A delegation from the Shanghai Jingyuan Senior High School, led by its principal Ji Hongxue, visited Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University. The school is one of Shanghai’s first experimental and model senior high schools, and Mr. Ji is a member of the Council of the Chinese Society of Education as well as an expert supervisor of the National Teacher Training Program. Around 30 students at the school study the Russian language, and the administration is interested in introducing them to opportunities for continuing their education in Russia.
Prior to arriving in Saint Petersburg, the delegation visited leading universities in Moscow—Lomonosov Moscow State University and the Plekhanov Russian University of Economics—and then traveled to Saint Petersburg to become acquainted with Russia’s oldest technical university. During their visit, the guests toured the Mining University’s teaching laboratories and visited the "Gorny" Author’s School, which is under the university's patronage.
Graduates of Jingyuan School possess Russian language proficiency at the B1 (intermediate) level, which allows them to communicate, write coherently, and understand standard texts. As a result, upon admission to Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University, they will not need to complete a one-year preparatory course.
Principal Ji Hongxu plans to initiate cooperation with the Mining University through the participation of his students in its "Summer School" program. While the program is primarily geared toward university students, according to the Rector of the Mining University, Vladimir Litvinenko, it can be adapted for high school students as well. For example, they may find it particularly interesting to gain an introduction to major mineral resources, as well as the technologies used for their extraction and processing.
The cooperation roadmap is also expected to include faculty exchange programs. On the Russian side, both university professors and teachers from the "Gorny" Author’s School may participate.
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For the fourth year, the University has been operating within the framework of the presidential pilot project to improve higher education, and we clearly understand that it is impossible to build an updated university model in isolation from improving the quality of school preparation. Nor can it be done without considering international experience.
We are active in international activities and cooperate with a number of leading Chinese universities. This year, which has been declared the Year of Russian-Chinese Cooperation in Education, we have a dense agenda of various inter-university events. We could also consider organizing a Russian-Chinese dialogue on school education to discuss best practices», – proposed Vladimir Litvinenko.
The guests supported the proposal. Ji Hongxue noted the high level of laboratory equipment at Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University and the strong engagement of its faculty and staff, with whom the delegation had the opportunity to interact. According to him, all of this creates a solid foundation for future cooperation.
«Students in Shanghai generally prefer to enroll in universities within the metropolis. The most popular fields among young people are in the social sciences and humanities, information technologies, and robotics. The internet is filled with information about these areas, while mining is discussed far less. This makes it all the more interesting for our students, within the framework of the Summer Schools in Saint Petersburg, to become acquainted with this industry, and perhaps later make a conscious decision to connect their career path with it», – said Ji Hongxue.
The parties agreed to prepare a cooperation roadmap, followed by the signing of a corresponding memorandum.
