Uni’s Marxism school to be standardized

MOE wants better understanding of Marxist theory and ideology

Chinese education authorities have unveiled some standards for the study of Marxism at university, which experts have said shows China’s new emphasis on Marxist education and ideology.

The standards come from the Ministry of Education (MOE), with specific requirements for school facilities, faculty and courses, according to a post on MOE’s WeChat account Wednesday.

Part of China’s guiding ideology is Marxist theory, which is at the theoretical foundation of China’s political system and a great influence on the country’s development, Zhuang Deshui, deputy director of Peking University’s Government Integrity-Building Research Center, told the Global Times.

Zhuang added that the standards show that China is making a greater effort to strengthen Marxist education and ideological work in universities.

This is the first document in China to give detailed requirement on the subject, and it is especially significant as it offers verifiable standards for evaluation, he added.

The document states that the university’s principal and Party chief will have the main responsibility for Marxist work and need to hold at least one office meeting on that each academic year.

Schools of Marxism are to be regarded as independent institutions, directly under the university, whose leaders are responsible for establishing the ideology and theoretical studies for all students.

These quantifications are meant to help clarity the university’s responsibilities in a Marxist education and to get their senior personnel to look for more practical applications instead of just talking about it, said Zhuang.

“In this way, schools of Marxism can place more importance on its ideological power and not confine it to one department, but spread its message all over the university,” he said.

The standards also call for mid-tosmall Marxism classes of no more than 100 students each.

“Small classes have much better quality and a greater effect than large classes, because students can discuss things with each other and communicate with the teacher better,” Zhu Andong, an associate professor at Tsinghua University’s School of Marxism, told the Global Times.

Most universities still need some time to achieve the standard required, mainly because of the limited number of full-time teachers, Zhu added.

The standards also call for full-time teachers at these schools to be Party members at least in principle, and both part-time and full-time Marxism teachers have to have a related academic background.

In the area of Party and ideological development at Marxism schools, students and teachers are asked to organize Party activities for at least half a day every month.