On 9 October, 2024, Professor Kylie Readman, deputy vice-chancellor of the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), led a three-member delegation to visit the Open University of China (OUC).
Zhou Tianming, vice president of the OUC, attended the exchange meeting. Heads of relevant departments including the College of International Education (Office of Foreign Affairs; Office of Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan Affairs), the Credit Bank Department (Learning Outcomes Accreditation Centre), and the Department of External Education and Training participated in the talks.
Zhou Tianming extended a warm welcome to Kylie Readman and her delegation. He introduced to the delegation the development process, educational philosophy, and future plans of the OUC. He pointed out that China and Australia are important partners to each other, and the cooperation between the two countries in economy, trade, culture, and education has been continuously expanding and deepening, which has laid a solid foundation for the friendly relations between the two universities. Zhou expressed his pleasure in establishing connections with the UTS and hoped that both sides would take this meeting as a starting point to strengthen dialogue, exchanges, and cooperation in the field of education. He also emphasised the mutual goal of advancing higher education and online education, jointly promoting educational digitalisation and the construction of a learning society, thereby making new contributions to China-Australia educational cooperation. Additionally, he looked forward to deepening cultural exchanges and cooperation in faculty and student visits and academic research, so as to further strengthen the friendship between the two institutions.
Kylie Readman expressed that through this visit, she had gained a deeper understanding of the OUC's educational achievements through this visit. She highlighted the OUC’s successful experiences and innovative measures in open education, digital education, and lifelong learning as worthy of learning. She also introduced the educational situation and development strategy of the UTS, noting that digital education, lifelong learning, and transnational cooperation are strategic development areas shared by both universities. She hoped that both sides could further strengthen exchanges and cooperation, share best practices and high-quality resources in online and digital education, and jointly promote the innovative development in education. Kylie Readman also extended a sincere invitation for Zhou Tianming to lead a delegation to visit the UTS in December this year.
Wang Ran, executive deputy director of the Credit Bank Department (Learning Outcomes Accreditation Centre), and Liu Haiying, deputy director of the College of International Education (Office of Foreign Affairs; Office of Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan Affairs), introduced to the delegation the OUC’s relevant work in credit banking and international cooperation. Both sides engaged in in-depth discussions on topics such as UTS’s micro-credential programmes, OUC’s digital strategy, and university-enterprise digital technology cooperation.
The UTS delegation also visited the “Internet + University” Exhibition Centre and the Seniors University of China Exhibition Hall at the OUC to enhance mutual understanding and exchanges.
Written by Chen Na, photo by Zhang Jun, OUC