Overview

Despite radical and fundamental reform of the Chinese higher education system, very little is known about this outside China. The past decade has seen radical reform of all levels of China's education system as it attempts to meet changing economic and social needs and aspirations: this has included transformation of university curricula, pedagogy and evaluation measures, rapidly increasing joint research and degree programmes between Chinese universities and universities abroad, and very large numbers of Chinese students studying at universities outside China. This book describes the historical, cultural, intellectual and contemporary background and contexts of the reform and internationalisation of higher education in China. It discusses these changes, outlines the challenges posed by the changes for university administrators, faculty, researchers, students and those working with Chinese academics and students in China and abroad, and assesses the impact, and evaluates the success, of the changes. Most importantly, it considers how this mobility of people and ideas across educational systems and cultures can contribute to new ways of working and understanding between Western and Chinese academic cultures. The book is a companion to Education Reform in China, which focuses on reform at the early childhood, primary and secondary levels.