The history of curriculum reform from 1978 to 2008 in mainland China may be divided into three phases, each--respectively--committed to the recovery of the curriculum system ruined by the Cultural revolution, construction of a curriculum system in concert with the nine-year compulsory education, and pursuit of quality education under the changed economic and social context from the late 1990s. Conflicts in the conception and practice of curriculum piled up during the process of curriculum reform and finally became apparent in the recent curriculum reform. (Contains 5 notes.)