2023 marked the first year of fully studying and implementing the guiding principles of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, a crucial year for connecting the past and future in the implementation of the 14th Five-Year Plan, and the 10th anniversary of the proposal of the Belt and Road Initiative. In 2023, the Research Institute for International and Comparative Education (RIICE) and the UNESCO Teacher Education Centre (TEC), guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, closely adhered to RIICE’s mission of rooting in international comparison, discovering educational knowledge, providing policy advice, cultivating professionals, and serving educational development and gave full play to TEC’s four core functions of knowledge production, capacity building, technical services, and information sharing. They actively explored new tracks, expanded new fields, and achieved new accomplishments in scientific research, international exchanges, and talent cultivation, with all work delivering remarkable results.
Scientific Research
1.The International and Comparative Education Innovation Team successfully passed the assessment for High-Level Innovation Team of Local Universities in Shanghai.
2.The UNESCO Teacher Education Centre was listed among China’s Top 100 Education Think Tanks.
3.The paper How to Tell China’s Education Stories Well: A Proposition to Explore – Taking the China-UK Mathematics Teacher Exchange Program as an Example by Professor Zhang Minxuan’s team won the First Prize of the 16th Shanghai Municipal Outstanding Achievements in Philosophy and Social Sciences.
4.Professor Zhang Minxuan’s paper Exploring the Direction of High-Quality Development of Basic Education Based on the Trend of International Evaluation Reform was fully reprinted as a cover article in Xinhua Digest.
5.The paper Collective Commitment and Action: Transforming Education for Sustainable Development by Bian Cui, Song Jia, et al. won the First Prize of the 2023 CTTI Outstanding Achievements in Think Tank Construction.
6.The translated work Childhood in the 21st Century by Xu Jinjie, et al. was ranked No. 2 in the Top 100 Books Loved by Teachers in 2023 selected by China Education Daily.
7.The international primary and secondary school mathematics textbook Share Math developed by Professor Huang Xingfeng’s team was officially registered as a trademark.
8.Professor Wang Jie and Professor Ningbo’s teams participated in writing China’s cases for UNESCO’s Global Education Monitoring Report, Teacher Competencies and Professional Standards, and Global Teacher Report.
9.Professor Zhang Minxuan and Associate Professor Zhang Huafeng’s team was commissioned by the Ministry of Education to build a large database for monitoring and evaluation in specific educational fields.
10.Full-time researchers undertook over 30 projects, including provincial and ministerial-level projects, projects commissioned by international organizations, and various research projects entrusted by the Ministry of Education and Shanghai municipal authorities.
International Exchanges
1.Full participation and on-site witness of the establishment of the International STEM Education Institute in Shanghai, China.
2.Organization and reception of visits to Shanghai by UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Education Stefania Giannini, Executive Board President Tamara Shiyamashvili, Assistant Director-General for Africa Priority and External Relations Firmin Edouard Matoko, and UN Department of Safety and Security Deputy Regional Security Adviser Vladimir Budnik, etc., providing active coordination and support for the preparation of the International STEM Education Institute.
3.Hosting of two workshops for education officials from Belt and Road partner countries, with Professor Zhu Yongxin, Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, in attendance.
4.TEC’s communication case won the Merit Award of Shanghai’s Silver Dove Award.
5.Joint establishment of Joint Education Research Centres with Tanzania’s National Institute of Education and Indonesia’s State University of Yogyakarta.
6.Hosting of the China (Shanghai)-Tanzania-World Bank Mathematics Teacher Professional Development Program.
7.Hosting of the ASEAN Education Officials’ Workshop on Vocational Education and Digital Education in Shanghai.
8.Implementation of the project to improve the quality and capacity of rural teachers in Laos, training over 300 teachers.
9.Signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with the University of Goroka in Papua New Guinea.
10.Assistance in teacher capacity-building projects in four Central Asian countries including Uzbekistan.
Talent Cultivation
1.Associate Professor Zhang Huafeng and Associate Professor Xu Jinjie received provincial and ministerial-level talent titles.
2.Associate Professor Song Jia was awarded the Merit Medal by the Organization Department of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee.
3.Associate Professor Song Jia was approved for the Shanghai Graduate Education Reform Project Reform of Comparative Education Curriculum System for Cultivating Global Competence through International Organizations.
4.Hosting of the First Shanghai International Organization Young Talent Workshop.
5.Hosting of the 2nd Graduate Academic Forum of TEC.
6.Wang Chao (doctoral student), Shen Xin, Wang Rui, Zhang Mengli, and Li Jiayang won the National Scholarship for Postgraduates.
7.Huang Yini, Dong Yiwei, and Yang Yuxin were awarded Shanghai Outstanding Graduates.
8.Shen Junyi, Li Qian, Dong Yiwei, and Li Zhen were awarded Shanghai Normal University Outstanding Graduates.
9.Wang Rui and 17 others received funding from various university-level graduate training programs.
10.Launch of the undergraduate-master’s integrated curriculum design for Global Competence cultivation at Shanghai Normal University.
With the vigor of a soaring dragon and a future as bright as the rising moon, in 2024, the collective of RIICE and TEC will be more ambitious and forge ahead with determination. Focusing on organizational development, scientific research, policy advice, international exchanges, knowledge sharing, technical support, curriculum development, and talent cultivation, they will continue to move forward and open a new chapter.
Comprehensive compilation: Song Jia
Research Institute for International and Comparative Education (RIICE)
UNESCO Teacher Education Centre (TEC)
