Analysis of the Problems Existing in Rural Vocational Education in Huai'an City under the Strategy of Rural Revitalization
Abstract
This article conducts an in-depth analysis of the current development status and core issues of rural vocational education in Huai'an City under the context of the rural revitalization strategy. The study points out that talent revitalization is the key to rural revitalization, and rural vocational education bears the special mission of cultivating "agriculture, rural areas, and farmers" talents. However, rural vocational education in Huai'an City faces several prominent problems in talent cultivation, such as imbalance in supply and demand structure, outdated teaching content, weak practical innovation ability of students, homogenized professional settings, shortage of dual-qualified teachers, inadequate policy guarantees and funding investment, and backward training facilities. The underlying reasons for these problems lie in the imperfect policy system, poor departmental coordination, incomplete funding guarantee mechanism, unclear school positioning, lagging teaching reform, and the absence of school-enterprise cooperation mechanism. This study aims to identify the problems in the reform and development process of rural vocational education in Huai'an City and other similar regions, providing a reference for subsequent measures to solve these problems.
How to Cite This Article
Li Sun (2025). Analysis of the Problems Existing in Rural Vocational Education in Huai'an City under the Strategy of Rural Revitalization . International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Growth Evaluation (IJMRGE), 6(6), 43-47. DOI: https://doi.org/10.54660/IJMRGE.2025.6.6.43-47
References
- 2. The Imbalanceinthestructureoftalentsupply, withinsufficientstudentsmajoringinagriculture-relatedfields Underthegrandframeworkoftheruralrevitalizationstrategy, theruralindustriesin Huai'an Cityareundergoingaprofoundtransformation, shiftingfromtraditionalagricultureandanimalhusbandrytomodernagriculture, agriculturalproductdeepprocessing, ruraltourism, leisureandhealthcare, rurale-commerce, etc., integratingmultiplebusinessmodels. Thistransformationnolongerrequiressimplemanuallaborersbuturgentlydemandsalargenumberofmulti-skilledtalentswithmodernagriculturaltechnologies, managementcapabilities, andinnovativespirit, suchasagriculturalprofessionalmanagers, smartagriculturaltechnicians, agriculturalproductbrandmarketers, ruraltourismplanners, etc. However, thesurveyresultsclearlyrevealthatthesupplyoftalentsinruralvocationaleducationin Huai'an Cityisstructurallyimbalancedwiththisdemand. Themostobviousmanifestationisthattheprofessionalstructureoftalentcultivationdoesnotmatchtheindustrialdemandstructure. Thesurveydatashowsthatamongallvocationalcollegesinthecity, thenumberofpureagricultural-relatedmajorsisonly12.1%ofthetotal, whileover60%oftheprofessionalresourcesareconcentratedintraditionalfieldssuchasmanufacturingandinformationtechnology. Thisprofessionallayoutitselfhascausedashortageoftalentsupplyfor"agriculture". Thedeeperproblemliesinthecontinuousdeclineintheattractivenessofagricultural-relatedmajors, resultinginasevereshortageofstudents. Although67.2%ofthestudentsinthesurveysamplecomefromruralhouseholds, theyshouldbethenaturalsourceoftalentforagricultural-relatedmajors, buttheproportionofstudentschoosingtostudyagricultural-relatedmajorsisonly14.8%. This"ruralchildrennotstudyingagriculture"phenomenonhasledtothegeneraldifficultyinenrollingstudents, lowenrollmentrate, andshrinkingstudentscaleinagricultural-relatedmajors. Someschoolshaveevenhadtosuspendorreducethescaleofagricultural-relatedmajorsduetotheinabilitytorecruitenoughstudentsformanyyears, formingaviciouscycle.
- 3. The Teachingcontentandmethodsareoutdated, andstudents'practicalandinnovativeabilitiesareweak Anotherprominentmanifestationofthedisconnectionbetweentalentcultivationanddemandliesinthe"quality"aspect[. Thatis, althoughgraduatespossesscertaintheoreticalknowledge, theirknowledgestructure, practicalabilities, andinnovativequalitiesarefarfrommeetingtheactualrequirementsofmodernruralindustrypositions. Thisissueismainlyreflectedinoutdatedteachingcontentandmethods, resultingingenerallyweakpracticalinnovationabilitiesamongstudents. The"outdatednature"ofteachingcontentisaproblemcommonlyreportedbyenterprisesandstudents. Asurveyshowsthatover68%ofteachersadmitthattheupdatecycleoftextbooksexceedsthreeyears, whichisafatalproblemintherapidlyevolvingmodernagriculturesector. Thecoursecontentfailstokeepupwiththenewtrendsinmodernagriculturaltechnologyandruralindustrydevelopment. Forinstance, cutting-edgeknowledgeandskillssuchasagricultural Internetof Things, bigdataanalysis, dronecropprotection, agriculturalproductlivemarketing, andruralhomestayoperationareeithermissingoronlypresentedassuperficialelectivecontent, notsystematicallyincorporatedintocorecourses. Thisleadstoahuge"knowledgegap"betweenwhatstudentslearnatschoolandwhattheyactuallyuseintheindustry. Inenterprisefeedback, upto72.4%oftherespondentsbelievethatgraduateshave"weakpracticalhands-onabilities", and65.8%believethatthey"lackunderstandingofmodernagriculturaltechnologies", whicharethedirectconsequencesofthisproblem. International Journalof Multidisciplinary Researchand Growth Evaluationwww. allmultidisciplinaryjournal. com45|Page
- 4. Students'abilitytoapplytheirknowledgeandinnovateisweak The"traditionality"ofteachingmethodsfurtherexacerbatesthedisconnectionbetweentheoryandpractice. Inmanyruralvocationalschools, classroomteachingstillpredominantlyfollowsthetraditional"instructive"modelcenteredonteachersandtextbooks, placingexcessiveemphasisontheimpartingoftheoreticalknowledgewhileneglectingthecultivationofstudents'practicalabilitiesandproblem-solvingskills[. Thepracticalteachingcomponentnotonlyhasaninsufficientproportionofclasshours(averaging28.4%\butalsohaspoorquality. Manyschools'on-campustrainingbaseshaveoutdatedequipmentandbackwardtechnology, unabletosimulaterealproductionenvironmentsandprocesses. Forinstance, inacase, thehorticulturetechnologytraininggreenhouseofacertainschoolstillusesthemostprimitivemanualwateringandcurtainrollingmethods. Students'internshipsinsuchanenvironmentareunabletocomeintocontactwiththeautomaticdripirrigation, temperatureandhumidityautomaticcontrol, andothertechnologieswidelyusedinmodernagriculture. Off-campusinternshipplacementsoftenremainsuperficialandstudentsareoftenassignedtosimplerepetitivepositionsbyenterprisesascheaplabor, lackingsystematicandtargetedskillsguidanceandjobrotationtraining. This"paper-baseddiscussion"teachingmodelnaturallyproducesstudentswhoareoverlyambitiousbutlackpracticalskills, adaptability, andinnovationabilitytomeettherequirementsofenterprises. Inasurveyofgraduates, whenaskedabouttheirgreatestgainsduringtheirstudies, theproportionchoosing"theoreticalknowledge"wasmuchhigherthanthosechoosing"practicalskills"and"innovativethinking", whichindirectlyconfirmedthedeviationoftheteachingmodel.
- 5. The Professionalsettingsareoverlyuniform, andtheydonotcloselyalignwiththelocalindustrialcharacteristics Theprofessionalsettingisthe"firstcheckpoint"forvocationaleducationtoalignwithindustrialdemands. Itsscientificityandaccuracydirectlydeterminetheeffectivenessoftalentcultivation. Inthisregard, thereareseriousstructuralproblemsinruralvocationaleducationin Huai'an City, mainlymanifestedasthehomogenizationtendencyofprofessionalsettingsandthedetachmentfromlocalindustrialcharacteristics. Theinvestigationfoundthatvariousvocationalcollegeswithinthe Huai'an Cityhaveasignificantconvergenceinprofessionalsettings, lackingtheawarenessofdifferentiateddevelopmentanddistinctiveeducation. Whetheritisanational-leveldemonstrationschooloranordinaryschool, theirprofessionalcataloguesareoftenfilledwithabatchof"all-purpose"general-purposemajorssuchasmechatronics, numericalcontroltechnology, computerapplication, andaccountingcomputerization. Althoughthesemajorshaveawidemarketdemand, theyalsoleadtointensestudentcompetitionamongschoolsandtherepeatedconstructionofeducationalresources, failingtoformtheirownbrandsandadvantages. Whatismoreseriousisthatthishomogenizedprofessionallayouthasoccupiedvaluableresourcesthatshouldhavebeenusedtodevelopspecializedagricultural-relatedmajors. Schooladministratorsgenerallystatedininterviewsthatitiseasiertorecruitteachersforgeneral-purposemajors, thetrainingequipmentisrelativelystandardized, andstudentemploymentseemstobeeasier. However, whenitcomestoagricultural-relatedmajors, schoolsfacemultipledifficultiessuchashighinvestment, difficultrecruitmentofteachers, enrollmentdifficulties, andmanagementdifficulties, resultinginalackofinternaldrivingforcefordevelopingagricultural-relatedmajors. Thiseducationalapproachdirectlyleadstothefailureofprofessionalsettingstofullymeetthedevelopmentneedsofregionalcharacteristicagricultureandemergingruralindustriesin Huai'an City. Thereisa"two-layered"phenomenonbetweenthetalentsupplyandthelocaleconomicdevelopmentneeds. As Huai'an Cityisthe"China Shrimp Farming Capital"andanimportanthigh-qualityrice-producingarea, ithasformedacompleteindustrialchaincoveringbreeding, breeding/production, processing, logistics, catering, andtourismcenteredaroundthesetwocharacteristicindustries. Onthisindustrialchain, therearenumerousspecializedandprofessionaltalentshortages, suchasefficientecologicalbreedingtechnicians, agriculturalproductintensiveprocessingtechnicians, brandplanningandmarketingspecialists, e-commercelive-streamingoperationspecialists, anddragonshrimp-themedcateringmanagementtalents. However, inthesurveyedvocationalschools, hardlyanyschoolhassetupspecializedandsystematiccharacteristicmajorsorprofessionalgroupsaroundtheselocalsignatureindustries. Theexistingrelatedmajorsinaquacultureandfoodprocessing, etc., havemostlyuniversalcoursecontentandlackcustomizedteachingmodulesforthespecialprocessesandmarketdemandsofshrimpfarmingorhigh-qualityriceindustries. Similarly, inresponsetotheriseofruraltourismandhomestayeconomy, thetourismmanagementmajorofschoolshasfailedtotimelyadjustitsdirectionanddevelopcoursesfocusingonruraltourismplanning, homestaydesignandoperation, andruralculturalexperienceprojectdevelopment, resultingintalentstrainedbeingunabletomeettheneedsofupgradingruraltourism. Thisprofessionalsetting"silence"hasgreatlyreducedtheengineeffectofruralvocationaleducationinservinglocaleconomicdevelopment.
- 6. Shortageof Dual-Qualified Teachers Teachersarethedecisivefactorforthequalityofvocationaleducation. Thelevelofthe"dual-qualified"teachingstaffdirectlyaffectswhetherthetalentcultivationcanmeetthedemandsoftheindustry[. Asurveyshowsthatruralvocationalschoolsin Huai'an Cityarefacingadualpredicamentofaseriousshortageinquantityandanunreasonableinternalstructureofthe"dual-qualified"teachingstaff. Theshortageinquantityistheprimaryproblem. Datashowsthattheproportionof"dual-qualified"teachersinvocationalcollegesin Huai'an Cityamongprofessionalteachersisonly48.3%, anditisevenaslowas35.1%inagricultural-relatedmajors. Thismeansthatmorethanhalfoftheprofessionalteachers, especiallynearlytwo-thirdsoftheagricultural-relatedteachers, donothavethelegallyrequired"dual-qualified"qualifications. Behindthisdataliestherealitythatalargenumberofprofessionalteachingtasksareundertakenby"theoretical"teacherswholackpracticalexperienceinenterprises. Theseteachersmaybeabletoclearlyexplaintheoreticalknowledgefromtextbooks, butwhenfacingspecificproblemsinproductionpractice, theyoftenfeelinadequateandunabletoprovideeffectivepracticalguidanceforstudents. Whatismoreworryingistheissueofthe"value"of"dual-qualified"teachers?Amongtheonlyteacherswhohavethequalifications, theproportionofthosewhotrulyhavelong-International Journalof Multidisciplinary Researchand Growth Evaluationwww. allmultidisciplinaryjournal. com46|Pagetermandsystematicworkexperienceinfirst-lineenterprisesisextremelylow(only24.6%\Mostoftheirpracticalexperiencecomesfromshort-terminspectionsorcertificationtraining, andtheirunderstandingofthecutting-edgetechnologiesandprocessflowsintheindustryisverylimited. Thiskindof"paper-based""dual-qualified"teachersisdifficulttotrulyundertaketheresponsibilityofcultivatinghigh-qualitytechnicalandskilledtalents. Theunreasonablestructurefurtherexacerbatestheseverityoftheproblem. Firstly, thereisanimbalanceintheagestructure, withtheoverallteachingstafftendingtobeelderly, withmorethan40%ofteachersover45yearsold. Thereisalsoashortageofyoungbackboneteacherswhocanleadthetechnologicaltrendandarefullofinnovativevitality. Secondly, thereisamismatchbetweentheknowledgestructureandthedemandsoftheindustry. Withtheriseofnewindustriessuchassmartagricultureandrurale-commerce, theindustryurgentlyneedstalentswhocanmasterskillssuchasbigdata, Internetof Things, andnewmediamarketing. However, thereareveryfewteachersintheschool'steachingstaffwhopossessthesenewknowledgeandskills, resultinginseriousobstaclesintheestablishmentofrelatedmajorsandthedevelopmentofcourses, creatinganawkwardsituationwhere"theindustryhasdemands, buttheschoolcannotofferthem". Finally, thesourcestructureissingle. Thevastmajorityofthecurrentteachersarerecruiteddirectlyfromordinaryuniversities, lackingeffectivechannelsandincentivemechanismsforintroducinghigh-skilledexpertsandskilledworkersfromindustryandenterprises. Thissingle"academy-based"sourcemakesthepracticalgenesoftheentireteachingstaffinherentlyinsufficient, makingitdifficulttointroduce"livingwater"fromtheindustryintotheclassroom.
- 7. Insufficient Policy Supportand Inadequate Funding Investment Afavorablepolicyenvironmentandadequatefinancialsupportarethefundamentalprerequisitesforthehealthydevelopmentofruralvocationaleducation. However, fromthesubjectiveperceptionandobjectiverealityofthesurveyresults, thesupportsysteminthisfieldin Huai'an Cityisstillnotperfect, andthepolicy'sprecisionandtheguaranteeoffinancialresourcesarebothinsufficient. Intermsofpolicysupport, althoughthenationalandprovinciallevelshaveissuedaseriesofmacropolicydocumentsondevelopingvocationaleducationandservingruralrevitalization, atthemunicipallevel, thereisalackofaspecificandoperationalspecialsupportpolicysystemtailoredtoruralvocationaleducation. Schooladministratorsandteachersinterviewedgenerallyreportedthattheexistingpoliciesare"bigtalkbutlittleaction", mostlyconsistingofdirectionalcallsandlackingpracticalimplementationrulesthatcansolveproblems. Specifically, intermsofencouragingenterprisestoparticipateinschool-enterprisecooperation, thepolicyproposedtaxincentivesasaguidingdirection, butenterprisesgenerallyfeltunclearandinconvenientabouthowtoidentify, howtodeduct, andwhattheoperationprocesswas, resultinginthepolicybeing"emptyandineffective". Intermsofstabilizingtheteachingstaffforagricultural-relatedmajors, eventhoughthereweredocumentsproposingtoprovidespecialallowances, thestandardswerehowtodetermine, wherethefundscamefrom, oftenhadnoclearfollow-up, makingitdifficultforthepolicytobeimplemented. This"floating"stateofthepolicyhasmaderuralvocationaleducationdifficulttoobtainsubstantivepreferentialtreatmentandsupportinkeylinkssuchasenrollment, employment, teachingstaff, landuse, andschool-enterprisecooperation. Intermsoffinancialsupport, theproblemisevenmoreprominent. Ononehand, itisreflectedintherelativelyinsufficientfinancialinvestment. Althoughtheoverallinvestmentinvocationaleducationhasincreasedinrecentyears, theper-studentpublicfiscalbudgeteducationfundsforruralvocationalschoolsarestilllowerthanthoseforordinaryhighschools. Especiallyinthecurrentsituationwheretheoperatingcostsofagricultural-relatedmajorsaremuchhigherthanthoseofordinaryliberalartsmajors(suchastheneedtoinvestalargeamountoffundsinbuildingtrainingbasesandpurchasingconsumables\theexistingfinancialallocationstandardsaredifficulttomeetthehigh-qualitydevelopmentneedsofthesemajors. Ontheotherhand, thereisalackofspecialfundsandinstability. Theoperationanddevelopmentofschoolsrelyheavilyontheper-studentallocation, andthechannelsforspecialfundsforconstruction, curriculumreform, teachertraining, andupgradingoftrainingbasesarenotsmooth, oftenrequiringtemporaryprojectapplicationstoobtain, lackingastableandsustainablegrowthmechanismofinvestment. This"wait, rely, andask"financialmodelmakesschoolsunabletomakelong-termandsystematicdevelopmentplansandgreatlyrestrictstheirautonomyinrunningtheschool. Inthesurvey, upto78.1%ofagricultural-relatedteachersbelievedthatthetrainingequipmentwasseverelyinsufficientoroutdated, whichisthemostdirectconsequenceofthelackoffinancialsupport.
- 8. Outdated Training Facilities Teachingfacilitiesandtrainingbasesconstitutethe"hardware"foundationofvocationaleducation, especiallyruralvocationaleducationthatemphasizespracticaloperations. Theiradvancement, sufficiency, andsynchronizationwithindustriesdirectlydeterminewhetherstudentscanmastermodernvocationalskills. Asurveyshowsthatruralvocationalschoolsin Huai'an Citygenerallylagbehindinthisaspectandhavebecomeaseriousbottleneckrestrictingthequalityoftalentcultivation. Firstly, theteachingfacilitieswithintheschoolsaregenerallyoutdated, andthenumberoftrainingequipmentisinsufficient, withlowtechnicallevels. Manyschools'professionaltrainingroomsarestillatthestageof"onepersonoperatingwhilemanypeoplewatch", andthenumberofequipmentsetsisfarfrommeetingthepracticalteachingrequirementsforeachstudenthavingaposition. Moreseriously, thetechnicalleveloftheequipmentisseriouslyoutofsyncwiththeactualindustry. Asmentionedbefore, the B-ultrasoundmachinesforanimalhusbandryandthegreenhousesforhorticulture, etc., mayhavetechnicallevelsthatareseveralyearsorevenmorethanadecadebehindthemainstreammarketequipment. Whenstudentstrainwithoutdatedequipmentinschool, whentheyfaceadvancedproductionlinesandintelligentequipmentinenterprises, theywillfeelatalossandtheskillstheyhavelearnedcannotbedirectlytransferredandapplied. This"generationgap"inhardwaremakesthepracticalteachinginschoolslargelyinefficientorevenineffective, andcannottrulycultivate"plug-and-play"talentsthatenterprisesneed. Secondly, theconstructionofoff-campustrainingbasesislaggingbehind, withasmallnumberandpoorquality. High-qualityoff-campustrainingbasesarethekeyplacesforstudentstocontactrealworkplaceenvironmentsandconducton-the-jobinternships. However, International Journalof Multidisciplinary Researchand Growth Evaluationwww. allmultidisciplinaryjournal. com47|Pagethenumberofstable, high-qualityoff-campustrainingbasesthatcanbecooperatedwithstablyandtrulyparticipateintheeducationalprocessinruralvocationalschoolsin Huai'an Cityisverylimited. Manyso-called"trainingbases"aremerelyapieceofpaperagreementwithenterprises, andenterpriseshavenotinvestedspecializedvenues, equipment, andinstructorsforstudents'internships. Theinternshipsofstudentsinthesebasesareoftenusedascheaplabor, engagedinsimpleandrepetitiveauxiliarywork, anditisdifficultforthemtoreceivesystematicskilltrainingandvocationalcultivation. Publictrainingbasesthatarejointlybuiltbyschoolsandenterprisesandcanachieveintegrationofproductionandteachingareevenrarer. Thislagintrainingbaseconstructionhasdeprivedstudentsofthemostimportantcarrierforpracticalabilitycultivation, andtheintegrationofindustryandeducationhasthusbecome"waterwithoutasourceandwoodwithoutaroot".
- 9. Conclusion Basedontheaboveresearch, itcanbeseenthatruralvocationaleducationin Huai'an Cityfacesseveralprominentproblemsintermsoftalentcultivation, includinganimbalanceinsupplyanddemandstructure, outdatedteachingcontent, weakpracticalinnovationabilityofstudents, homogenizedprofessionalsettings, shortageofdual-qualifiedteachers, insufficientpolicysupportandfinancialinvestment, andbackwardtrainingfacilities. Theunderlyingcausesoftheseproblemscanbetracedbacktothemacro-levelpoliciesandinstitutionalaspects. Althoughboththenationalandlocallevelshaveissuedaseriesofdocumentstosupportvocationaleducationandruralrevitalization, thepolicysystemspecificallytargetingruralvocationaleducationisstillnotcomplete, andthereareissuesofsystematicness, complementarity, andoperability. Theexistingpoliciesaregenerallyapplicablebutfailtofullyconsidertheparticularitiesofruralvocationaleducationintermsofoperatingcosts, teachersources, studentcharacteristics, andserviceorientation, resultinginaweakeffectofprecisepolicyirrigation. Thisresearchaimstoidentifytheproblemsinthereformanddevelopmentprocessofruralvocationaleducationin Huai'an Cityandothersimilarregions, andprovidereferencesforsubsequentmeasurestosolvetheseproblems.
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