At present, the education trade deficit, which was once concerned by members of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, is improving significantly.
On January 23, Secretary of the Party Leadership Group and Minister of the Ministry of Education Chen Baosheng pointed out at the National Education Work Conference that the current influence of my country’s education in the world is accelerating. In 2016, the number of students studying in China exceeded 440,000, and there were 205 countries and regions of origin. my country has become the number one destination country for studying abroad in Asia and the third in the world.
During the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Chen Baosheng said that by 2049, Chinese education will be firmly established at the center of world education, and China will become the world’s most desirable destination for studying abroad.
The “Report on the Development of Studying Abroad in China (2017)” released a few days ago also shows that in recent years, international students in China have broken the pattern of learning Chinese, and the distribution of disciplines has become more reasonable. Western medicine, engineering, economics, and management are very popular and become students. The subject with the largest number of people.
What’s more worth mentioning is that many national leaders have emerged among the graduates studying in China. For example, Ethiopian President Muratou Teshomei, Thai Princess Sirindhorn, and former Kazakhstan Prime Minister Masimov have all studied in China.
The Chinese New Year in the eyes of foreign students
The attractiveness of Chinese education makes the traditional Chinese festival, the Spring Festival, also travel across the ocean and into the world. The Spring Festival of the Year of the Dog is approaching. While many foreign students come back to China one after another, many choose to stay and experience traditional Chinese festivals. So, what is the Chinese New Year in the eyes of foreign students, and how do they spend the Spring Festival?
Stephen, who speaks a standard Beijing accent, is an Australian, and he named himself Gao Jian in Chinese. He told reporters: “Many of my Chinese friends write Spring Festival couplets, and I also want to write one, but the Chinese level is not up to the level, so I can’t write it so profoundly. I just innovated myself and found it very interesting.” Shanghai United: Work hard Study hard and work harder and earn more money; Xia Lian: Eat well and sleep well and happily every day; Hengbian: awesome. This is the Spring Festival couplet written by Gao Jian himself and posted in front of his house.
When asked how to celebrate the New Year this year, Gao Jian was humorous: “When spending the Spring Festival in China, many friends will feel that I am too pitiful and lonely in China, and they will invite me to spend the New Year together at their home. I will watch the Spring Festival Gala with my friends. Playing mahjong, making dumplings, and eating supper together at twelve o’clock at 30 to celebrate the arrival of the new year.”
“I am looking forward to this year’s Spring Festival Gala.” Na Si Jia is a master’s degree in Chinese from Beijing International Studies University and comes from Russia. She is looking forward to programs related to Chinese traditional culture during the Spring Festival Gala. “Acrobatics, martial arts performances, face changing and other programs are all my I like it. I hope I can see more of these programs, and I can also see some stars singing programs.”
This year is the second Spring Festival that Nastya spent in China. She was invited to the Tai Chi teacher’s home. “Of course you have to spend Chinese holidays with Chinese friends. I think this is the meaning of cultural exchanges. I will learn to cook some Chinese specialties with them, such as dumplings. Let’s watch the Spring Festival Gala, set off firecrackers, and give each other New Year gifts. “
Temple fair is a key word for foreign students’ impression of the Spring Festival. “At first I didn’t quite understand the meaning of going to temple fairs. There were a lot of people. But I went there twice with Chinese friends and slowly understood that temple fairs are a kind of folklore and their homesickness. My Chinese friends told me that they only have to Nothing special, I visit the temple fair every Spring Festival.” When it comes to temple fairs, Gao Jian has a lot to say.
Gao Yuna from South Korea just obtained a master’s degree in Chinese in China in July last year. “I went to Ditan Temple Fair for the first time in China and queued up to buy noodle tea. The taste is very distinctive. I think the temple fair is also very Chinese. “
In addition to spending the Spring Festival with friends, many foreign students also choose to use the Spring Festival holiday to travel around China to experience authentic Chinese culture and folk customs.
Japanese girl Naomi Yamamoto (pseudonym) has made detailed travel plans early. This Spring Festival she is going to travel to Yunnan with Chinese friends. “I am looking forward to it. I really like those things with ethnic characteristics. I heard that the ethnic minorities there are very different from Beijing during the Spring Festival. I want to feel and experience it.”
“I think the culture of sending red envelopes on WeChat during the Chinese New Year is amazing! In Korea, only New Year money is given to children, but during Chinese New Year, we often receive WeChat red envelopes from friends, and Chinese elderly people also use WeChat to send red envelopes. This makes me Very surprised.” Gao Yuna said.
The attractiveness of China’s education continues to increase
“Why did you choose to study in China?”
In the reporter’s interview, each foreign student answered his own different reasons, but in the final analysis, the continuous improvement of China’s comprehensive national strength and the rapid development of China’s higher education have made them more interested in China and more willing to understand and feel China.
“I chose to study in China because there were a lot of Chinese tourists when I was working in duty-free shops in South Korea. During my exchanges with them, I found that Chinese culture is very different from South Korea, which is very interesting. Therefore, in order to learn more about China Culture, I have the idea of studying in China.” Gao Yuna said.
In Gao Jian’s view, Chinese is the most challenging language subject. In order to challenge himself, he chose to study Chinese when he was studying in Australia. With a keen interest in Chinese culture, he came to China with a backpack after graduating from university. keep studing. “In the beginning, I chose to learn Chinese. Many relatives and friends in Australia did not understand me, but now it is completely fine. Under my influence, my parents even know China better than me.” Gao Jian told reporters that he has made a lot of money now. Chinese friends are like relatives to each other.
“The first time I saw Chinese characters, I thought it was amazing, and it looked very complicated. With a strong curiosity, I started to learn Chinese systematically, which was very interesting.” Nasja said.
During the interview, the reporter found that more and more of my country’s intangible cultural heritage is known and disseminated by foreign students.
Many international students have a keen interest in Tai Chi, a national intangible cultural heritage of our country, and many students use their spare time to learn Tai Chi. Gao Jian told reporters: “I think Tai Chi contains rich Chinese connotation and culture, and I like it very much. During my internship in Australia, I also used innovative methods to teach local children Tai Chi, and they all like it very much.”
Nastya also used her spare time to enroll in extracurricular classes to learn Tai Chi and established a deep friendship with her teacher.
There are more and more international students like them who come to China to pursue their dreams and voluntarily become “ambassadors” for Chinese cultural communication.
The “Global Survey Report on China’s National Image 2016-2017” recently released by the Center for International Communication Studies of the China Foreign Languages Bureau shows that 21% of overseas young people (18-35 years old) are interested in Chinese education topics, and 36% of overseas young people are in the future. There are plans to come to China within 3 years.
“Study abroad, go to China!” is gradually becoming the choice of more and more students from all over the world. In China, what they gain is not only language learning, more and more international students are choosing other subjects to study.
During her 24 years as a teacher in the Chinese Department of Beijing International Studies University, Mr. Wang has sent away batches of foreign students. She told reporters about the changes in her eyes for international students in recent years: “In recent years, I have come to China. The source of overseas students is more diverse, from the past Asian, African and Latin American countries to countries around the world, and the proportion of developed countries in Europe and the United States has increased; the choice of majors for studying in China is more diverse, from the past Chinese and other subjects that are highly relevant to Chinese local culture to International economics and trade, tourism management and other disciplines; the structure of studying in China has become more reasonable. In the past, the proportion of non-degree students who came to China for short-term language learning was relatively high, but now with the liberalization of various national scholarships at all levels, The proportion of graduates studying for a degree in China has increased significantly.”
“One Belt One Road” helps China’s education “go global”
The “Report on the Development of Studying Abroad in China (2017)” released a few days ago shows that in the 2016-2017 academic year, countries related to the “Belt and Road” initiative have become the growth points for studying in China. Among them, the average increase of students from Thailand, India, Pakistan, Indonesia and Laos to China exceeded 20%. According to the analysis of the report, China has made major breakthroughs in supporting policies for studying in China and granting scholarships for international students in China. A series of favorable policies have been introduced, such as promoting the joint construction of the “Belt and Road” education initiative, the establishment of the “Belt and Road” university alliance, and the signing of bilateral agreements. Agreement and degree mutual recognition, establishment of “Silk Road” Chinese Government Scholarship, etc.
In recent years, the educational cooperation relationship between China and different countries (regions) and international organizations has been continuously consolidated, and the implementation of the “Belt and Road” education initiative has made China’s education increasingly more influential and competitive.
Since the “Belt and Road” initiative proposed by China and the construction of the Eurasian Economic Union led by Russia have been docked, Nastya has seen the increasingly close cooperation between China and Russia. Riding on the east wind of the “Belt and Road” construction, Nastia came to China to study and experience the different cultural characteristics.
Nastia told reporters: “I come to China to learn Chinese for barrier-free communication. I think there will be more and more opportunities to use Chinese in the future. People from different countries communicate with each other to achieve common development. This kind of communication builds a bridge.”
The “Advancing the Joint Construction of “One Belt and One Road” Education Action” proposes to cultivate high-quality talents through educational cooperation and exchanges, promote economic and social development, and improve the well-being of people in countries along the route.
“Our goal is to train more foreign students who are friendly and pro-China. After studying in China, most international students return to their countries to engage in work related to Chinese culture and spread my country’s excellent traditional culture. For example, in South Africa, many locals The famous families in China choose to study in China. After they return to China, they will occupy an important position in the political and economic fields. This will also play a positive role in promoting the friendly exchanges between China and Africa.” Mr. Wang said.
Li Qiyong, the State Inspector and Deputy Director of the Education Department of Guizhou Province, pointed out in my newspaper’s article “2016, Chinese Education Will Go to the Center of the World”: Going to the world education center means to have the right to speak, have influence, and have rules and standards on a global scale. The right to formulate. Making Chinese standards a world standard is inseparable from drawing on foreign advanced experience and opening to the outside world of education. Serving the overall situation of the “Belt and Road” is the top-level design of international cooperation and exchanges in education, and the roadmap for Chinese education to gradually move toward the center of education in the world.