On the afternoon of April 18, the first class of the “China-Kazakhstan Silk Road Online Course” jointly created by ZJCST and Astana IT University in Kazakhstan was officially launched. As an important practical project under the framework of the “China-Kazakhstan Silk Road College” jointly established by the two institutions, this online classroom marks a key step in the substantive cooperation between the two sides.

Picture commentary: The first class focuses on Ouyue culture and builds a bridge for cross-cultural communication

With the theme of "Ouyue Culture in China", the training was delivered by Zhao Bingzhi, a teacher from the Public Teaching Department of our university, and attracted nearly 60 sophomore students from the Astana IT Univeristy to participate. The course focuses on the geography and humanities of Wenzhou, the intangible cultural heritage of Ouyue district, the characteristics of local industries and the model of “vocational skills education + industrial integration” of ZJCST. During the interactive session, Kazakh students actively asked questions and had a warm exchange on topics such as Wenzhou's industrial development and vocational education system. After the class, the Center for International Exchange and Cooperation of ZJCST gave a detailed introduction to the follow-up project planning.

This class opening is the starting point for the two institutions to explore the new model of “vocational education going overseas”. In the future, the two sides will rely on the characteristic professional group of “big security, big emergency, big disaster reduction” of ZJCST to develop high-quality courses covering emergency management, network security, intelligent technology application and other fields. The course will also invite employees of Chinese-funded enterprises in Kazakhstan to participate in online training, and Chinese and Kazakh teachers will take turns to teach, so as to promote the “going out” of vocational education standards and resources.

It is reported that the second phase of the online course will be held in early May to further expand the cooperation in the training of technical and skilled talents in countries along the “Belt and Road”. The successful holding of this online classroom has built a platform for cultural exchanges and skill learning for young people in China and Kazakhstan and employees of Chinese-funded enterprises in Kazakhstan.

In response to the call of national education opening up and the “Belt and Road” initiative, our university actively promoted the construction of “China-Kazakhstan Silk Road College”, and signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Astana IT University in March this year. In the future, the two universities will continue to take the “Silk Road College” as a link, uphold the principle of “complementary advantages, resource sharing, and mutual benefit”, deepen cooperation in the fields of technical exchanges, teacher-student visits, and joint training, build a vocational education brand with international influence, provide more high-quality technical and skilled talents for the construction of the “Belt and Road”, and write a new chapter in international cooperation in vocational education.

Drafted by: Jia Huayi