Summary
A delegation of principals from Australia and New Zealand visited Jinan Foreign Language School on 20 October 2026, engaging with senior students in the classroom and observing a collective lesson-planning session by the senior English teaching group. At a roundtable, Ma Xindong, chief inspector of the Jinan Education Bureau, briefed the delegation on the city's educational development and historical background, while the schools presented their respective strengths and discussed teacher development, international education and inter-school cooperation. Party secretary Pang Kunjing signed memoranda of understanding with the three schools on behalf of Jinan Foreign Language School, establishing a framework for teacher and student exchanges, joint curriculum development and educational research.
The school said the visit was part of its efforts to deepen international people-to-people exchanges and widen cooperation channels, and that it would use the framework to promote mutual learning and raise its international profile.
Commentary
The memoranda signed between Jinan Foreign Language School and three Australian and New Zealand schools signal that China-New Zealand education engagement is extending from the tertiary sector into primary and secondary schooling. New Zealand's international school market has long drawn mainly on Asian students, but visa policy and geopolitical factors have slowed growth from China in recent years, prompting schools to pursue asset-light models such as joint curriculum development and teacher exchanges. For NZ SMEs, education services exports are shifting from pure student recruitment towards curriculum licensing, teacher training and joint teaching research.
The internationalisation needs of public schools in second-tier Chinese cities such as Jinan offer a niche entry point for local edtech firms and professional development providers. The collective visit by Australian and New Zealand principals also reflects regional competition among education brands: Australian schools have greater scale in international student recruitment, while New Zealand institutions need to emphasise their local curriculum and safety reputation. The effectiveness of the memoranda will depend on the frequency of subsequent exchanges and investment in curriculum resources.
NZ SMEs could look to opportunities in textbook copyright, online platforms and study-tour services.
Keywords: Jinan Foreign Language School, Australia-NZ principals' delegation, memorandum of understanding, inter-school exchange, teacher and student exchanges, international education, joint curriculum development, Jinan Education Bureau
Photo by Kerin Gedge on Unsplash
Source: jinan-edu.cn
Disclaimer: This article is compiled from publicly available sources for general information only. The analysis and commentary are editorial opinions. MiDeer Observer does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information provided. Readers should seek independent professional advice before relying on this content, or contact us for more information.
