- Published:
- Friday 8 July 2016
Victorian schools will have a helping hand to forge stronger links with Chinese schools with a new dedicated education representative in Shanghai.
Victorian schools have a long history of working with their Chinese counterparts and the appointment of the first dedicated schools officer in the Victorian Government’s Business Office in Shanghai will further strengthen this relationship.
Minister for Education James Merlino announced the new position at an event in Shanghai this evening.
The new School Education Services Manager will help Victorian and Chinese schools work together to deliver the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) in China as well as increasing the number of international students enrolling in Victorian government schools.
Six Victorian schools are currently delivering VCE education in 19 Chinese schools.
The new Education Services Manager will also forge contacts across the Chinese education sector and make it easier for Victorian and Chinese schools to collaborate.
There are now 52,000 students studying a Chinese language and around 1,500 Year 9 students will be studying in China for six weeks a year as part of the Victorian Young Leaders to China program.
More than 170 Victorian schools have sister-school partnerships with China to support the curriculum, language learning and intercultural understanding.
Quotes attributable to Education Minister James Merlino
"The new Education Services Manager will help strengthen our ties with Chinese schools and encourage more Chinese students to study VCE and spend time in our schools."
"More than 50,000 Victorian students study Chinese languages and we want to build on this by forging stronger relationships with Chinese schools."