Going Global : The Changing Strategy of Internationalization of Education in China

The emergence and promotion of Chinese model globally with China’s rising have become a hot topic among academics, politicians and even the public across the world since the global financial crisis and the consequent slowdown of western economy. This paper sets out against such a context to investigate the promotion of China’s model in the area of education by examining its internationalization policy, which demonstrates a different policy focus recently. Studies show that in the last three decades the priority of internationalization of education shifts. In accordance with China’s wider socio-economic context, the focus of internationalization of education was revised from awareness of internationalization in the 1980s, improvement of education quality and desire to be world-class in the 1990s, to the adoption of a high profile going global strategy in the new millennium. This article focuses on the recent changes in internationalization strategies to investigate the use of cultural power and promotion of Chinese model globally. It will examine two cases, including Confucius Institutions (CIs) and education aid to Africa, to map out the process of expanding China’s international influence through education. Nevertheless, Chinese model is a nebulous concept. This paper concludes by discussing whether and how the Chinese practices are different from the western model in the process of internationalization of education