Oakland University’s School of Education and Human Services has partnered with Oxford Community Schools and Beijing Channel Consulting International Education Group to establish an educational partnership.

Teaming up

The partnership will create a program allowing student teachers from China to complete a Master’s of Art in Teaching degree at OU while teaching Mandarin Chinese to students in Oakland County.

Louis B. Gallien, dean of the School of Education and Human Services, BCC Executive Director Xuyang Yao, Oxford Schools Superintendent William Skilling and Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, among others, spoke about the partnership at Oakland March 4.

“Yesterday was too late,” Skilling said. “We need to do something to prepare our kids to compete in a global world. We need to learn the (Chinese) language and the culture fluently.”

Building competition

The program will start this fall and will include the county’s 28 school districts.

All of the districts currently offer Mandarin Chinese language classes, and the program hopes to enhance the existing curriculum.

The integration will help students develop a broader worldview, according to Patterson.

“There are more people speaking English in China than there are people speaking English in America,” Patterson said. “The Chinese are educating their children to compete in the world market. They’re going to be global competitors.”

He said China is projected to become the world’s largest economy in 2016 and views the partnership as beneficial to posterity. He supports cultural exchange through foreign language, cultural, religious, political and economic education.

“If we don’t appreciate the size and scope of the global challenge presented by China, our kids and grandchildren will simply be left behind,” he said.

Expanding the program

For the past five years, the Oxford Community School district has hosted Chinese-teaching students from 11 partner schools in China. Their program will be used to develop similar ones throughout the county.

Skilling emphasized the sustainability of teachers in Oakland County, noting that most teachers at Oxford were OU graduates.

“Oakland University has a huge presence in the educational community,” Skilling said. “There’s a lot of trust and a lot of partnerships between the Oakland schools and the university.”