Danping Wang: the language of connection

Summary

Associate Professor Danping Wang, director of the Chinese programme at the University of Auckland, is leaving after a decade to lead a new initiative at the University of Oxford. She joined the University of Auckland in 2016 from Hong Kong, having grown up in Beijing and taught in Hong Kong for ten years. Under her leadership, the Chinese programme grew into what she believes is the largest of its kind in New Zealand, with more than 400 students now enrolling annually in stage one courses, most of them New Zealand-born students without Chinese heritage.

Working with a team of graduate teaching assistants, she adopted innovations such as blended learning, allowing students to access lecture content online at any time and to co-construct courses—for example, applying their learning by reading Chinese picture books at their children's kindergartens. She also introduced a Chinese language proficiency certificate, opening the language to a wider audience, including a New Zealand boxer who wanted to communicate with Chinese boxing students and nurses seeking to communicate with patients. Wang said her approach to language teaching shifted profoundly after studying te ao Māori in New Zealand, and she now sees language learning as a way to build relationships, bring people closer, create a sense of belonging and convey human warmth.

Twice awarded a Sino-British scholarship, she had planned to visit Oxford on the second award but did not make the trip after receiving a job offer in New Zealand at the same time. In 2026, she won a global competition to be appointed chair of the Centre for Excellence in Chinese Language Learning and Teaching at the University of Oxford, which focuses on improving access to Chinese education in schools, innovative teacher education and cutting-edge research. She hopes to leave behind a thriving programme, teaching methods colleagues can continue to develop and lasting relationships, and said she will drive change at Oxford based on care, human connection and participation.

Commentary

In her ten years at the University of Auckland, Associate Professor Danping Wang grew the Chinese programme into the largest in New Zealand, with more than 400 local students enrolling each year, most without Chinese heritage—a phenomenon that reflects New Zealand society's recognition of the practical value of Chinese. Her blended learning and community practice—such as students reading Chinese picture books at kindergartens—not only lowers the barrier to learning but embeds language learning in daily life. This model offers a direct lesson for small and medium-sized business owners: basic Chinese among staff can significantly improve customer service and business communication with China.

Education services and tourism-related industries account for an important share of New Zealand's exports to China, and Chinese proficiency is becoming a point of competitive difference. Wang is about to lead the Centre for Excellence in Chinese Language Learning and Teaching at Oxford, and her teaching philosophy—integrating te ao Māori and viewing language as a path to relationships and belonging—may have a ripple effect on global Chinese education. New Zealand SMEs should note the signal behind this talent flow: competition for Chinese-language education resources is intensifying, and local firms need to invest more proactively in staff language training or partner with universities to tailor business Chinese courses, so as to seize the opportunities of deepening New Zealand-China trade and economic ties.

Keywords: Danping Wang, University of Auckland, Chinese language teaching, University of Oxford, Chinese programme, language learning, New Zealand, te ao Māori, Sino-British scholarship

AI illustration on MiDeer Observer

Source: The University of Auckland