From 16 to 18 July 2023, the three-day Beijing Institute of Education Qinglan Students' Return to College Experience Programme was successfully completed. The programme aimed to provide a return-to-university experience for the 19 participants of the Qinglan Students' Return to College Experience Programme. During the three-day programme, through interactive classes, campus tours, cultural and sports activities, city walks and other programmes, they broadened their international horizons, enhanced their western learning mindset and knowledge base in their professional fields, and laid a foundation for further studies in the future.
Qinglan Students' Return to College Experience Programme
In order to strengthen the construction of Beijing's young teachers, the Beijing Institute of Education (BIE) launched a training programme for high-level young talents in primary and secondary schools for all districts of the city in 2017, referred to as the "Qinglan Students' Return to College Experience Programme". In this programme, the School of Foreign Languages and International Education of the Beijing Institute of Education (BIE) and the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) collaborated to train students in the subject of English. The two sides jointly create the "English Teacher Leaders Training Programme" with "MA TESOL" as the core. The programme adopts a dual mode of teaching with intensive classes in Beijing during the semester and immersion learning in Ningbo outside the semester, and is taught in English. Upon completion of the programme, students will obtain a master's degree from the University of Nottingham, which is recognised by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China.
Programme Review
Interactive Class
During the programme, participants studied Introduction to Educational Leadership and Management: Emerging Leadership Styles for the 21st Century and Technology and Language Teaching and Learning, and gained a new understanding of English language teaching and learning.
Dr. Ashley Ng Yoon Mooi
Introduction to Educational Leadership and Management: Emerging Leadership Styles for the 21st Century and Technology
Dr. Yanhui Zhang
Technology and Language Teaching and Learning
Campus Tour
The participants also went on a campus tour to see the facilities and services in the building including the International Innovation and Entrepreneurship Building (IEB), Library, Academic Building, Gymnasium for an immersive experience of university life.
Cultural and Sporting Activities
During the project, participants were also organised to take part in rock-climbing activities to further sharpen their will and stimulate innovation.
Citywalk
Ningbo Museum is one of the key cultural projects of Ningbo City in the 11th Five-Year Plan, which is a comprehensive museum with regional characteristics, mainly displaying Ningbo's humanistic history and art. Participants visited the Ningbo Museum on 18th July to experience the historical lineage and artistic characteristics of Ningbo city.
Graduation Ceremony
Di Lei, Dean of the School of Humanities and Foreign Languages, Beijing Institute of Education, Derek Irwin, Associate Professor of English Linguistics/Associate Dean of Teaching and Learning, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Nottingham Ningbo China, and Ashley Ng Yoon Mooi, Associate Professor of Education, Acting Head of the Department of Education and English Language and Literature, were present at the graduation ceremony.
Dr Derek IRWIN and Professor Di Lei deliver speeches and present certificates of completion at the ceremony.
Yang Xiaojuan from Sanfan Middle School in Beijing, as a representative of the participants of the Return to College Experience Programme, talked about her gains and feelings.
Summary
This training is of great significance in enhancing internationalisation and promoting the construction of advanced teacher teams, laying a solid foundation for the further development of the Beijing Institute of Education Qinglan Students' Return to College Experience Programme. The University of Nottingham Ningbo China, as the first Sino-foreign co-operative university in China, relies on high-quality international teachers and has established long-term partnerships with primary and secondary schools as well as education groups in and outside the province to jointly promote the development of teacher education. We are committed to developing teacher training programmes that will benefit more teachers across the country in terms of teaching capacity enhancement and teacher professional development programmes.