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Pat McFadden MP, Minister for Business, Innovation and Skills
Lancaster House, London, 24 June 2009
China is a country of huge strategic importance to the UK across a broad range of areas of mutual interest: globalisation; trade; climate change; sustainable development; security; culture.
Education plays a key role in developing that wider relationship and our collaboration is going from strength to strength at all levels – from primary schools to PhD scholarships.
The Framework agreed between our two Prime Ministers, “Sino-UK Partners in Education”, provides an excellent basis from which to launch future co-operation.
The world is going through an unprecedented economic crisis threatening jobs in both our countries.
We face similar challenges and, now more than ever, our countries must work together to equip our graduates and workers with the skills they need to find employment in challenging times and to build workforces fit for the knowledge economy of the future.
We face these challenges from a strong position, with many bilateral education and skills programmes already in place between our two countries.
In fact, we are benefiting from co-operation at all levels of our educational system.
To demonstrate I would like to look more closely at four key levels of collaboration – schools, higher education, graduate research and lastly advanced scientific research.
The first level of co-operation is, of course, with our schools.
We attach great importance to learning more about China – and for China to learn more about us.
Notably, the British Museum recently announced a major touring exhibition on Chinese history and culture.
That’s why we are encouraging more young people to gain first hand experience of living, studying and working in another country at an early age as well as developing a better understanding of what globalisation means for both countries.
So joint co-operation between schools in the UK and China is very important.
In two weeks time over 700 students and their teachers will be leaving for this year’s Chinese Language immersion courses in China.
We welcome the generous contribution of Hanban whose support has made this by far the largest and most successful programme of its type in the world.
The Prime Minister’s Global Fellowship programme last summer provided 39 life-changing opportunities for school and college leavers in China.
We will be running a similar programme this year, as well as a Prime Minister’s Global Teachers programme.
We also share a responsibility with China to instil a stronger global dimension into the learning experience of our children and young people.
We are funding several programmes and initiatives to promote these sustainable relationships. For example, through programmes such as:
• The Teachers International Development programme
• School and area linking visits
• Joint curriculum projects
The Chinese Language assistants’ programme has seen around 90 English language assistants go to China each year while an even higher number of Chinese language assistants come to teach in British classrooms.
The success of the Language Assistants Programme has helped 500 secondary schools in England offer Chinese lessons to their pupils. In addition, after their time working in China, many English language assistants are inspired to learn Chinese.
Recent years has also seen significant growth in the numbers of institutional links between our schools, our colleges and universities.
And I am very grateful for the support given by a number of UK partner organisations including the British Council, the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust and HSBC.
Joint co-operation is also extremely important in further and in higher education.
Both our countries have strong traditions of excellence here.
The UK receives more international students from China than from any other country.
There are an estimated 67,000 students from mainland China studying in the UK at universities, colleges and on short courses.
Based on research by the Higher Education Statistics Agency 55,000 of these students are enrolled at British Universities, making the UK the top choice Higher Education destination within the EU for Chinese students
We are encouraging an increasing number of British students to go to China to study. The Study China programme, now in its second year, provides an opportunity for over 200 UK undergraduates each year to spend three weeks in China, studying language, history, culture and business.
UK institutions were the first foreign institutions to be granted permission by the Ministry of Education to set up campuses or collaborative ventures in China.
They involve the universities of Liverpool and Nottingham and a consortium of universities from Northern England.
In order, to share our knowledge, we have engaged in long-term policy projects.
The British Council, HEFCE and the wider UK university sector have worked with the Chinese Ministry of Education’s National Centre for Educational Development and Research to examine issues of governance and management of the Higher Education system, such as institutional autonomy.
The next policy area identified is the role of universities in regional development.
Both countries are committed to high academic standard and quality of provision.
And both sides welcome continued discussions between the respective national organisations responsible for quality assurance. This will help take forward cooperation on the development of quality assurance and enhancement processes for UK-China collaborative programmes and courses.
I am also pleased that, since its introduction in 2006, the UK-China Graduate Work Experience Programme has given over 400 Chinese university graduates the opportunity to spend up to one year working and living in the UK.
It has equipped them with key skills for gaining employment; and created a bond that will be of mutual benefit in future years.
And I look forward to the programme being extended this summer – giving 25 UK graduates the opportunity to live and work in China. My Departmental officials are working with their Chinese counterparts on finalising details for the reciprocal programme.
Both sides recognise the progress that has been made in clarifying the arrangements for securing recognition of UK accredited degrees delivered though collaborative arrangements between UK recognised listed bodies.
The UK Government’s Designated Body to lead on mutual recognition, the National Recognition Information Centre for the UK, has been working closely on the issue with the Chinese Service Centre for Scholarly Exchange.
Both Bodies have recently agreed a process whereby UK Institutions whose recognition has been withheld can have their cases considered. This process is being piloted and, once it has been formalised, guidance will be issued to the UK Higher Education sector.
As part of this, Quality Assurance Agency guidance on recruiting students from China will be issued as well.
The third area where we are collaborating well is in graduate research.
Here it’s worth singling out the Scholarships for Excellence and the Fellowship for Excellence programmes.
Jointly funded by the United Kingdom and China, the Scholarships for Excellence programme has benefited over 100 young and outstanding Chinese PhD students and post doctoral researchers in science and technology since its launch in 2005.
The Fellowships for Excellence programme has so far enabled more than 30 young and outstanding post doctoral researchers to conduct cutting edge research at a Chinese university or research institution
This year it will enable up to 15 post doctoral candidates to undertake research and create lasting research links with a mainland Chinese research department, with a further five awards available for researchers wishing to undertake research in Hong Kong.
The UK is committed to working with China to explore other approaches to promoting collaborative working between our institutions.
I am pleased that today we can witness the exchange of documents agreeing the Scotland-China Higher Education Research Partnership for PhD Studies.
This is an innovative approach demonstrating the benefits of cooperation.
A formal agreement will be exchanged between Stephen Kerr from the Scottish Government and one of your delegation during the signing ceremony.
The fourth area where we are working well together is in the field of advanced scientific research.
In March this year the UK and China marked in Beijing 30 years of successful science and technology co-operation between a wide range of Chinese and UK bodies.
The Networking Scheme has had a key role in this by providing grants for visits to and from China and arranging scientific workshops on themed events.
Both countries have a good appreciation of each others’ basic science, its excellence and influence on the public and private sectors.
The next 30 years will see a transformation of science and technology co-operation.
We need to maximise the benefit of our science, knowledge and innovation.
Most importantly, developing practical applications to tackle the global issues both nations face (for example: infectious diseases; food security; ageing population). The role of education within this plays an increasingly important part.
We recognise the Chinese Ministry of Education's evaluation of the Networking Scheme indicated positive impact. And we are now conducting a review of the networking scheme with China (and other countries).
A decision on further funding for the scheme will be based on the outcomes of this review, due later in 2009.
So we are working together at all levels to further our understanding of each other’s country, its people, history, language and culture. And this understanding underpins any meaningful bilateral relationship.
