Reflections, Hotspots and Prospects of Researches on China’s Modern Vocational Education System — A Bibliometric Analysis Based on CNKI Core Journals from 2000 to 2025

Abstract

889 core journal papers retrieved from the CNKI database covering the period 2000–2025 are adopted as research samples in this paper. Quantitative analyses including annual publication statistics, keyword co-occurrence and cluster analysis are performed via the bibliometric software COOC9.94, and qualitative interpretations are conducted based on historical institutionalism and type education theory. Three evolutionary stages are identified for domestic research on China’s modern vocational education system: the lagging initial stage (2000–2010), the exponential growth stage (2011–2016), and the bottleneck adjustment stage (2017–2025). Five core clusters are summarized for research hotspots, which are vocational education philosophy and system construction, integration of vocational and general education together with lifelong education, connotation construction and practical education, school-enterprise cooperation and industry-education integration, as well as digital transformation and model innovation. Multiple structural dilemmas are confronted in the current construction of China’s modern vocational education system, such as insufficient hierarchical adaptability, imperfect integration mechanisms, and talent training models mismatched with industrial iteration. Dual coordinates consisting of building an education powerhouse and fostering new quality productive forces are taken as the basis for future research and practice. Three core orientations including system adaptability optimization, interconnected training overpass construction and talent training model innovation are focused on, and in-depth explorations are carried out in key fields covering the implementation of type education, digital empowerment and precise supply of industrial talents.