China will take measures to improve vocational education and raise its profile among the general public, the education minister said today.

Chen Baosheng said 70 to 85 percent of the 7 million college graduates produced each year are from vocational education and they make a great contribution to the nation's development.

However, there are problems with vocational education, which means it is not attractive to some students, with many believing it has less prestige than other forms of higher education, he told reporters at a news conference in Beijing.

"Such thinking should be rooted out," Chen said. "Vocational education is just as important as other forms of education and it deserves respect, particularly considering its role in nurturing the talent needed for economic restructuring and the development of manufacturing."

He said the ministry will boost cooperation between vocational schools and enterprises to ensure the training matches with what industries actually need.

More work will also be done to tear down the barriers between vocational schools and other forms of higher education, making it easier for students to transfer, he added.

"We want the whole of society to know that vocational and higher education are providing intelligent support to the country," Chen said, adding that China not only needs to nurture the likes of Albert Einstein, but also the likes of Thomas Edison and Lu Ban, the ancient Chinese inventor and craftsman.