Abstract:

As a type of education closely related to the national economy and people's livelihood, vocational education has gradually developed in China since modern times and has become the largest and most complete vocational education system in the world. With the advancement of practice, the academic community has been committed to the theoretical construction of practical problems, especially since the Reform and Opening up. The prominent feature of knowledge production in vocational education during this period was the strong support of vocational education research institutions in universities, and the basic paradigm went through two stages: the construction of the basic knowledge system of vocational education in the last 20 years of the 20th century, and theoretical research in a broader disciplinary perspective in the first 20 years of the 21st century. The research during this period has effectively promoted the knowledge evolution of vocational education. This article takes knowledge production in vocational education since the 1980s as the research question, focusing on the six core research areas of vocational education such as connotation, value, system, curriculum, teacher education, and school-enterprise cooperation. With the significant papers in these six areas as the object, through the analysis of the evolution path and future direction of knowledge production, the basic framework of vocational education knowledge production is outlined, which providing reference for further research to improve the academic level of vocational education.

Key words: Chinese vocational education, theoretical research, knowledge production, empirical research