Page 17 - Luce 2020

S enior C o mmon Ro om

Outside Tsinghua’s equivalent of the Potter Gallery!
If we avoid difficult questions about in China that will be enormously fully as an educational as well as a
political and social differences, we are appealing and enormously rewarding political and financial power. It’s simply
selling short the remarkable strengths to many Australian students. When naïve to believe that we can reduce
of our own political inheritance. This our most capable Australian students Australia’s engagement with China down
is conversation that needs to begin, consider options for tertiary study, to the simple lens of economic benefit.
respectfully and in a safe space for all, the rapidly improving Chinese tertiary
with the current generation of Chinese system should be front of mind – for It’s equally naïve to think that we can
international students and with local Principals, teachers, and parents – as disengage from a rising China, even if
students. It is a conversation that needs we equip our younger generations for we wanted to. Happily, Australia has a
to be happening now. the future realities of global success. strong history of effective multilateral
engagement. In relation to China, this
Lastly, we should be actively It’s now almost half a century since engagement should be significantly
encouraging a significant cohort of Gough Whitlam’s ground-breaking ramped up in both directions. Advancing
Australian students to study in China, 1973 visit to China. More than two the national interest in this bilateral
engaging with its rapidly expanding and decades have passed since Deng conversation requires subtlety and skill.
improving educational system while Xhao Ping opened up his nation to But above all, it must be underpinned
growing their cultural competency. international trade and development. by deeper understanding. Coal, iron ore,
There are real and obvious challenges to No one should be allowed, if they and university degrees offer no more
studying in China. Beyond recent issues ever were so allowed, to view Chinese than an entry point. In order to advance
around infectious disease, they range students as flowing from the end of an Australia’s national interest in dialogue
from ‘the walled garden’ of WeChat, and invisible tap, or the Chinese economy with ‘new China’, the time has come for
constrained access to international news, as simply an importer of Australian a more nuanced, engaged approach.
to the traditional challenges of language goods. We need to deepen our
and culture that come from studying perception about China. There is a
abroad. Yet there is much to studying concomitant need to engage with China

Dr Xue Lan, Dean of Schwarzman College How does one write for an academic audience?

J anet Clarke Hall 17