Youth Exchange Programs
The Year in China Program, the China Experience Program and the Young Professional and Business Scholars Program have been discontinued in 2009. The Council is investigating other ways of encouraging Chinese language learning in Australian schools and universities. For example, the Council is funding the Asia Education Foundation’s National Centre for Chinese Language Pedagogy – National Forum, an important initiative that builds on a report commissioned on the current state of Chinese language education in Australian schools. The Forum aims to endorse a nationally-agreed action plan on Chinese language studies in Australian primary and secondary schools, with a view to increasing student numbers and proficiency.
Individuals who wish to study independently in China may find the following web links useful:
- China Education and Research Network
- Hanban (The Office of Chinese Language Council International)
- Study in China
- Education of International Students in China
- Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange
- China Scholarship Council
- Ministry of Education
Many Australian universities have information on their websites about International Student Exchange Programs for Australians wishing to study abroad. These programs are often subsidised through the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.
The Young Business and Professional Scholars Program included an internship component. You can access numerous Australian and international websites to organise an internship in China, Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan. For example, Monash Professional offers an optional four-week Mandarin language course at Tsinghua University and/or professional internships in Beijing or Shanghai.
National Chinese Speaking (Hanyuqiao) Competition
The Australia-China Council was the major sponsor for the first three National Chinese Speaking (Hanyuqiao) Competitions for year 10 and 11 Chinese language students as well as this year’s competition, which was held in Canberra on 11 July 2008. The competitions are run by the Chinese Language Teachers' Federation of Australia.
