The outstanding performance of students in four Chinese provinces and municipalities in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2018 is inextricably linked to local resource support, excellent education traditions, and ongoing curriculum and teaching reform. However, deepening education reform requires attention to existing challenges, including large inter school gaps, the shortage of teachers in urban and rural areas, as well as students’ heavy schoolwork burden and low level of well-being. Therefore, several policy suggestions are proposed accordingly: gaining insight into and developing higher quality and fairer education, pursuing effective actions of education reform, and exploring innovative pathways to address educational problems.