list is a long-term process that requires comprehensive consideration of various factors. Basic research and long-term high-tech fields, including high-tech fields involving the national economy and the people's livelihood, should be involved.
Break down obstacles and innovate training models
With the talent training policy and professional development direction, how to train talents has become a key link in the implementation of the plan.
Hong Dayong stated that it is necessary to implement high-level talent training activities for core technologies in key areas, "focus on core technologies in key areas, organize'double first-class' construction of universities and first-class enterprises (institutes), and coordinate resources such as first-class disciplines, first-class teachers, first-class platforms, etc. , To accelerate the training of a batch of talents in short supply in an extraordinary way."
Regarding the unconventional talent training method, Chu Zhaohui said that it is necessary to break some obstacles in the growth of talents. “In the postgraduate training stage, more emphasis should be placed on concentration, that is, the ability to concentrate on doing a certain thing, so management should also be avoided. And the egalitarian tendency of the evaluation system".
The relevant person in charge of the Ministry of Education stated that the experience of colleges and universities is crucial to formulating a training model.
Before the official implementation of the Ten Special Actions, many colleges and universities have already begun to explore practical ways to cultivate innovative talents.
The lilac micro-nano satellite team of Harbin Institute of Technology is a satellite design team composed entirely of students. The team has absorbed more than 100 students from 9 disciplines of Harbin Institute of Technology.
On this basis, Harbin Institute of Technology has established a "multidisciplinary team of mentors + students' interests and expertise in independent topic selection" training mode, which has trained nearly 200 graduate students, and 80% of graduates have become elites in universities and scientific research institutions in the aerospace field.
Cao Xibin, the founder of Student Innovation Factory, once said, "This is a new exploration of the school's innovative aerospace engineering leading talent training model."
The concept of integration of science and education embodied in the micro-nano satellite factory is the core concept of current graduate education, especially doctoral education.
Measures that can improve the integration of science and education and the autonomy of integration of production and education, such as providing independent research space, guiding students to think and make decisions independently, and establishing a two-way selection system are important means to build a first-class platform and use first-class resources.
The "Sun Yat-Sen University" comprehensive scientific research ship is a platform for personnel training and scientific research in marine disciplines including atmospheric disciplines in cooperation with the China Meteorological Administration and Sun Yat-Sen University.
Relying on the marine comprehensive scientific research practice ship, the two parties will jointly carry out large-scale scientific experiments and meteorological observations, and realize the sharing of scientific data and results.
At the same time, it will also jointly develop high-level talent training, build scientific and technological innovation bases and platforms, and jointly build joint doctoral training sites and post-doctoral mobile stations.
More and more colleges and universities are using their own practical actions to contribute their "first-line" experience to the innovative talent training model.
Respect the law of education and improve the quality of education
Liu Yaming, director of the China Meteorological Administration, stated that "strengthening cooperation with key domestic universities, striving to achieve complementary advantages, resource sharing, and achieving a breakthrough from '0' to '1' is an important way to solve the current problem of talent training."
Wang Shuguo, president of Xi’an Jiaotong University, wrote an article: “University is the country’s most important weapon. It focuses on talents.'Who to train, how to train, and for whom” determines the'color' and quality of the successor to the country; its focus is on technology. The scientific and technological energy released and radiated by universities means the country’s innovative vitality."
Talent training requires a cycle. Organizing "double first-class" construction of universities and first-class enterprises (institutes), coordinating resources such as first-class disciplines, first-class teachers, and first-class platforms, does not mean to encourage growth.
Chu Zhaohui believes that “talent training should follow the law of talent growth and development. This is not only a question of how universities teach, but also involves the overall educational philosophy, educational evaluation, educational management and implementation details. Let everyone’s potential be fully developed. China is A country with a large population must abide by the laws of education and design a talent training model from the perspective of allowing everyone to fully develop."
At present, my country has cultivated more than 10 million doctoral and master's degrees. By 2020, the number of graduate students will reach 3 million. In terms of quantity, it is already a major country in graduate education.
"I think the most important thing in the next stage is to improve the quality of talent training. Taking into account the shortage of talent training, we must improve the quality and efficiency of graduate education as a whole." Chu Zhaohui said, "Universities should innovate the management system to allow innovative talents. There is more room to improve oneself, and on this basis, improve the evaluation system and further establish and improve the modern university system."