North Carolina

A new relationship with China was the catalyst for greatly expanded global education opportunities for North Carolina K-12 students during the 2010-2011 academic year. The University of North Carolina’s Center for International Understanding (Center) executed an MOU with Hanban, a nongovernmental affiliate of the Chinese Ministry of Education, to develop and coordinate the nation’s first statewide network of Confucius Classrooms. Here are the results so far:

• Governor Bev Perdue held a press conference to welcome Confucius Classrooms to North Carolina, calling them a contributor to economic development

• 15 guest teachers from China are conducting Chinese language and culture classes in 16 schools throughout the state • 1,900 N.C. students are taking Chinese language classes, a 60% increase over the previous year, according to the N.C. Department of Public Instruction.

• The number of school-to-school partnerships between North Carolina and Jiangsu Province has expanded to 33

• Delegations of North Carolina school superintendents, principals and teachers have traveled to China for short-term immersion study programs through College Board

• Several members of the N.C. State Board of Education participated in an international education forum in Jiangsu Province to promote and expand international school partnerships and global learning

• Specialized professional development trainings have been conducted in Mandarin for the Center’s guest teachers in North Carolina

• Production has begun on a short informational video about the Center’s Confucius Classroom network

Legislative Activity: Simultaneously, the Center continues efforts to educate state policymakers about North Carolina's global educational and economic ties and the importance of the state’s relationship with China. Two bills were introduced in the N.C. General Assembly this year to focus policy efforts on global engagement. One proposal would add that responsibility to an existing economic development oversight committee of state legislators; the other would create a legislative global engagement study committee to continue efforts begun last year to craft a statewide plan for global engagement encompassing strategies in the education, business and government sectors.

Global Indicators Map: The Center has partnered with the N.C. Department of Commerce and software giant SAS to begin development of a North Carolina Global Indicators Map, meant to show county-by-county that North Carolina IS global. Data points will demonstrate global indicators such as demographics, foreign language enrollment, import/export figures, U.S. Census data, employment in foreign-owned companies, and international student enrollment in colleges and universities. The map should be available by fall of 2011.

International School Partnerships: The Center took groups of teachers to both Denmark and Mexico in 2010 in order to establish International School Partnerships. These partnerships promote global competence and awareness among future leaders. Classroom activities, supported by technology, provide young people the opportunity to work in multi-national teams across cultures, and exchanges of students and teachers provided hands-on global experiences.

Contact information: Matt Friedrick at mfriedrick@northcarolina.edu

Updated September 2011