BEIJING -- Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, stressed accelerated efforts to build China into a leading country in education as the Party's leadership convened a study session on Monday.

Presiding over the group study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Xi said the objective serves as a strategic precursor of building a great modern socialist country in all respects, an important support for achieving greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology, and an effective means of promoting common prosperity for all.

Xi called for speeding up modernization of the education sector to provide strong support for advancing the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts.

China has established the largest education system in the world and joined the ranks of upper-middle level countries in terms of the overall level of modernization in education, Xi said, noting that China ranks the 23rd in a global education index, up 26 spots from 2012.

This fully demonstrates that the path of socialist education with Chinese characteristics is completely correct, he said.

To build China's strength in education, it is imperative to adhere to the Party's overall leadership over education and take serving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation as an important mission, Xi said.

He said the purpose of building a leading country in education is to cultivate successive generations of talented individuals capable of shouldering the significant tasks and responsibilities in the process of socialist modernization.

Xi emphasized the importance of guiding students to strengthen their ideals and convictions, always follow the Party and adhere to its guidance, and dedicate themselves to serving the country and the people.

Xi stressed speeding up building a high-quality educational system.

On basic education, Xi called for promoting high-quality, balanced development and urban-rural integration of compulsory education.

The reversal of the utilitarian tendency in education must be sped up, Xi said, calling for nurturing a "healthy environment and ecosystem" in education.

On higher education, Xi said that the top priority should be given to expediting the development of world-class universities and strong disciplines with Chinese features.

Xi also called for building a society of learning where lifelong learning is pursued by all.

He noted that serving high-quality development should be regarded as a vital task of developing a strong educational sector.

Greater efforts should be made to nurture China's top-notch and innovative talent to provide support for achieving breakthroughs on core technologies in key fields, Xi said.

He urged efforts to further integrate vocational and general education and continuously cultivate high-caliber technicians and skilled workers.

Building a leading country in education must draw momentum from reform and innovation, Xi stressed.

He said ensuring fairness must be incorporated in every aspect of deepening educational reform.

Educational disparities between urban and rural areas, between different regions, schools and groups must be narrowed to ensure that equitable and quality education is accessible to each child, Xi said.

Xi highlighted efforts to promote digital education in a bid to increase public access to high-quality educational resources and modernize education.

It is important to make effective use of world-class educational resources and innovation factors to enable China to build a world hub for education with broad appeal, he said.

Xi stressed the importance of cultivating a well-structured and dynamic pool of competent teachers with professional integrity.

Xi emphasized that the task of building China into a leading nation in education is a collective responsibility of the entire Party and society. He called for unified and determined efforts from everyone to work towards this goal.