Institutional habitus, cultural capital, and STEAM learner identity in the context of rural Chinese technical vocational education and training: critical participatory action research

China has been establishing a substantial infrastructure of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) in higher and further education systems. However, increasing concerns surround technical vocational education and training institutions in rural areas. Accordingly, this critical participatory action research applied Bourdieu’s thinking toolbox to understand the relationship between habitus and embodied forms of capital and how these factors might influence STEAM learner identity at an institution surrounded by mountain trails in a prefecture-level city within eastern Anhui Province, a part of the Yangzi River Delta region. The authors conducted fieldwork and semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders, including academic leaders, alumni, and professionals in the STEAM industry. The analysis resulted in five specific themes: (a) promotion of STEAM programs at the subject institution; (b) student recruitment and retention; (c) academic advising and career mentoring; (d) school-entrepreneur partnerships and art studio-based learning; and (e) persistent challenges of career trajectories. The discussion interpreted rural habitus influencing the promotion of STEAM programs at the subject institution. Therefore, this study concluded by providing policy and pedagogical implications and insights about how the empirical voices of the primary stakeholders addressed specific challenges.