Curriculum Governance of Ideological and Moral Education in Northwest Chinese Universities

Abstract

Curriculum-Based Ideological and Moral Education has become a fundamental component of higher education policy in China, aimed at strengthening students' ethical, civic, and moral development by integrating these principles across all academic disciplines. However, higher education institutions differ considerably in the ways they interpret, organize, and implement this curriculum mandate through their institutional documents. The objective of this study was to comparatively analyses the curriculum governance of Curriculum-Based Ideological and Moral Education in three universities located in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region of northwest China, representing a comprehensive university, a vocational undergraduate university, and a private application-oriented college. A qualitative research approach was adopted through document analysis of institutional policies, implementation plans, curriculum templates, course syllabi, teaching evaluation instruments, and professional development documents. The findings identified three predominant models of curriculum governance. The comprehensive university exhibited a highly structured and systematic model characterized by strong institutional codification. The vocational undergraduate university demonstrated an evaluation-oriented model focused on the operationalization of teaching processes. In contrast, the private application-oriented college presented an integrated and practice-oriented model, allowing greater flexibility in adapting national guidelines to its institutional context. These differences reflect the influence of governance structures, curriculum management strategies, and organizational priorities on the implementation of the same national education policy. This study provides an analytical framework for understanding how higher education institutions recontextualize national policies and contributes to the advancement of knowledge on curriculum governance within the context of value-oriented educational reform