1. Du Zhanyuan, Deputy Minister of Education, makes a tour of inspection to the OUC
On February 26, 2011, Du Zhanyuan, Deputy Minister and member of the CPC Leading Group of the Ministry of Education, arrived at the Open University of China （OUC） and visited its Distance Reception Centre, Online Q&A Room, Live Classroom, Two-Way Video Distance Monitoring Centre, CRTVU Online Educational Technology Limited and other sectors. The Deputy Minister gave full affirmation to the OUC's achievements over the last three decades
and also pointed out the need to implement the spirit of the National Education Working Conference and the National Outline for Medium and Long-term Education Reform and Development and accelerate the construction of the OUC so as to promote the development of a learning-oriented society.
2. "Constructing pilot open universities" included in the work priorities of the Ministry of Education for 2011
The Ministry of Education announced its work priorities for 2011 to comprehensively implement National Outline for Medium and Long-term Education Reform and Development. Several important educational projects and pilot reforms will be initiated soon, including the "construction of pilot open universities" in China.
3. OUC student Ruan Wenpin chosen as the "Grass-Roots Role Model" in the first "Chinese of the Year 2010" competition
On March 1, 2011, the "Inspiring National Strength — Chinese of the Year 2010" ceremony was held at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing. Ruan Wenping, a student majoring in Chinese Language and Literature at the OUC, was nominated by netizens and the Experts Committee and was selected as a "Chinese of the Year 2010".
4. Result of first RTVU Top News Stories Competition announced
The results of the first RTVU Top News Stories Competition, organized by the OUC and China.Com.cn, were announced and 60 news stories were awarded prizes. Recommended by Beijing Open University(BJOU), the story entitled "Lu Juzhong: An nonagenarian studying in BJOU" (published by China Education Daily) and 9 other stories received the first prize; the story "Let the Dropouts Go Back to School" (published by Jiefang Daily) and 19 others recommended by Shanghai TV University won the second prize; "RTVU Alumni Association in Macao Established, Macanese Love Zhuhai Radio & TV University" (published by Guangming Daily) and 29 other stories recommended by Guangdong Radio & TV University took the third prize.
5. OUC launches action plan to support Tibet with voluntary online teaching
On April 14, 2011, the Open University of China and the OUC School of Tibet organized the training of volunteers for the OUC's Action Plan to Support Tibet with Voluntary Online Teaching through a real-time conference system, marking the start of the project.
6. OUC students participate in the grand performance of "Flowers in May—Following the Party Forever"
To commemorate the 90th anniversary of the founding of Communist Party of China (CPC), the OUC organized a performance troupe to take part in the national university campus art show "Flowers in May—Following the Party Forever". This was the first time that OUC students participated in the performance. At 20:00 on May 4, the performance was broadcast live on CCTV 1 and CCTV 3. 100 students from Tianjin Radio & TV University and Hebei Radio & TV University proudly represented RTVU talent in five major performances.
7. OUC completes Outstanding Graduates Selection for 2010
The OUC published the results of the Outstanding Graduates Selection for 2010. 295 graduates from 44 provincial radio and TV universities as well as the OUC Experimental School, Bayi School, School of Tibet and School for the Disabled were conferred the honorary title of "OUC Outstanding Graduate for 2010".
8. CPC Leading Group of the Ministry of Education approves the Construction Programme of the Open University of China
On May 26, 2011, Yuan Guiren, head of the Ministry of Education and secretary of its CPC Leading Group presided over the party group meeting and listened to reports on the Construction Programme of the Open University of China. Members of the group approved the programme after discussion and directed the OUC to effectively implement the program step by step.
9. OUC student Tie Feiyan selected as "College Student of the Year 2010"
On the morning of June 16, 2011, the award ceremony for "College Student of the Year 2010" was held in the Science Hall of Beijing Jiaotong University. Tie Feiyan, a student registered in 2010 for Yunnan Radio and TV University's law programme, was chosen as one of the "College Students of the Year 2010". Liu Yandong, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and State Councilor, attended the ceremony, conferred the prize and took a photo with her.
10. 2011 Conference for RTVU Party Secretaries and Presidents held
On June 23 and 24, 2011, the Conference for RTVU Party Secretaries and Presidents was held in Beijing. Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Education, Du Zhanyuan, attended the meeting and made an important speech. Vice Director of the Department of Science and Technology of the Ministry of Education, Chen Yinghui, participated in the conference together with over one hundred representatives including all the members of the OUC leading group, Party secretaries and presidents from 44 provincial radio and TV universities around the country, and leaders from the OUC's Bayi School, Zongcan School, School for the Air Force, School of Tibet and School for the Disabled. Middle-level cadres of the OUC attended the conference as nonvoting delegates.
11. Student "village officials" and village official "students" join forces to promote rural development in Jiyang
On July 1, the launch ceremony for the project of village official positions taken by RTVUs graduates and village officials studying in RTVUs was held by the Municipal Organization Department and Education Bureau of Jinan city in Shandong province. This project is an important initiative for the OUC research topic of "Roles of Village Officials and Rural Distance Education".
12. Results of the 2011 RTVU Quality Course Selection program released
The OUC and the Cooperation Conference of Teaching Resources jointly organized the 2011 RTVU Quality Course Selection program to further promote course development in the RTVUs around the country, improve the quality of courses and teaching resources, and explore joint resource construction and sharing mechanisms. 34 courses were designated as RTVU Quality Courses after discussion and appraisal by an expert committee.
13. OUC Sponsors International Forum on Chinese Teacher Training
The "2011 International Forum on Chinese Teacher Training" co-sponsored by the OUC and China Education Television and organized by the OUC Chinese Language Center was held at the China Hall of Science and Technology on the afternoon of August 12, 2011. The Forum's purpose was to give impetus to the building of an international team of Chinese language teachers, to address the emerging global demand for Chinese language education, and to better solve the problem of "teachers" among the three key elements of "teachers, teaching materials and teaching methods" that limit the development of international Chinese education.
14. Second Branch of Beijing Municipal People's Procuratorate works with the OUC to create Lawlearner
On August 9, 2011, the OUC and Second Branch of Beijing Municipal People's Procuratorate signed a cooperation agreement and launched the jointly established website Lawlearner.net, promoting the development and future of legal education in China and exploring new ways to innovate social administration. This is the first legal education platform established through collaboration between a university and the procurator system.
15. OUC Multimedia Press partners with Berkshire Publishing Group to create a visual encyclopedia of China
In the afternoon of July 11, 2011, the Open University of China (OUC) Multimedia Press and U.S.-based Berkshire Publishing Group signed a memorandum of understanding in Beijing for a large-scale audio-visual publication project named China Panorama—Video Encyclopedia of China. The two parties will work together on the content, translation, marketing, publication, and sales of the project and strive to lay a solid foundation for the adoption and propagation of the product in the U.S.
16. 5950 OUC students receive scholarship in 2010
The 2010 OUC scholarship review was completed and a total of 5950 students were awarded scholarships. Among them, 4817 received the OUC scholarship, 535 received the "Field of Hope" Scholarship, 100 students received the IET-Sunshine Scholarship and 498 received the OUC Military Personnel Scholarship.
17. OUC and Tibet University sign agreement on joint construction of the OUC School of Tibet
On September 1, 2011, the signing ceremony for the "Agreement on the OUC Assistance to Tibet University for Joint Construction of the OUC School of Tibet During the 12th Five-Year Plan Period" was held at Tibet University. OUC President Yang Zhijian and President Gesang Qunpei of Tibet University attended the signing ceremony presided over by Vice President Lou Yuanbing of Tibet University.
18. RTVU graduates chosen as National Moral Models
The 3rd National Moral Models award ceremony took place on September 20 in Beijing. Political Bureau Standing Committee Member Li Changchun attended the ceremony and presented prizes to the winners. Dong Ming, graduate of the OUC School for the Disabled, and "Chinese Gun-man" He Xiangmei, student at Bayi School of the OUC, were selected as moral models. "Villagers' good friend" Judge Chen Yanping, a graduate of the OUC's law programme, received an honorable mention at the ceremony.
19. New ICDE Executive Committee member and OUC President Yang Zhijian leads delegation to the 24th ICDE World Conference on Open & Distance Learning
The 24th ICDE World Conference on Open and Distance Learning under the theme of "Expanding Horizons—New Approaches to Open and Distance Learning (ODL)" was held between October 2-5, 2011, in Bali, Indonesia. President of the OUC Dr. Yang Zhijian, as one of the six members of the new ICDE Executive Committee, led a nine-member delegation of the OUC to the conference. OUC Professor Liu Dailin was invited as one of eight special experts to the panel discussion on "Open Educational Resources in a Global World" and commented on the keynote speeches.
20. Teacher from OUC School for the Disabled wins the 2011 "Bank of Communications Award for Excellent Teacher in Special Education"
According to the notification issued by the General Office of the Ministry of Education and the General Office of China Disabled Persons Federation, Wu Rong, a teacher from the OUC School for the Disabled in Guangzhou, won the "Bank of Communications Award for Excellent Teacher in Special Education" for 2011.
21. OUC community education achievements presented in the launch ceremony for the "Week of Lifelong Learning for All"
On October 22, 2011, the launch ceremony for the "Week of Lifelong Learning for All" was held in Hubei Theater in Wuhan. At the same time, an exhibition and activity on lifelong learning was held in Shouyi Square. The OUC Community Education Research and Training Centre, OUC Multimedia Press and National E-learning Resource Centre participated in the exhibition and were highly praised by representatives, leaders of various levels and community members.
22. OUC signs agreement with Cisco Systems, Inc. to boost the integration of IT and education
On November 3, 2011, the Open University of China signed a strategic cooperation framework agreement with Cisco Systems, Inc. in Beijing. Both parties will join forces in applying advanced concepts of education and information technology to realize the goal of providing "convenient education for all", promote the deep integration of the Internet and IT with distance education and share quality educational resources from radio and TV universities across China with society at large.
23. China International Distance Education Conference 2011 opens in Beijing
On November 17 and 18, 2011, China International Distance Education Conference 2011 was held in Beijing. President Yang Zhijian of the OUC delivered the keynote speech "Distance Education: Reality or Dream". He pointed out that, as an important force in Chinese distance education, the Open University of China would pursue the deeper integration of modern information technology with education, make full use of cloud computing technology, build infrastructure for the informationization of education and help to bring about a learning society in China.
24. OUC entries win prizes in the 2nd National Educational Movies and TV Works Competition
Sponsored by China Association for Educational Technology, the 2nd National Educational Movies and TV Works Competition published its results and five television series produced and nominated by the OUC won prizes. These included "The Figure Among Mountains" and "The Lollipop of Happiness" which depict the lives of excellent graduates from the OUC.
25. OUC and TRU Joint Research Center hold annual conference
On November 24, 2011, the Annual Conference of the Open University of China (OUC) and Canadian Thompson Rivers University (TRU) Joint Research Center and International Seminar of Learning Outcome Assessment and Recognition opened via video conference. The primary purpose of the conference was to summarize this year's research work by the Joint Research Center and hold a discussion on the theme "Assessment and Recognition of Learning Outcome".
26. OUC officially starts project of fully-digitized course resource construction
To support the task of constructing web-based, fully-digitized course resources, the OUC organized a research and training class for teaching resource construction from November 17-19 in Beijing, marking the official launch of the project.
27. OUC "Open Class" resources provided to Beijing TV viewers free of charge
Beijing Gehua Cable TV HD STB users are able to conveniently enjoy OUC's "Open Class" programme by accessing the "Public Culture" section through the main menu. Currently, this free programme for Beijing residents includes more than 200 hours of class time and dozens of different classes.
28. OUC introduces teaching supervision mailbox
The OUC launched a teaching supervision mailbox (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) in order to better monitor teaching quality and conduct more focused instructional supervision.
29. OUC holds 2012 Spring Enrollment Netmeeting
In the afternoon of December 7, 2011, the OUC held the 2012 Spring Open Education Enrollment Netmeeting in the OUC's two-way video conferencing room. Over 1400 persons in radio and TV universities around the country attended the meeting either in person or through video. OUC Vice President Yan Bing summarized the new challenges facing the OUC during this strategic transformational period and proposed three requirements related to attracting new students for the spring semester.
30. Anhui Radio and TV University approved by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security as a National Continuing Education Base for Professional and Technical Personnel
On December 14, 2011, 20 institutions including Anhui Radio and TV University were approved as National Continuing Education Bases for Professional and Technical Personnel in a symposium hosted by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. Anhui Radio and TV University is the only institution included from Anhui province and also the first from the RTVU system.
31. 2011 Digital Learning Resources for Continuing Education and Service Achievement Exhibition held
The 2011 Digital Learning Resources for Continuing Education and Service Achievement Exhibition was held between December 23-25 at the China National Convention Centre. Member of the Political Bureau of CPC Central Committee and State Councilor Liu Yandong visited the exhibition on the 24th and toured the OUC Digital Learning Resource Center exhibition and OUC Distance Learning for Military Officers exhibition.
32. OUC launches first course resource construction project specially designed for "Agriculture, Farmer and Rural Area"
The OUC, in collaboration with the CRTVU Cooperation Conference of Teaching Resources, delivered a proposal for a project to construct RTVU course resources specially designed for "Agriculture, Farmer and Rural Area". The two parties aim to build resources for 100 courses related to "Agriculture, Farmer and Rural Area", and gradually develop a curriculum tailored to the higher vocational education and lifelong learning needs of rural areas.