A Study on Quality Improvement of Undergraduate Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Programs in the Construction of National First-Class English Majors ()
1. Introduction
The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program for Undergraduates is a reform program implemented by the Ministry of Education in 2012 to cultivate high-level innovative talents to meet the needs of the construction of an innovative country and to promote a change in the educational ideology of colleges and universities. A project consists of three to five undergraduates working together under the guidance of a mentor to complete a research project. The project usually includes project design and preparation of research conditions in the early stage, implementation of the project in the middle stage, division of labor and thematic research, as well as the writing of the research report in the late stage after the results are obtained. Such projects are categorized into national, provincial, and school levels, and the national and provincial projects are reported by each university according to the declaration of each second-level college after evaluation and selection. Colleges and universities actively respond to the national call to encourage undergraduates to participate in training programs and usually do not set a quota for school-level projects under the premise of ensuring the quality of the projects. Documents such as Inner Mongolia University Students’ Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Programme Management Measures and Inner Mongolia Normal University Students’ Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Programme Project Implementation Plan (Revised) are clear that the number of projects is limited. It can be seen that the number of school-level projects may depend on the quality of the project. Since the Ministry of Education introduced the project program, the number of project declarations has been on the rise year by year.
Since the Ministry of Education implemented the Undergraduate Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program in 2012, colleges and universities have been committed to cultivating high-level innovative talents adapted to the construction of an innovative country. However, with time, especially in the field of English majors, the continuous improvement of the quality of these training programs has become the most important issue. With the promotion of the “double first-class” construction work in recent years, the English major of Inner Mongolia University was selected as a national first-class English major construction site in 2019. With the increasing number of undergraduates graduating in recent years and the overlay of the epidemic, the employment difficulty of college students is more conspicuous. There is a greater need for the implementation of innovation and entrepreneurship training program at the undergraduate stage. It is also necessary to implement the innovation and entrepreneurship training program at the undergraduate level to take the initiative to adapt to the new situation of “double first-class” construction and to improve the quality of the program. Therefore, under the new situation, this topic has unique research value and application value compared with the existing research.
The motivation for selecting the topic of this study is to respond to the current urgent demand for innovation and entrepreneurship talent cultivation in higher education in the context of the construction of national first-class English majors and to explore the methods of improving the quality of undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training program. The English major has experienced a transformation from focusing on academic ability to emphasizing composite talents with a solid language foundation and broad knowledge. The most notable sign of this is the opening of more and more business English majors. By 2017, more than 260 colleges and universities offered business English majors. However, the past ten years of the transformation program have been too uniform, and nearly each college and university has not formed its own characteristics, resulting in a serious homogenization of graduates and a decline in the competitiveness of the graduates. In other words, the goal of cultivating compound English talents, if not grasped properly, will also cause an identity crisis for English majors. Local colleges and universities will be unable to keep up with the requirements of a diversified industrial structure due to the specifications of the talents, and the industry will be out of touch, with direct and drastic impacts. If the problem of graduates cannot be solved and knowledge-based economic and social development is not aligned with these issues, the English language profession could be at risk. Considering the construction goal of the national first-class English major and the social demand for high-quality innovative talents, this study aims to deeply explore and improve the implementation quality of undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training program. In particular, there are problems and challenges in resource allocation, teacher guidance, student participation, interdisciplinary integration, etc., so this study seeks to put forward practical and effective improvement strategies to help English majors be able to better adapt to the challenges of their future careers, in order to enable them to contribute to the development of the society and the economy in their way. Considering the fierce competition in the current job market and the objective impact of the epidemic on the educational environment, this study is of great significance in strengthening the construction of the country’s first-class English majors, improving students’ practical English skills, and cultivating more talents for society.
The focus of this study will be on the following key aspects. First, the study provides a systematic inquiry into the causes and outcomes of the quality improvement of undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training program in the construction of national first-class English majors. This move has important theoretical and practical significance for understanding and optimizing the current educational model, especially in the English major. The theoretical significance of the study lies in deepening and enriching the theoretical system in the field of innovation and entrepreneurship education, exploring the application of innovation and entrepreneurship education in English majors and its effects on the participants and society, as well as providing new perspectives on interdisciplinary educational integration. In addition, by analyzing educational models at home and abroad, the study will help to construct a theoretical framework of innovation and entrepreneurship education applicable to China’s higher education environment, thus providing theoretical support for the formulation of future educational policies and the innovative development of teaching methods. In terms of practical significance/practical application, the study will have a direct impact on the implementation of the innovation and entrepreneurship training program for undergraduate English majors. The findings of the study will guide the curriculum design, teaching methodology, and assessment criteria of colleges and universities in innovation and entrepreneurship education, and help students better adapt to the future work content and overall collaborative office environment. The findings of the study will also provide examples of successful practices to improve innovation and entrepreneurship education in other majors or fields, which will help to improve the quality and outcomes of teaching and learning throughout the higher education system.
Secondly, with the increasing competition in the job market and the deepening of economic globalization, there is a growing demand for job seekers’ innovative and entrepreneurial abilities, and thus the quality of innovative and entrepreneurial programs will be closely related to students’ future employment competitiveness and career prospects. In addition, the study will provide insights to educational policymakers to help them better understand how to effectively integrate innovation and entrepreneurship education in English majors to produce practical talents that are more responsive to the needs of society and the economy. Finally, the study will also provide models of improvement and lessons to be explored for other majors and related fields to realize the implementation of educational method reform and development in a wider range of fields.
2. A Review of the Current Status of Research
2.1. Research Status in China and Abroad
In China, research on undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training programs has gradually shifted from the macro policy level to specific practice and effect evaluation. The research focuses on the design of the program, the difficulties of implementation, and the cultivation of students’ practical application of professional knowledge. Especially in English majors, the research focuses more on how to combine traditional language learning with innovation and entrepreneurship education to promote the development of students’ comprehensive abilities. During the development of the undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training program project for nearly 10 years, teachers in domestic universities have explored and researched the undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship program. Some papers have analyzed and evaluated the practice of implementing the program in domestic colleges and universities, Wang et al. (2013) published the paper Experience and reflections on the implementation of “National College Students’ Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program” in China Electric Power Education, and Liang (2016) published a paper in Journal of Shandong Institute of Commerce and Technology “Problems and countermeasures in the implementation of innovation and entrepreneurship training program for college students—A case study of Guangdong University of Technology”. Chai & Xiao (2018) published the paper “Construction of management model of college students’ innovation and entrepreneurship training program—From the perspective of project management” in Chinese University Education. Bai & Wei (2019) published the paper “The necessity of college students’ innovation and entrepreneurship training program for talent training” in Modern Marketing (Information Edition). Zheng (2019) published the paper “A discussion on the training model of innovative and entrepreneurial talents for foreign language majors” in Journal of Hunan University of Science and Engineering. Zhao & Wang (2020) published the paper “Analysis of college English major teaching based on innovation and entrepreneurship ability training”. Chen (2020) published a paper in Employment and Security, “Thinking on the cultivation and employment development of English majors in the context of innovation and entrepreneurship”, and Lu (2020) published a paper in Journal of Hubei Open University, “Current situation of innovation and entrepreneurship education for English majors in the new era and ways to cultivate entrepreneurial awareness”. Liu (2021) published her paper “A study on foreign language talent training model in the context of innovation and entrepreneurship—A case study of Hebei University of Engineering”, and Zhang (2023) published a paper “Measures to optimize innovation and entrepreneurship education for English majors from the perspective of applied talent training” in Journal of Harbin Vocational College.
The research on innovation and entrepreneurship education in western countries is more diversified and mature, involving many aspects such as education model innovation, curriculum design, teacher role, and student participation. For example, some studies have explored the way to enhance students’ hands-on experience and entrepreneurship through simulated corporate environments, entrepreneurial mentorship programs, and student-led projects. These studies provide valuable experience for innovation and entrepreneurship education in liberal arts fields such as English majors. Fan (2017) published a paper “Inspiration from entrepreneurship centers in American entrepreneurial universities— Taking Stanford Business School and Massachusetts Institute of Technology as examples” in the Journal of Changchun Institute of Education, and Li (2020) published a paper “Study on curriculum setting of innovation and entrepreneurship education in Britain” in the Chinese Journal of Multimedia and Network Teaching (Last Period). However, foreign research and practice often ignore the adaptability of students’ learning in different cultural and educational system contexts, so how to effectively apply these experiences and methods in the context of Chinese higher education requires more research based on localization.
2.2. Deficiencies in the Study
Current research is significantly deficient in assessing the effectiveness of innovation and entrepreneurship education, especially in quantifying the specific effects of students’ innovation and entrepreneurship enhancement. Secondly, there is still a lack of in-depth exploration of effective strategies and methods for interdisciplinary integration, especially in terms of teaching content, teaching methods, and student assessment. In addition, domestic and international studies often lack an in-depth analysis of the interaction between educational policies and practices. In the specific context of English majors, how to effectively integrate innovation and entrepreneurship education with language skills training and how to assess its specific contribution to students’ future career development remains an open question. Therefore, more research with operationalization is needed to fill this gap.
2.3. Research Methods
To deeply investigate the “Quality Improvement of Undergraduate Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Programs in the Construction of National First-class English Majors”, the following methods will be adopted in this study.
1) Literature review: Through the systematic analysis of existing domestic and international literature, the theoretical framework and practice of innovation and entrepreneurship education, especially the applied research for English majors, is understood.
2) Case study: Selecting some typical cases of several countries in the construction of national first-class English majors for in-depth analysis to extract successful experiences and analyze existing problems.
3) Questionnaire survey: Designing a questionnaire for undergraduates, teachers, and relevant managers of English majors to collect first-hand data.
4) Interview method: Through semi-structured interviews, in-depth exchanges were conducted with program participants and educational experts to understand their views and suggestions on the implementation of the program.
5) Data analysis: Using qualitative and quantitative analysis methods, the data collected will be analyzed comprehensively to identify key factors that affect the quality of the project.
Together, these methods will support the realization of the research objectives and provide a scientific basis for improving the quality of undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training programs.
3. Problems Existing in the Projects That Have Been Approved
3.1. General Problems before the Construction of National First-Class English Majors
Before the recognition of the national first-class English major construction site, there were the following problems in the establishment of innovation and entrepreneurship training projects at the national, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and Inner Mongolia university levels.
1) Unbalanced resource allocation: National and autonomous region-level project resources are mainly concentrated in some universities, while other universities, especially non-key universities, are facing the dilemma of lack of resources, which is not conducive to the overall quality improvement and diversity of projects.
2) Insufficient project management and support: Due to the imperfect management mechanism and support system, some projects encounter many challenges in the implementation process, such as shortage of funds, lack of equipment, and inadequate guidance. On the one hand, the management mechanism can provide support and supervision to students and instructors to varying degrees. If not managed in time and without a satisfactory supervisory system, many projects will face the risk of failure or diminished research results. On the other hand, the teacher’s guidance can, to a large extent, assist students by pointing out the way. If the teacher’s guidance is ineffective, it will cause students to become confused and panic, which will lead to project failure.
3) Low student participation: Students’ awareness and participation in these projects are not high, partly due to the lack of publicity and attractiveness of the projects, as well as the limitations of students’ understanding of innovation and entrepreneurship. As the reward mechanism of the project is flawed, the difficulties faced by students and instructors in the process of implementation can be imagined. Some students have withdrawn from the program because of these difficulties, resulting in a certain degree of low participation. At the same time, in the absence of proper guidance, students do not know how to properly combine other disciplines and give full play to the advantages of the English major. This also creates certain difficulties for students to participate in the innovation and entrepreneurship program.
4) Disconnection between practice and theory: Project design often focuses on theoretical research and ignores the close integration with actual market demand and industry development, resulting in students’ English practical ability and innovative thinking not being fully cultivated. Innovation and entrepreneurship education emphasises the trinity of teaching, learning, and doing, and the unity of knowledge and action. Its core is to build a modern higher education model oriented to cultivate innovative and entrepreneurial talents, guide teachers and students to constantly iterate the concept of education, and deepen the reform of education and teaching. It aims to closely integrate the training of talents, scientific research, and social service, and to shift from focusing on knowledge-based education to focusing on the cultivation of innovation and entrepreneurship. Therefore, local colleges and universities need to change their education and teaching methods, respect the students’ subjective status and individual differences in accordance with the law of growth, and guide them to think independently, explore on their own initiative, and cultivate the knowledge of innovation, the spirit of innovation, and entrepreneurial skills. Colleges and universities need to integrate dual-creation education into the entire process of talent cultivation, take the cultivation of dual-creation talents as the core goal, take the law of growth of innovative talents as the basic rationale, take the quality of innovative and entrepreneurial talents’ cultivation as the evaluation standard, and plan and promote all the work based on the framework of dual-creation talents cultivation.
3.2. General Problems after the Construction of National First-Class English Majors
Although the number of projects has increased, the following problems are still significant.
1) The quality of projects is uneven: Due to the increase in the number of projects, some school-level projects are not fully prepared in terms of professional guidance and resource allocation, resulting in fluctuations in the overall quality of projects. The quality of projects is uneven due to the increase in the number of projects. Some school-level projects are not fully prepared in terms of professional guidance and resource allocation, resulting in fluctuations in the overall quality of projects. The quality of projects is closely related to the research results and is a significant concern for many universities. However, the quality of projects is often influenced by various factors, such as the project acceptance system, the implementation process, and the members of the project team. Some projects must make temporary modifications due to the acceptance system’s regulations, which deviate from the initial innovative ideas, and the project results suffer as a consequence. Additionally, some projects encounter resistance during implementation, which may stem from societal or technical issues, leading to research outcomes that do not align with initial expectations. This discrepancy can result in varied outcomes. Furthermore, the assignment and distribution of tasks among project team members are crucial factors that affect the overall quality and outcomes of the projects.
2) Imperfect supervision and evaluation mechanism: Despite the increase in the number of projects, there is a lack of effective quality monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, which makes it difficult to ensure the continuous improvement of project quality. In the process of project implementation, many unpredictable results will arise due to various subjective or objective factors. Without a strong project management and implementation approach, the results of the project will be affected. Additionally, it is essential to establish a comprehensive evaluation system that can objectively assess everything from the implementation procedure to the results.
3) Insufficient improvement of students’ practical ability: The project still focuses too much on theoretical research and fails to fully integrate the needs of the actual market and industry, resulting in the insignificant improvement of students’ English practical ability and entrepreneurial skills. Entrepreneurship education itself is a kind of practical education. However, due to the limitation of faculty strength, professional characteristics, etc., some of China’s English-related majors have not yet implemented practical entrepreneurship education. Much of the teaching is based on theoretical instruction, and very few majors are able to organize students to carry out relevant practice. For English majors in colleges and universities that lack relevant teacher strength, it is difficult to carry out practical education on a large scale. These issues have created a status quo in entrepreneurship education that focuses on theory rather than practice in English majors at most colleges and universities in Inner Mongolia.
4) Limited interdisciplinary collaboration: Despite the increase in project opportunities, interdisciplinary collaboration and the integration of innovative thinking are still confined, which limits the expansion of students’ horizons and innovation capabilities.
These issues show that although the number of projects has increased, there is still much progress to be made in terms of improving the quality, effectiveness, and innovation of projects. The construction of first-class professions and the cultivation of first-class talents cannot be separated from the construction of first-class teachers, and the cultivation of innovative and entrepreneurial talents in financial colleges and universities is the same. At present, the teachers at Inner Mongolia colleges and universities possess substantial theoretical knowledge in their specialties. However, they lack expertise in innovation and entrepreneurship, the concept of “New Liberal Arts”, practical teaching systems, and knowledge of new technologies such as “big data, mobile, cloud, and IoT” (Internet of Things), which directly affects students’ lack of relevant knowledge reserves. With the evolution of modern enterprises, many company positions now require talents who are not merely experts in a single discipline but are multidisciplinary composite talents with innovation and entrepreneurial abilities. Currently, in the curriculum system of language colleges and universities for specific professions, aside from general courses, the rest are specialized courses. The absence of cross-disciplinary knowledge and innovation and entrepreneurship education related to their field hinders students from effectively integrating their professional knowledge with that of other disciplines.
3.3. Classification of Project Topics and Problems in Topic Selection
In the construction of national first-class English majors, there are following problems in the selection of topics for undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training program.
1) Narrow scope of topic selection: The selection of topics for many projects is too limited, focusing only on the traditional field of English teaching and literature research, and lacks a connection with the current industry needs and market trends.
2) Lack of innovation and practicability: The selection of some projects lacks innovative elements, which cannot effectively stimulate students’ entrepreneurial enthusiasm and innovative thinking. At the same time, these topics are often out of touch with practical application scenarios, resulting in low practical value of research results.
3) Insufficient interdisciplinary integration: The integration of interdisciplinary aspects in the selection of topics is insufficient, and the characteristics of English majors cannot be effectively combined with the knowledge of other fields (such as business, technology, culture, etc.), which limits the expansion of students’ horizons and the improvement of their comprehensive ability. English, as part of the “New Liberal Arts,” should be integrated with more disciplines. The integration of educational technology, statistics, journalism, and communication with English is still to be developed in Inner Mongolia’s universities.
These problems show that to improve the effectiveness of innovation and entrepreneurship training program, it is necessary to make more innovative and diversified attempts in topic selection, and actively cater to industry needs and market trends.
3.4. Problems Existing in the Research Methods of the Project
In the undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training program, there are following problems in the selection and application of research methods.
1) Single application of methods: Many projects rely too much on traditional qualitative research methods, such as literature analysis and case studies, and lack quantitative research and data-driven method application. Many sociological studies cannot be separated from quantitative research methods or a qualitative combination of analytical methods. However, there are few teachers at Inner Mongolia universities with applied linguistics as their main research direction, which directly impedes the cultivation of excellent student talent. Students cannot learn data processing techniques and, as a result, struggle to conceive of other ways to conduct innovative entrepreneurial projects.
2) Lack of innovation and empirical research: The project is not innovative in research methods, and rarely tries to use new research methods or tools, such as data analysis software, online survey tools, etc. In addition, the lack of empirical research limits the generalizability and reliability of the project’s conclusions.
3) Mismatch between methods and topics: Some projects do not match the research topics in terms of method selection, which cannot effectively support the realization of research goals. According to the characteristics of language majors and in combination with the research direction and interests of teachers, we set up “practical activity groups” with social investigation as the main content of practical teaching. We form fixed activity teams through two-way selection of teachers and students and give full play to students’ subjective initiative to carry out practical teaching activities over the long term.
These questions point out the need for more diverse and innovative research methods and better integration of research methods with project objectives to improve the effectiveness and quality of research.
3.5. Problems Existing in the Division of Labor and Cooperation of the Project Research Team
In the undergraduate innovation and entrepreneurship training program, the division of labor and cooperation of the research team faces the following challenges.
1) Unclear roles and responsibilities: The distribution of roles and responsibilities among team members is often unclear, resulting in overlapping or omissions in tasks and affecting the progress of the project.
2) Insufficient communication and coordination: Lack of efficient communication channels and coordination mechanisms leads to poor information transmission and inefficient cooperation.
3) Single professional background: The professional background of team members is too single, and there is a lack of diversified and interdisciplinary perspectives, which limits the cultivation and expansion of innovative thinking in projects.
4) Unsound teamwork culture: In some projects, there is a lack of a culture that encourages teamwork and innovation, resulting in a lack of initiative and creativity among team members.
These questions show the need to strengthen communication and collaboration among team members, clarify roles and responsibilities, and strive to create a diverse, interdisciplinary team culture to improve the overall effectiveness of the project.
3.6. Problems Existing in the Guidance of Project Instructors
According to the information collected by questionnaires and interviews, the instructors had the following problems with the project guidance.
1) Disconnection between the content of guidance and practical needs: Some teachers focus too much on theoretical knowledge and lack of content combined with the actual innovation and entrepreneurship environment, resulting in students being unable to fully understand the application of theory in practice. Affected by conceptual and institutional constraints as well as the lagging development of educational concepts and educational theories, the teaching mode adopted by language colleges and universities remains the traditional one, mainly based on teachers’ explanations. The original teaching methods include theoretical classroom teaching and experiments. This teaching mode and method, to a certain extent, lack the cultivation of students’ ability to apply knowledge and their comprehensive abilities, leading to a reduction in students’ interest in learning and their innovation ability.
2) Lack of innovation in instructional methods: Teachers often follow the traditional model in instructional methods, lacking innovation and flexibility, which is not conducive to stimulating students’ creative thinking and independent problem-solving ability. Common teaching methods for English courses in colleges and universities include the grammar-translation method, direct method, reading method, listening method, and audio-lingual method. Innovations in teaching methods can be explored in oral grammar and contextual teaching method, listening method, functional communication method, conscious practice method, and community learning method. Collegiate English network teaching and the impact of network technology on the teaching of English courses in colleges and universities have brought about profound changes in the way teachers teach and students learn, necessitating timely adaptations.
3) Insufficient interaction and feedback: Some teachers do not interact with students frequently or deeply enough, which limits students’ learning and growth in the project.
4) Insufficient integration of professional knowledge and market trends: Some teachers are deficient in the integration of professional knowledge and market trends, and it is difficult to provide students with innovation and entrepreneurship guidance that meets market demand. It is only through the two-way selection of teachers and students that a fixed activity team can be formed, which allows for the full realization of student initiative and the long-term implementation of practical teaching activities. The concept and content of innovation and entrepreneurship education are integrated throughout the entire process of talent training. Additionally, collaboration agreements are signed with the government and enterprises to jointly create a nurturing environment of “production, learning, and research.”
These questions point out the need to strengthen teachers’ understanding of innovative and entrepreneurial ideas, update their teaching methods, and strengthen interaction and feedback with students to improve the effectiveness of teacher guidance.
4. The Strategies and Methods of Project Quality Improvement
4.1. The Main Factors Affecting the Quality of the Project
1) Market demand and application orientation: Successful innovation and entrepreneurship education programs abroad are usually closely integrated with market demand to ensure that the learning content is coherent with practical application.
2) Interdisciplinary integration: Effective projects often integrate the knowledge and skills of multiple disciplines to promote the development of students’ holistic thinking and innovation capabilities.
3) Student Participation and Leadership: The foreign model emphasizes students’ active participation and leadership in projects, and encourages students to explore and solve problems independently.
4) Practical experience and feedback: Pay attention to the accumulation of practical experience, as well as regular feedback from the industry and academia to ensure the practicability and timeliness of the project.
4.2. Strategies for Improving Project Quality
In terms of instructors, the strategies for improving the quality of the program are as follows.
1) Professional training and development: Providing professional training on innovation and entrepreneurship education for teachers to enhance their teaching and guidance capabilities in this field.
2) Combination of practice and theory: Encouraging teachers are to combine practical cases and industry dynamics to closely link theoretical teaching with market demand.
3) Collaboration and communication among teachers: Promoting collaboration among teachers to share best practices and develop effective teaching methods.
In terms of students, the strategies for improving the quality of the program are as follows.
1) Enhance practical experience: Providing students with more opportunities to practice innovation and entrepreneurship through internships, project work, and enterprise cooperation.
2) Interdisciplinary learning: Encouraging students to learn inter-disciplinarily to broaden their knowledge and cultivate compound innovation ability.
3) Student Autonomy and Participation: Enhancing students’ autonomy and participation in projects to encourage students to take ownership of projects and improve their innovation and problem-solving skills.
4.3. Methods for Improving the Quality of the Project
In terms of instructors, the methods for improving the quality of the program are as follows.
1) Practice-oriented teaching methods: Teachers should adopt more practice-oriented teaching methods, such as case studies and simulated business environments, to enhance students’ ability to apply English in practice.
2) Continuous professional development: Conducting regular training and seminars on innovation and entrepreneurship education to help teachers master the latest educational theories and practical skills.
3) Feedback and evaluation: An effective feedback mechanism should be established to adjust teaching strategies promptly to ensure that the teaching content is in line with the needs of students.
In terms of students, the quality of the program can be improved in the following ways.
1) Increase real-world project opportunities: Providing more projects in collaboration with businesses so that students can participate in real business environments and apply what they have learned to solve real-world problems.
2) Encourage entrepreneurial practice: Encouraging students to transform innovative ideas into practical actions through entrepreneurship competitions, workshops, etc.
3) Personalized Learning Path: Providing personalized learning advice and career development guidance for English majors according to students’ interests and career goals.
4.4. The Ideological and Political Consciousness through the Guidance Process
In the project “Research on the Quality Improvement of Undergraduate Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Programs in the Construction of National First-class English Majors”, the instructors run through the methods of ideological and political awareness in the guidance process.
1) Integrate ideological and political elements: Teachers integrate ideological and political elements such as national development and social responsibility into the teaching content, and guide students to deeply understand the role and significance of innovation and entrepreneurship in social development.
2) Cultivating values: Through discussions and practical activities, emphasizing the importance of values such as integrity, responsibility, and team spirit, and guiding students to form a correct worldview and values.
3) Example teaching: Using educational cases, such as successful entrepreneurial stories, social responsibility of entrepreneurs, etc., to strengthen students’ ideological and political education.
4) Interactive discussion: Encouraging students to participate in discussions, conduct in-depth exchanges on topics such as ethics and social responsibility in innovation and entrepreneurship activities, and cultivate critical thinking and social awareness.
4.5. Management of Other Factors in the Process of Project Quality Improvement
In the process of “Research on the Quality Improvement of Undergraduate Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Programs in the Construction of National First-class English Majors”, the treatment of other key management factors can be expanded as follows.
1) Resource allocation and management: Ensuring that the resources (such as funds, equipment, and manpower) required for the project are reasonably allocated and efficiently utilized.
2) Time management: Establishing clear timelines and milestones to ensure the project is progressing as planned, and making timely adjustments to deal with possible delays.
3) Risk assessment and management: Identifying the risks that may be faced during the implementation of the project, such as technical obstacles, shortage of funds, etc., and formulating corresponding response strategies.
4) Quality monitoring and feedback mechanism: Establishing a continuous quality monitoring system that regularly evaluate the progress and effect of the project and adjust it according to the feedback.
5) Continuous Improvement: Encouraging a culture of continuous improvement, regularly reviewing project processes and results, and looking for opportunities to improve efficiency and effectiveness.
4.6. Making Full Use of the Project Defense and Final Feedback Information
In the “Research on the Quality Improvement of Undergraduate Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Programs in the Construction of National First-class English Majors”, the full use of project defense and final feedback information can be expanded in the following ways.
1) Systematic collection and analysis of feedback: Establishing a systematic mechanism to collect and analyze feedback on defense and completion to ensure that the information obtained from it is comprehensive and specific.
2) Improve and adjust the project design: Using feedback information to identify deficiencies in the project design and implementation, and making necessary adjustments and improvements promptly.
3) Enhance participant communication: Using feedback to strengthen communication with project participants (students, teachers, partners) to increase their sense of identity and participation in the project.
4) Guidance for future planning: Taking the defense and final feedback as an important reference for future project planning and decision-making to ensure the continuity and development of the project.
5. Conclusion
5.1. Findings and Implications
Firstly, the success of the program depends on the effective allocation of resources, the improvement of teachers’ guidance ability, and the increase of student participation, and the effective combination of the three plays an indispensable role in promoting the development of innovation and entrepreneurship projects in the English major. Secondly, English majors can actively collaborate with students from other majors, integrate professional knowledge and project experience, and combine with the actual needs of the market, which is essential to improve the quality of the project. Thirdly, the establishment and development of students’ autonomy and innovative thinking in the program, as well as the full use of English professional knowledge, are the key factors to improve the effectiveness of the project. Fourthly, the improvement of teachers’ professional quality, students’ effective feedback on teaching results, and the active promotion of innovation and entrepreneurship projects will bring wider projects participation, help more students improve their English professional quality, apply the theoretical knowledge they have learned to the real environment, integrate with market demand, increase students’ enthusiasm for participation, and promote the effective implementation of the project.
The study concludes that in order to improve the quality of innovative entrepreneurial projects for undergraduate English majors, colleges and universities should cultivate the following abilities:
1) To improve the ability to transform theory into practice
The subject specialities of language colleges and universities are mainly applied and most of the students enter the employment in related professions after graduation, in other words, the students have to solve the practical problems of the enterprises in their future workplaces. Therefore, a certain amount of theoretical knowledge is not enough, but also needs to translate it into practice. Therefore, the training of students in colleges and universities should focus on their ability to find problems and solve problems, and solve the actual problems of enterprises through the ability to transform theory into practice, so that they can better serve in modern enterprises.
2) To improve the ability of innovation and entrepreneurship
With the development of science and technology, a variety of emerging technologies emerge one after another, talent with awareness of innovation and entrepreneurship can better realize their full potential. Language colleges and universities should pay attention to the cultivation of students’ innovative and entrepreneurial awareness, so that they develop creativity and maximize students’ innovative and entrepreneurial potential.
3) To improve the ability of “interdisciplinary” knowledge reserve
Language colleges and universities, within the “New Liberal Arts” context, should focus on training students’ “interdisciplinary” knowledge reserve capacity. Through the cultivation of students’ “interdisciplinary” knowledge reserve ability, students can learn their own specialties well and, at the same time, have the ability to get involved in other specialties, so that they can better integrate their own specialties and stimulate their learning potential, with a view to meeting the new demands of the future workplace.
5.2. Limitations of the Study
First of all, this study mainly focuses on the individual cases of Inner Mongolia University, which may not be able to fully cover universities in other regions with different types and different development practices. In addition, the research methods mainly relied on literature reviews, questionnaires, and interviews, and may lack extensive empirical data to support them.
5.3. Suggestions for the Future Study
It is recommended to conduct a wider range of empirical studies, covering different regions and types of universities, to enhance the universality of the research results. Furthermore, exploring more diverse research methods, such as data analysis, long-term follow-up studies, etc., to better understand the long-term impact of innovation and entrepreneurship education. Meanwhile, a more in-depth analysis of teachers and students as well as market needs should be made to tailor more effective innovation and entrepreneurship education strategies.
Acknowledgements
The research work in this article is financially supported by The Tenth Five-Year Plan of Educational Scientific Research in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (No. NGJGH2022428).