Cultivating Virtue and Skill, Integrating Industry and Education:Letting the Light of Youth Shine Among the Silver-Haired

An Interview with Jian Yajue, Professor of Gerontology

Abstract

This exclusive interview with Professor Jian Yajue, leader of the Smart Health Elderly Care Services and Management program at Tianjin City Vocational College, elaborates on the decade-long development of this Tianjin municipal “Double High” demonstration program, established in 2016. Centered on talent cultivation for the elderly care industry, the interview covers the program’s establishment background—rooted in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region’s aging society and its associated talent demands—its core educational concepts, including the educators’ spirit and the “Seven Hearts” philosophy, and the distinctive “Three Stages, Six Steps” talent cultivation model. It also introduces the “One Committee, One Community, Three Colleges” industry-education integration platform; the digital teaching system comprising “One Course, One Database, and One Virtual Simulation Base”; and the program’s outstanding achievements in graduate employment, social services, and rural revitalization. The program’s development embodies the integration of virtue and skill in vocational education, and its deep industry-education integration provides a valuable reference for elderly care talent cultivation and the high-quality development of vocational education.