Introduction

With the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, the education sector is undergoing a new intelligent transformation. Recently, the Ministry of Education, National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology, and National Data Bureau jointly issued the “AI + Education Action Plan” to promote the integration of AI in talent cultivation and application innovation, indicating that AI will further reshape the foundational environment and innovative ecosystem of education, systematically constructing an educational system for the intelligent era.

Current Challenges in Vocational Education

Currently, China’s vocational education system has traditionally focused on a practice-oriented talent cultivation model. However, AI not only changes teaching methods but also serves as a key technological support for promoting deeper integration between industry and education.

China is at a critical stage of industrial structural transformation and upgrading, with an increasing demand for high-quality technical and skilled talent in strategic emerging industries and advanced manufacturing. This raises higher requirements for vocational education. Traditional vocational education models often suffer from a disconnect between theoretical teaching content and industry needs, misalignment between practical training and actual operations, and a singular evaluation method for talent, making it difficult to adapt to new demands from industry upgrades. Therefore, reforming the vocational education system is imperative.

Key Tasks of the AI + Education Action Plan

The “AI + Education Action Plan” outlines four key tasks to promote AI in education during the 14th Five-Year Plan period: 1) enhancing AI talent cultivation and literacy; 2) facilitating deep integration of AI with education; 3) strengthening the foundational environment for AI + education; and 4) creating an open ecosystem for AI + education. These tasks clearly define the direction for systematic reform and structural optimization of the vocational education system.

Goal Transformation: Cultivating High-Quality Skilled Talent with AI Literacy

The cultivation goals of vocational education are shifting from specialized skill training to comprehensive competency development. AI should be integrated into the public foundational curriculum. Furthermore, during the vocational education phase, there should be a push for the intelligent transformation of traditional industry-related majors to cultivate high-skilled talent that adapts to industrial changes.

The course “AI Applications and Practices” has become a required course in many universities’ foundational curriculum. Many vocational undergraduate programs approved this year have also included this course in their talent cultivation plans. Numerous teaching teams are actively revising the latest talent cultivation plans during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, embedding cutting-edge technology modules into professional extension courses, dynamically updating course content using big data analysis and technology trends from industry enterprises, and offering interdisciplinary courses that integrate AI with education. This approach aims to ensure that students not only possess foundational knowledge related to AI but also have the comprehensive ability to solve practical industry problems using AI technology.

Simultaneously, elements such as craftsmanship spirit, professional ethics, and innovation awareness are incorporated into the teaching process, forming a dual emphasis on “technical ability + professional quality” to enhance students’ employment competitiveness and long-term development potential.

Deep Integration of Industry and Education: Embedding AI Technology in Teaching Mechanisms

The integration of industry and education is a fundamental characteristic of vocational education, and the embedding of AI technology enables faster information updates and closer communication between schools and enterprises. Through industry data sharing and collaborative teaching platforms, the teaching mechanism between schools and enterprises is gradually becoming data-driven and dynamic.

By the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan, there are 37 independent vocational undergraduate institutions in China. AI technology has been integrated throughout the professional construction process in these institutions. In curriculum reform, enterprise mentors and professional teachers utilize AI technology to transform real sales data into teaching resources. Enterprise mentors participate in theoretical teaching at schools, while professional teachers take students to enterprises for comprehensive practice. Ultimately, schools aim to cultivate professional technical talent with AI application capabilities tailored to the needs of enterprises. Schools and enterprises also collaborate on technology research and clinical testing, jointly promoting technological iteration in the industry. Enterprises are no longer just users of talent but are gradually transforming into participants in talent cultivation.

Furthermore, AI-driven blended teaching is becoming the mainstream teaching form in vocational education. For example, a course on “Optometry Technician” relies on the “Smart Eye” AI assistant to achieve personalized learning path planning, real-time question answering, and precise tutoring. As a result, classroom teaching has shifted from “teacher-led instruction” to “collaborative exploration between teachers and students.” This course has been recognized as a high-quality online course in Shanghai’s higher vocational education for 2024 and shares online resources with institutions such as the Shanghai Eye Disease Prevention Center, Shanghai Health Medical College, and Hainan Health Medical College.

The transformation of the teacher’s role is also noteworthy. Teachers are transitioning from knowledge transmitters to learning guides, course developers, and promoters of technology application. This raises higher requirements for the existing “dual-teacher” workforce, as teachers need to master core competencies in AI teaching tools, digital resource development, and intelligent learning analytics to achieve precise and personalized teaching. Enterprise mentors are involved throughout the course design and teaching process, allowing students to engage in real industry projects, ensuring alignment between talent cultivation and industry development.

Upgrading Practical Teaching: Virtual Simulation Restoring Real-World Scenarios

Practical teaching is a crucial component in cultivating technical and skilled talent in vocational education, equally important as theoretical teaching. However, many practical teaching initiatives are constrained by high costs and limited coverage. AI-enabled virtual simulation training platforms can effectively alleviate these constraints.

For instance, a university developed the “Virtual Simulation Optometry E-commerce Software,” which has received national software copyright in 2023. The software was developed using real operational data from enterprises, creating a gamified learning scenario that allows students to complete real e-commerce operations training in a zero-risk environment. With the help of the AI assistant, students can quickly reinforce their professional knowledge and make better decisions; through AI simulation training, they enhance their practical skills in customer service when facing different clients; and by using AI to create content, they can personalize their online stores without needing artistic skills. Additionally, the virtual scenario supports repeated training and corrections, significantly reducing training costs and safety risks.

Moreover, AI systems can collect and analyze students’ training data in real-time, identify weak skill areas, and push targeted reinforcement training content, providing timely feedback. Practical data shows that after the AI-enabled practical teaching reform, students’ core skill indicators and operational accuracy rates have significantly improved.

Enhancing Teachers’ Digital Literacy and Skills: Innovating Educational Models

It is imperative to comprehensively enhance teachers’ digital literacy and skills. While the prediction that AI might replace teachers has been debunked, teachers who do not understand AI cannot endure in the long run. As vocational education teachers, they should be at the forefront of reform, fully stimulating their intrinsic motivation to apply AI in innovative educational models. They must not only learn to use AI themselves but also embed AI into both theoretical and practical teaching, especially in practical teaching, to efficiently align with enterprise upgrades and ensure the synchronization of talent cultivation.

The traditional concept of “dual-teacher” is no longer sufficient to meet the demands of modern vocational education development. Previously, the “dual certification”—a teacher qualification certificate plus a vocational qualification certificate—was merely a stepping stone. In the future, AI will undoubtedly be integrated into the teacher qualification examination and certification system.

This is not unfounded; in recent years, from the national to provincial and municipal levels, even school construction and research projects have been closely tied to AI. In June 2025, the Ministry of Science and Technology released the “National Key R&D Plan for Disruptive Technology Innovation” project application guidelines, focusing on AI-driven scientific research in complex foundational and applied sciences, targeting cutting-edge science, life health, new materials, engineering design, and other areas. Projects that align with Shanghai’s technological and industrial development needs will receive support from the city, encouraging university teachers to actively apply.

Looking at various teaching projects, the evaluation criteria for Shanghai’s higher vocational education’s municipal-level high-quality online open courses clearly emphasize AI as an important direction for teaching reform, prioritizing support for courses that incorporate AI. Many vocational education institutions have also established specialized sections such as “AI Empowerment and Industry-Education Integration,” encouraging competitive project proposals. It is evident that AI has transitioned from an optional component to a necessity in teaching projects, evolving from an additional module to a foundational module.

Finally, regarding student competitions, the “Challenge Cup,” co-hosted by multiple ministries including the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League, Chinese Association for Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and National Student Federation, undoubtedly represents the highest level of technological innovation among university students. In 2025, it will introduce a special competition for AI+. Since its inception, the competition has consistently aligned with national strategic needs, and its track setup serves as a barometer for technological hotspots. As guiding teachers, they should not only focus on national policy hotspots but also consider how to deeply integrate with AI, avoiding a mere skills competition. It is important to note that this does not mean merely accumulating data and intelligent models but rather considering cross-industry collaboration to realize practical applications in real-world scenarios.

Conclusion

The transformation brought by AI technology to the education sector leaves much for vocational education to contemplate. From the transformation of cultivation goals to the deep integration of industry and schools, from the upgrading of practical teaching to the enhancement of teacher literacy and skills, every aspect is interconnected and organically unified. However, this is only a foundational framework at a high starting point. Vocational education should and must keep pace with AI, continuously iterating and innovating to create a new ecosystem, cultivating more high-quality skilled talents that meet industry needs and possess innovative capabilities, providing solid talent support for the high-quality development of China’s economy and society.