Schools as global enterprises: Educating for Asia Summit 2011

“The benefits can be huge when people engage effectively across borders, not just through trade but through cultural interaction fuelled by mutual understanding”. With this message Education Minister Anne Tolley officially opened the Asia:NZ Educating for Asia Summit 2011, addressing an audience of over a hundred or so primary and secondary school principals and other educators in Wellington.

For our young people to thrive in a globalised world, they need to be knowledgeable about Asia so as to be confident, connected, actively involved and aptly prepared for their future world.

Brought together by this overarching theme, our summit keynote speakers gave different perspectives on the needs, benefits, practicalities and challenges of building up Asia awareness for young people.

Asia accounts for over 60 percent of the world population with more than 4 billion people and growing. One in five people in the world today is Chinese; one in five is Indian. The face of the world economy is changing, too, as 90 percent of world growth now comes from developing countries.

Changes in New Zealand’s population and economy are also driven by the ascendance of Asia. New Zealanders of Asian ethnic origins will number over 694,000 by 2021. China is our second trading partner and our exports to Asia were 38 percent of total exports in 2010.

How are all these statistics significant when it comes to educating the next generation?

“As educators we open a window to the world for our children,” explained Dr Yong Zhao (pictured below), a cross-cultural education expert from the University of Oregon in the USA. In the first keynote address of the day, he offered a lively and entertaining take on the reasons which put cross-cultural competencies and adaptability to the fore in today’s world.

The death of distance

“We have to make a judgement on the value of knowledge, and identify what exactly we need to be effective in teaching,” said Dr Zhao. What knowledge and skills are worthwhile learning? Posed more than a century ago, this question by British philosopher Herbert Spencer is still topical today. The emergence of a globalised virtual world prompts this need to re-examine the value of knowledge.

This “death of distance”, as Dr Zhao calls it, defines who we interact with and how. This interaction is framed by our interests and ambitions, but also by the challenge of making a living in a globalised world. There will be increasing competition for jobs as emerging economies gather speed and middle class incomes in developing countries catch up with those in the western world, bringing an inevitable rise in demand for products and resources.

In a competitive world, innovation and conceptual thinking will be of greatest significance. Rather than focusing on literal, analytical skills instilled through uniform standards and relentless testing, Dr Zhao believes the new conceptual age requires schools to foster creativity, empathy, imagination and the ability to use narratives. “These skills are cultural – they cannot be outsourced; they cannot be done by a machine.”

Educators need to be able to recognise and nurture students’ unique potential. Different cultural backgrounds trigger different abilities. Just as a tour guide can help navigate busy and confusing city streets, so can cultural guides help with the intricacies of the emerging global society. “Students need to be global entrepreneurs – in this new world, people will need to invent a job, not find a job.”

Photo: Primary school principals in their breakout session

Global entrepreneurs are culturally competent in order to identify market opportunities for their strengths. Global entrepreneurs also need a global social network – the rise of new technology but also the ability to understand and communicate with other cultures will play a major part in future. And Asia – due to its sheer size and diversity – will be a cornerstone of this global marketplace of ideas.

To help nurture these global entrepreneurs, Dr Zhao believes, we need to better incorporate a global and Asian context in the existing curriculum. “Overcome your fears, bridge cultural differences – we need to think of schools as global enterprises,” was Dr Zhao’s concluding message.

"A done deal"

Andrew Clark, managing director of Boston Consulting Group in New Zealand, was on hand to provide the New Zealand economic context, in which the global importance of Asia can be directly witnessed.

A quick overview of the significance of Asia for New Zealand's international trade, foreign direct investment and international students inflow painted a convincing picture of the need to equip the next generation of the workforce with the skills and competencies needed to thrive in a world shaped by Asia.

"Australians need to become Asia literate"

Providing the view on schools' Asia awareness from across the Tasman, Kathe Kirby, executive director of the Asia Education Foundation in Melbourne, spoke on the pressing need to develop national leadership and adequate policies on supporting Australian schools in preparing future generations to deal with Asia's emerging global powerhouses.

Australia's engagement with Asia has been growing at a much faster pace in the last decade, Ms Kirby said; and Australia's prosperity, social diversity, transnational connections and innovative growth are increasingly intertwined with its neighbours and partners in Asia.

The 2008 Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians and the new Australian National Curriculum which will begin implementation this year until 2013 are the major policy levers for Asia awareness in Australia. Intercultural understanding will be a core capability requirement and an understanding of Asia and Australia's engagement with Asia - a priority for all students. These two major policy levers have been a great step forward, she said; however, serious challenges remain ahead.

Ms Kirby highlighted a series of practical initiatives by AEF in Australia to increase Asia literacy there, among them the Education Alliance and the Business Alliance for Asia Literacy. Similarly to Asia:NZ's education programme, which works with teachers, principals and businesses through the Business Education Partnership, AEF works with Australian school leaders, educators and businesses to advance the Asia literacy agenda across the Tasman and bridge the gap between the huge potential of Asia and the skills and competencies needed to make the most of such potential. "Asia literacy IS part of a 21st century curriculum," concluded Ms Kirby. "It won't happen by itself - it needs investment by government, by school leaders and in the classroom. You hold the future of your young people in your hands."

Asia literacy in New Zealand schools

Dr Elody Rathgen presented highlights of her longitudinal study of Asia awareness in several New Zealand schools.

"A cautionary tale from across the Tasman"

The story of Asia's rise and the extraordinary benefits it can bring to Australia is not new. Experts in Australia were already talking about "the need to comprehend Northeast Asian social, economic and political institutions and languages" two decades ago, said Dr Michael Wesley, executive director of the Lowy Institute for International Policy in Sydney and the summit's third keynote speaker.

The cautionary tale he wanted to tell revolved around what he saw as the inadequacy of public investment into Asia literacy for Australians. Social stereotypes or misguided fears about Asia and Asians, a rising insularity coupled with unbridled economic optimism and " a culture of serendipity", along with insufficient national commitment to a vision of Australia in Asia may become real hurdles to Australian prosperity in a world defined by Asian powerhouses like China, India or Indonesia.

"The hope is in the community to effect change," said Dr Wesley. "We need a bottom-up movement involving businesses, schools, communities and youth."

 

In wrapping up the summit day, Asia:NZ executive director Dr Richard Grant told principals: "Even if we do nothing, the world around us will change - and if we don't recognise it, we face a difficult future."

Speaking of her experience at the summit to fellow principals, Auckland Girls' Grammar School principal Liz Thomson said: "The people here are no doubt converted; our next challenge is to spread the word. Things are moving quickly - we cannot afford to sit back and do what we have always done."

- by Antonia Kokalova-Gray

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Last updated: 24 May 2011
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