In order to thoroughly implement China＇s Education Modernization 2035 plan， further explore effective paths for the cultivation of innovative talents， and enhance teachers＇ STEM education professionalism， on April 17， 2021， the launching ceremony of the 4th China STEM Education Development Conference with the theme of ＂learning without boundaries， teachers and students grow together＂ was held in Beijing．

This conference was co－organized by the National Institute of Education Sciences， China Education Television， the Science Communication Bureau of the Chinese Academy of Sciences， and the China Association of Children’s Science Instructors． Liu Guihua， Vice President of the National Institute of Education Sciences， and Wang Xiuquan， Deputy Director of the Science Communication Bureau of the Chinese Academy of Sciences attended the ceremony and delivered keynote speeches．

Kan Lijun， President of China Foundation of Culture and Art for Children， Central Committee Member of China Association for Promoting Democracy， Lin Liqin， Secretary General of the China Association of Children’s Science Instructors， Yuan Wei， President of Dewey Center China， and Li Tianqi， CEO of Beijing Jiutian Future Technology Development Co．， Ltd． attended the launching ceremony of the conference．

More than 100 experts and principals from educational research institutes， universities， and well－known primary and secondary schools participated in the offline launching ceremony． More than 12，000 principals and teachers across the country watched the conference via video link．

Vice President Liu Guihua first expressed his gratitude to the guests who participated in the launching ceremony and the units that hosted the conference． He pointed out that a new round of technological and industrial revolution is in the ascendant， and new technologies such as artificial intelligence and 5G are developing rapidly， which will have a huge impact on the global innovation landscape and economic structure．

In the face of complex changes in the domestic and international environment， the Outline of the 14th Five－Year Plan （2021－2025） for National Economic and Social Development and the Long－Range Objectives Through the Year 2035 clearly stated that innovation is at the core of China’s modernization． STEM education is an important way to cultivate the innovative spirit and practical ability of young people． In 2016， China officially incorporated STEM education into China＇s 13th Five－Year Plan for ICT in Education， emphasizing that combined with ICT， interdisciplinary STEM learning can enhance students＇ knowledge of ICT， innovation awareness and innovation ability．

The National Institute of Education Sciences attaches great importance to the cultivation of innovative talents and STEM education research． It has launched the ＂China STEM Education 2029 Innovation Action Plan＂ and has carried out the largest and most extensive survey and research on STEM education in China． Mr． Liu Guihua expressed the hope that the conference will implement Xi Jinping’s thoughts on socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era， implement new concepts based on the new era， create a new pattern， and make positive contributions to accelerating the modernization of education， building an education power， and running an education that satisfies the people． 

Speech by Vice President Liu Guihua

Deputy director Wang Xiuquan stated that there have been many cases of Nobel laureates winning the awards for contribution outside their professionalism． Facts have proved that interdisciplinary is the source of innovation， which will lead to major scientific breakthroughs and bring about high－techs， hence promotion of social development． STEM education cultivates students＇ ability to explore， critical thinking， communication skills and innovation ability． It helps the cultivation of scientific and technological innovation talents， and promotes the enhancement of the scientific and technological innovation capabilities of our nation．

Deputy Director Wang Xiuquan gave a vivid introduction to the Chinese Academy of Sciences by interacting with the guests on site． He pointed out that the Chinese Academy of Sciences performed part of its scientific and technological functions and scientific research functions at the beginning of its establishment． It is now a top academic institution of natural sciences in China and a top consulting institution of science and technology． The University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences （UCAS），  under the direct leadership of the Chinese Academy of Sciences， is China＇s largest education institution for graduates．

The Chinese Academy of Sciences also shoulders the important responsibilities of popularizing scientific knowledge to young people， disseminating scientific methods and scientific research ideas， and advocating scientific culture． It abides by the purpose of serving the country and the society， and adheres to the high－end leadership， distinctive and systematic work positioning． The Science Communication Bureau of the Chinese Academy of Sciences hopes to join hands with the National Institute of Education Sciences in the future to make greater contributions to the future of China’s science， technology and education．

Speech by Deputy Director Wang Xiuquan

Wang Su， director of the Institute of International and Comparative Education of the National Institute of Education Sciences and director of the STEM Education Research Center of the National Institute of Education Sciences， first reviewed the main fruits of the previous China STEM Education Development Conferences and gave an overall introduction to this conference．

The conference set up five challenge themes of future life， modern energy， new agriculture， deep space exploration and artificial intelligence． It will build a learning community in a brand－new way， and invite experts from various fields across the country to form a mentor group， a co－creation coaching group and a panel of judges． With the teachers and students participating in challenging tasks together， it will promote the development of STEM－oriented teachers．

Director Wang Su introduced in detail the mentor team， co－creation coaching team and the panel of judges， and pointed out that this conference will integrate scientific research and training with teacher’s progress as the core within seven months． Via online and offline methods， three rounds of challenge tasks and stage performances will be delivered to help teachers make progress and promote the development regional STEM education． The national ＂STEM seed teachers＂ and ＂STEM seed schools＂ were selected， and the ＂China STEM Education 2029 Action Plan＂ was issued to make impact and promote the development of STEM education in China．

Director Wang Su introduces this conference

Li Jia， a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute of Education Sciences， gave a comprehensive interpretation of the specific work and procedures of the conference， including the conference procedures， task rules， goals and results， and registration channels． The three rounds of challenge tasks and a stage show performance will all be delivered by teachers and students．

Dr． Li Jia also gave a detailed interpretation of the specific tasks， work requirements， timetable， support， etc． of the conference， and explained in detail the expectation towards the participating students， teachers， schools and regions in this conference， shared path of growth for teachers and students and the expected results of the conference．

Dr． Li Jia interprets the work and process of this conference

At the launching ceremony， Gao Bin， director of the Jilin Institute of Education Sciences， and Guo Bin， Director of the Educational Research Information Center of the Sichuan Institute of Education Sciences， spoke as representatives of the co－organizers． Luo Bin， principal of Beijing Haidian District Teachers＇ Training School， delivered a speech on behalf of the instructor team of this conference．

Li Tianqi， CEO of Beijing Jiutian Future Technology Development Co．， Ltd．， and Wong Kam Fai， vice chairman of the Hong Kong STEM Education Alliance， respectively gave keynote speeches entitled ＂＇Aerospace＇ is by your side＂ and ＂Growth Story Telling＂．

Li Tianqi， CEO of Beijing Jiutian Future Technology Development Co．， Ltd．

Finally， reporters from China Education Television， China org．cn， and China Teachers Daily interviewed the representatives of organizers， co－organizers， the mentor team and the conference organizing committee． So far， the launching ceremony of the 4th China STEM Education Development Conference has been a great success．

Group photo of guests at the launching ceremony of the 4th China STEM Education Development Conference

As a national comprehensive education think tank directly under the Ministry of Education， the National Institute of Education Sciences established the STEM Education Research Center in 2017， launched the ＂China STEM Education 2029 Action Plan＂， and successfully held three sessions of China STEM Education Development Conference． A systematic and in－depth discussion on STEM education was carried out at the academic and theoretical level， which has make significant impact．