Here is another sign that China is evolving. During the Tiananmen Square incident, it was reported that Deng Xiaoping said that China wanted to become a democracy but the people were not ready and education was the key—not just for a handful of elites but also for as many people as possible.
If you still want proof that China is moving toward change without a bloody rebellion, read the East Asia Forum about the growth of private universities in China and India.
The East Asia Forum says, “First, both countries are used to seeing the public sector as the sole provider of education services. Their higher education architecture has evolved consistently with such a monopoly.”
However, in September 2003, China invited foreign universities to set up shop in China. India made a similar invitation in 2010.
It isn’t easy for foreign universities to open campuses in China since the culture is different from the US or Europe. The East Asia Forum advises that foreign providers for higher education must be patient and persuasive. They point out early successes like the University of Nottingham in Ningbo, China and the Xi’an Jiaotong Liverpool University.
If a successful transition takes place, one day there may by a Stanford Shanghai University or a Beijing Harvard campus. Someone must open the door to a better understanding between cultures.
Learn more about China Investing BIG in Education
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Lloyd Lofthouse is the award-winning author of the concubine saga, My Splendid Concubine & Our Hart. When you love a Chinese woman, you marry her family and culture too.
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