College of International Education, Shandong University

Founded in 1901, Shandong University is a key comprehensive university directly under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China. It is one of the oldest renowned universities throughout the country and one of the high-ranking universities whose development is given priority by the state. The College of International Education of Shandong University was established in 1994. It is a comprehensive educational institution mainly responsible for the admission, teaching, management of and service for the international students. The admission and cultivation of international students in Shandong University can be traced back to the 1950s. Shandong University was one of the first Chinese universities accepting international students and offering Chinese courses to them. It has been one of the major universities in China engaging in international students’ education since the 1980s. It has been designated by China’s Ministry of Education as "a key university supporting the Chinese language teaching in neighboring countries", and was among the first universities in China to have established overseas Confucius Institute. In order to enhance Chinese teaching and future development of research work, in the year of 2005, Shandong University established "Research Center for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language". The centre consists of such research institutes as Chinese and Chinese Teaching Research Institute, Linguistics Economics Research Institute, Modern Language Education Technology Research Institute and Chinese Culture Research Institute. The College of International Education, with many talented and experienced teachers and fine teaching facilities, now enrolls students for studies in linguistics and applied linguistics for master’s degree, and students for studies in pedagogy (second language teaching) for double bachelor’s degree. It also undertakes such programs as training Chinese teachers for overseas schools and institutions. In addition, Shandong University is designated by the state to be a center for HSK (Chinese proficiency test) and a center for appraising the competence of teaching Chinese as a second language.

The Office of Chinese Language Council International

The Chinese government attaches great importance to the promotion of Chinese language throughout the world. In order to enhance the mutual understanding and friendship between the Chinese people and other people of the world, promote economic and trade cooperation as well as scientific, technological and cultural exchanges between them, the “Office of Chinese Language Council International" was established in 1987. The Office of Chinese Language Council International is the executive body of the State Leading Group for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language. It is affiliated to the Ministry of Education of China. The Confucius Institute project, administered by the Chinese Ministry of Education through the Office of Chinese Language Council International, aims to promote the study and understanding of Chinese language and culture throughout the world and to provide convenience as well as an excellent learning environment for the Chinese language learners. The Office of Chinese Language Council International will establish various Confucius Institutes around the world depending on requirements and need. Depending on the requirements of each Institute, the Office of Chinese Language Council International will provide the necessary support to the overseas Confucius Institutes. Some of the support include sending top-notch teaching staff, providing financial support in relation to Chinese teaching and promotion activities, providing teaching models and course syllabus, accredited multimedia courseware, audio and video teaching materials, and providing training in relation to the operations of the Institute. In 2005, the Office of Chinese Language Council International has conferred the "Confucius Institute plaque" to overseas Confucius Institute across the globe and unveiled the new Confucius Institute logo. The logo consists of a peace pigeon and a globe, which are used to create the image of the Chinese character “汉”. It symbolizes "Globalize, Chinese language, Peaceful, Rise of China", to reflect the ideals, beliefs and values behind the Confucius Institutes. For more information, visit http://www.hanban.org.cn