The year 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the European Union. In order to further promote China-EU vocational education and cultural exchanges, the“China-Europe International Exchange Conference on Vocational Education and High Skilled Talents Development”co-sponsored by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the China EU Association was held in Qingdao, Shandong Province on June 11. Liu Qibao,vicechairman of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference andpresident of the European Union Association of China, former Spanish primeminister Zapatero, and Zhao Yan,deputy mayor of Qingdao Municipal People’s Government, attended the meeting and delivered speeches. Xia Geng,vice president of the European Union Association of China, presided over the meeting. Jiang Bo,chairman of Xi’an PeihuaUniversity, as a Chinese guest, gave a presentation at the sub-forum discussion and roundtable dialogue.
Liu Qibao pointed out that the cooperation in vocational education between China and Europe has achieved fruitful results, and we should take the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations as an opportunity to further deepen exchanges and cooperation. We need to strengthen mutual learning and exchange, explore the establishment of a normalized communication mechanism, and promote the high-quality development of vocational colleges in China and Europe.We need to deepen the integration of industry and education and cultivate more talents for economic cooperation between the two sides. We should pay attention to technological empowerment, actively respond to the opportunities and challenges brought by informatization, digitization, and intelligence, and enable vocational education to catch up with the“fast train”of artificial intelligence.We also have to promote international cooperation, jointly assist developing countries in vocational education and the cultivation of various skilled talents, and actively provide the world with the“China-Europe wisdom”and“China-Europe solutions”in the field of vocational education.
Zapatero stated that over the past half century, China-Europe exchanges and dialogues have become increasingly close,with deepening integration of interests and significant improvements in the scale and level of cooperation. These exchanges can effectively establish connections between people and help them discover commonalities. He said that the signing of theComprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement between Spain and Chinahas established a framework for strengthening cooperation in the field of education between the two countries.
The conference conducted sub-forum discussions and roundtable dialogues on topics such as“Opportunities and Challenges of China-Europe Application Technology Talent Education and Training in the Digital Intelligence Era”,“Successful Experience of China-Europe Industry Organizations Participating in Application Talent Training and Vocational Education in the Digital Intelligence Era”, and“China-Europe Collaborative Development of International Composite Talent Training”.
Jiang Bo,chairman of Xi’an Peihua University, delivered a speech on“Exploration and Practice of Hundred-year Peihua Vocational Education”as a Chinese guest speaker, and engaged in vocational education exchanges with the European side.
Jiang Bo stated that as a private university with a history of nearly a century, Peihua adheres to the three characteristic genes of vocational education, red genes, and women’s education, deeply understands the important position and role of vocational education in the overall development of the country, takes Xi Jinping’s Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Eraas guidance, deeply cultivates the“Three-Classroom Framework”, cultivates the“Five-Dimensional Holistic Education”, shapes the‘Eight-Core Competencies”, and focuses on cultivating comprehensive and versatile talents who can shoulder the responsibility of national rejuvenation and have outstanding professional abilities. As thechair institutionof the Shaanxi Huang Yanpei Vocational Education Thought Research Association, Peihua will continue to strengthen the positioning of applied talent training goals, strengthen connections and cooperation with all sectors of society, continuously improve the quality of talent training, strive to create a new situation of first-class private undergraduate education, and contribute to the development of vocational education in Shaanxi and even the whole country.
TheChina-European participants agreed that China’s current vocational education system has developed into a distinctive model with Chinese characteristics and is advancing rapidly. Over 70% of new frontline employees in modern manufacturing, strategic emerging industries, and modern service sectors come from vocational education, which has become the primary platform for cultivating master craftsmen, skilled artisans, and highly qualified technicians in China.Vocational education in European countries has also made significant contributions to socio-economic development. Since China’s reform and opening-up, exchanges and cooperation between China and Europe in vocational education have been highly successful. At the forum, representatives from German companies and vocational education institutions introduced the role of the“dual system”in Germany’s vocational education framework. Additionally, executives from European enterprises operating in China and foreign professors shared their experiences and insights on vocational education collaboration with Chinese partners.
It is reported that the conference, themed“Digital Intelligence Empowering Exchange and Cooperation on Vocational Education and High-Skilled Talent Cultivation Between China and Europe in the New Era”, was supported by the Qingdao Municipal People’s Government, Shandong Provincial Department of Education, China Vocational and Technical Education Society, China Association for Non-Government Education, Shandong People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, Qingdao Huanghai University, as well as the French National Committee for Industrial Development and Sino-Finnish Alliance of Universities of Applied Sciences. The event was hosted by Shandong Rhein-Koster Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd.As a parallel event of the conference, the“‘Crossing Mountains and Seas, Shared Beauty’China Intangible Cultural Heritage Vocational Education Achievement Tour”made its domestic debut in Qingdao on the same day.
