From 22 to 24 May 2023, the ASEAN-China Centre (ACC) and the UNESCO Teacher Education Centre (TEC) co-organised 2023 ASEAN Education Officials Vocational+Digital Education Study Trip in Shanghai, in the purpose of better aligning to the actual needs of ASEAN Member States (AMS) in quality education. The education counselors and officials based in Beijing including from Thailand, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Viet Nam and Cambodia, Ms. Li Yaying, Deputy Director of the Education Culture and Tourism Division of the ACC, Mr. Wang Hao, Deputy Director of the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, and Ms. Yuan Wen, President of Shanghai Normal University joined the event.
During the event, the Symposium on ASEAN-China Education Cooperation Challenges and Opportunities was organised. The AMS officials shared their views on challenges and opportunities in education reform, teacher training and digital transformation of education, and expressed their willingness to jointly develop projects with the ACC and UNESCO TEC to promote quality education in their respective countries. Ms. Li Yaying said that educational cooperation plays an important role in regional development, and the ACC looks forward to having more cooperation with UNESCO TEC and Shanghai Municipal Government in the future, so as to make better use of Shanghai's economic strength and educational edge to promote regional education cooperation and talent training, and contribute to long-term growth of ASEAN-China Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
In addition, the ACC also organised field visits for the AMS officials to vocational colleges such as Shanghai Institute of Technology and Shanghai Tourism College, and they witnessed application of digital technology in Youai Experimental Middle School and High School of Science and Technology Affiliated to East China University of Science and Technology. Such visits deepened their understanding on the development of vocational education and digitalized education in China, and laid a solid foundation for future cooperation.