Innovation in Higher Education Content Driven by Societal Demands: Core Issues and Strategies for Aligning with China’s Economic Development

Colledge of Social Sciences, Gilmorehill Campus, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom

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Abstract

Chinese economy is at the critical transitional stage besides the high-quality and rapid development. This change requires a proportional adjustment of industries against which a novel demand on the quality of talent and their competencies applies. Education, a major instrument in developing talents, has a direct impact on the level of human capital production and the rate of economic growth. Nevertheless, the prevailing education system in China has three fundamental issues, namely excessively teaching and minimally using theory to practical application, high levels of gameness in educational provision and a slower pace of reviewing the curricula. These challenges help to create the disparity between the supply of talents and the needs of the markets. Based on the human capital theory and the education-based economic growth theory, the present study is an in-depth analysis of the bridges between industry and education, the advance of region-specific educational contents, as well as the active mechanism to adjust the educational curriculum on time. The goal is to focus the theoretical approach to education-related interaction on the economy, mitigate the imbalance between the supply and demand of talent, and finally, supply solid human capital to support economic progress and productivity rates.