| Abstract: | Party control over higher education in reform-era China has been a relatively neglected topic in the extant literature. Seeking to remedy this neglect, this article focuses on an aspect of the topic that has remained unstudied in Western scholarship: namely, the post-1989 regime's efforts to strengthen and professionalize political education (PE) in universities by intensifying the ‘disciplinary construction’ of PE. The article finds that these efforts have been partially successful in meeting the regime's objectives. The training of PE teachers has been considerably professionalized; PE courses have become more attractive and effective; and more students tend to accept the Party-sponsored views and policies taught in PE courses, and to support Party leadership. |
