On the afternoon of January 12, 2025, the 176th Huaxia Curriculum Forum, hosted by ICI from East China Normal University, convened a distinguished panel of scholars for a series of insightful presentations and discussions on the theme “The Certainty and Uncertainty of Educational Value Choices.” The event featured Professor Yu Tianlong from the Department of Educational Leadership at Southern Illinois University, Associate Professor Tang Yan from the Institute of Moral Education at Nanjing Normal University, Professor Tang Hanwei from the Department of Education at East China Normal University, and Jia Yuchao, Editor-in-Chief and Executive Editor of China Distance Education. They were joined by Professor Gao Desheng and Associate Professor Shi Yuchen from the Institute of Curriculum and Instruction at East China Normal University. Moderated by Associate Professor Shi, the forum offered a vibrant academic exchange for faculty and students.

Presentation Highlights

Professor Yu Tianlong: “Trump 2.0 and the Trajectory of U.S. Education Policy”

Professor Yu analyzed the potential impacts of Trump’ second administration on U.S. education policy. He highlighted three key areas:

Higher Education: Universities may face a weakening of liberal and elite tendencies, economic pressures, and continued challenges for international student programs.

K-12 Education: Policies promoting universal school choice, the repeal of protections for diverse gender identities, and a renewed emphasis on parental rights are likely to spark controversy, with significant changes primarily in Republican-led states.

Federal Education Department: The potential dissolution of the U.S. Department of Education remains uncertain, though historical precedent suggests it is not implausible.

Professor Gao Desheng: “The Crisis of Individuality in the Modern Era and Its Educational Challenges—With Reflections on Transforming Education for Individuality”

Professor Gao explored the crisis of individuality in contemporary society and its implications for education, proposing pathways for educational transformation. He argued that the substitution of uniform rationality for diversity, the shaping of homogenous social character by economic rationality, and the acceleration of mechanization through technology have placed individuality under severe threat. Gao defined individuality across multiple dimensions:

It intertwines first-person (subjective) and third-person (objective) perspectives, grounding individuality in both personal agency and external reference.

Individuality denotes not just uniqueness as difference but uniqueness as irreplaceability.

The development of individuality requires both subjective engagement—driven by personal passion and interaction—and the presence of public spaces and communal participation.

Associate Professor Tang Yan : “Telling Stories of Justice: A Poetic Approach to Moral Education Research”

Using “Socrates’ Story of Justice” as a case study, Associate Professor Tang presented three narrative versions to explore a poetic (poiesis-based) approach to fostering justice in moral education.

Version One: A story narrated by “a certain AI.”

Version Two: A chronological narrative by the researcher, tracing Socrates’ encounters—his dialogue with Euthyphro outside the courtroom, his defense before the Athenian public, his rejection of Crito’s escape plan, and his final conversations with friends before his execution, seeking to purify himself of guilt.

Version Three: A philosophical autobiography of Socrates, as depicted by Plato, where Socrates narrates his own story of justice, emphasizing self-reflection, self-knowledge, the capacity to acknowledge error, and the pursuit of principled action.

Associate Professor Shi Yuchen: “Returning to the Complexity of Real Life: Exploring Diverse Values in Issue-Based Teaching”

Associate Professor Shi examined the effectiveness of issue-based teaching in cultivating higher-order thinking skills. She emphasized that moral education must engage with the complexity of real life, which is inherently value-conflicted. By reflecting on the unique role of school-based moral education, Shi advocated for purposeful, systematic, and sustained efforts to develop students’ higher-order thinking, enabling them to make reasoned judgments and take appropriate actions in complex, conflict-ridden contexts. She shared case studies from collaborations with frontline educators and underscored the importance of prioritizing cognitive and intellectual development in schooling.

Panel Discussion

During the discussion segment, Editor-in-Chief Jia Yuchao and Professor Tang Hanwei offered reflections on the presentations. Jia commended the forum for addressing a critical contemporary issue and suggested further exploration of questions such as the principles guiding value choices, the foundations of moral diversity, and the boundaries between respect and support.

Professor Tang emphasized that, in an era of digitization and artificial intelligence, the certainty and uncertainty of values remain central to education. He also proposed analyzing U.S. education policy trends from a historical perspective.

The forum concluded with lively discussions and an engaging, collegial atmosphere. Participants expressed enthusiasm for future academic exchanges and intellectual debates on the topic of educational value choices. This event, a highlight of the university’s academic calendar, underscored the importance of rigorous scholarship in addressing pressing educational questions.