In 2023, building China into a leading country in education became the most powerful call in the field of education. The Editorial Office of the EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH journal reviewed the research results published in 2023 by major academic newspapers and periodicals, solicited opinions from scholars and experts, and summarized ten cutting-edge and hot issues involving educational research in China. These topics include the theoretical interpretation of the CPC Central Committee’s General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important discourses on education, the theoretical connotation and implementation path of building China into a leading country in education, the theoretical and practical promotion of China’s educational modernization, the construction of the independent knowledge system for China’s discipline of education, the construction of a high-quality education system, the coordinated and integrated development of education, technology and professionals, China’s path to talent cultivation, the systematic thinking and collaborative promotion of the comprehensive reform in the field of education, the forms of education in the digital era, and the consummation of the teacher education system with Chinese characteristics. Educational research closely grasped cutting-edge and contemporary issues, and contributed knowledge and wisdom to the reform and development of education with fruitful research results.