UK government may replace Confucius Institutes

[Zeppa]

This was reported in The Guardian. A curious idea.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/sep/18/beijing-backed-chinese-language-schools-in-uk-to-be-replaced-with-teachers-from-taiwan

[Guest realmayo]

Very interesting - although the article only says that the government only wants to phase-out Confucius Institutes; it's a group of non-government MPs that it says are interested in replacing them with Taiwan-sent teachers. I think 简体字 would be required! Following a link in the story:

Quote

British schools and universities are reliant on a network of 30 Confucius Institutes - the highest number of any country - to coordinate teaching of Mandarin, funding and expertise.

...

Almost all UK government spending on Mandarin language teaching at schools - with at least £27m allocated from 2015 to 2024 - is channelled through university-based Confucius Institutes.

 

Bit weird that we don't set up our own organisation and hire directly from China/Taiwan to staff it. But maybe the Confucius Institutes aren't that important compared to the full-time language training provided at universities for Chinese language degree programmes.

[TheBigZaboon]

To be blunt, and maybe a bit too frank, but the leadership in replacing and reorganizing the undue influence of the Confucius Institutes in the UK (and other countries, as well), can and should be found right here, on this forum.

 

Get your butts in gear, get serious, and get to work...

 

Just esspressin' my unsolicited opinion...

 

TBZ

[roddy]

Came along to post this. Big job and will not happen quickly but the possibility may make the existing set-up a little more cautious. Getting shut down is one thing, being replaced by Taiwan quite another. 

[Zeppa]

I was curious to know what people think. I seem to have taken the Confucius Institute(s) as a necessary evil. When I was in Germany, I did evening classes arranged by the city, but the HSK of course was organized by the Confucius Institute, in Munich in my case. When the translators' and interpreters' college where I had taught started offering some Chinese, it was with the support of the Confucius Institute. But a parallel college which offers a much more advanced Chinese programme seems to do without the Confucius Institute, as realmayo says. It also seems to me that British schools teaching Mandarin do not always use the Confucius Institute - but the article shows a strong financial link.

[Demonic_Duck]

I'm inclined to see this as more idiotic posturing from careerist politicians wanting to prove their "tough on China" credentials, as if Little Britain is somehow on a par with a world superpower and can meaningfully exert influence on it simply by throwing a tantrum. Not necessarily a bad thing in itself, though, given some of the shady things Confucius institutes have been involved in. But not really a positive sign in the broader context of UK-China relations, especially given the importance of international cooperation in facing the existential threat of climate change.

 

Good for Taiwan? Maybe, maybe not. I could honestly see it going either way. Frankly it seems like playing with fire, with the actual interests of Taiwan (namely not getting invaded) being an afterthought.

[dtails]

Continuing to support Chinese learning is important and something will have to replace the Confucius Institutes. The Taiwan Mandarin Centers that are already in some countires could fill that void, and that would come with both positives and negatives. They would increase Taiwanese soft power and could increase public awareness of Taiwan's predicament. Alternatively, this would like further increase tensions with UK-China relations. To avoid this, the UK could set up learning institutes but it would be expensive and may not be all that effective. Would the UK write its own learning materials to stay neutral? Further the teachers would have to come from somewhere and that brings us back to influence of teachers from one country or another. It doesn't appear there is an easy option. If Taiwan Mandarin Centers teach simplified characters and pinyin, instead of traditional characters and zhuyin, then they could at least temporarily fill the role of the confucius centers while other options are weighed and effectiveness is considered.

[Insectosaurus]

All Confucius Institute operations have been shut down here in Sweden since a few years back. Not by politicians, but by the universities themselves. The headmaster of Stockholm University voiced concerns about how Beijing tried to influence the university's day-to-day activities.

[Guest realmayo]

On 9/18/2022 at 4:53 PM, dtails said:

something will have to replace the Confucius Institutes

 

Does anyone know what the Confucius Institutes actually do in the UK? If it's just some beginner evening classes, I don't see why this is such a big deal - do they really need replacing? Do they actually contribute to people attaining fluency in Chinese?

[dtails]

As far as I'm aware, they set up in schools (primary, secondary, and university) to teach Chinese language and culture to students and also manage HSK testing. I have no idea if they are effective or not, other than pushing Chinese soft power on children (for better or worse).

[SLiu1996]

There are hundreds of ways to learn Chinese better than through Hanban. So, don't worry. UK isn't losing anything of great importance.

[Meng Lelan]

Upon seeing this thread I went to check on the status of the Confucius Institutes in Texas. Apparently they were all closed down by 2018. 

[Kenny同志]

A smart move for the UK. 

[vellocet]

The problem is that a university course is a poor place to learn Chinese.  The class times are inconvenient and learners may have trouble even gaining admission to a university (due to ethnicity, age, or other factors).  

[zhouhaochen]

The main thing is that the Confucius Institutes provide a lot of money, for teachers, facilities, materials, research etc., not only at their centers but also at other universities and centers to support Mandarin Study.

The questions about politics and dependency are valid, however is the government of the UK or Taiwan really willing to invest that much money into Mandarin teaching as they do?

Because if not, without the Confucius Institutes the quality and availability of Mandarin education in the UK will go down.

[Zeppa]

I think that's right - I can't help thinking that the main aim is to cut a tie to China rather than encourage the teaching of Mandarin.