UK Immigration focuses on UK Education Trends: Chinese language education is gradually becoming popular in UK schools. UK Chancellor George Osborne stated during a speech at the Shanghai Stock Exchange that by 2020, over 5,000 additional students will be learning Chinese, for which a special fund of £10 million will be allocated. The funds will be used to recruit and train Chinese language teachers for the GCSE curriculum. Osborne stated that in the future, Chinese will be more important than traditional languages such as French and German. He also revealed that his 12-year-old daughter, Liberty, is learning Chinese.
Osborne said: "In the UK, people are eager to understand and learn this wonderful language, Chinese. Every night when my daughter does her Chinese homework, I learn a bit about it." He stated that investment in Chinese language education will provide more young people with the opportunity to learn Chinese, thereby promoting global economic development. Additionally, his visit to China aims to strengthen economic and cultural ties between the UK and China, and he hopes that Chinese language education can serve as an opportunity to promote economic cooperation between both sides.
UK Education Secretary Nicky Morgan also stated that friendly exchanges between the UK and China are crucial for economic development. Morgan said: "Students receiving Chinese language education in schools is not only about achieving a good education but also about being competitive in the global market."
A 2014 survey by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) showed that compared to French, German, and Spanish, the role of Chinese in businesses is becoming increasingly important. However, with the decline of traditional subjects like French and German, the development of language learning in the GCSE and A-level courses is slow. From the perspective of the number of people learning Chinese, the development of Chinese is "moderate," and it is widely recognized by the British as a competitive advantage.
Osborne stated in an interview with the BBC: "Currently, about 1,000 people in the UK are receiving Chinese language education. In the next five years, why can't we increase the number of people learning Chinese to 5,000? Chinese is gradually becoming an international language, and more people should learn it."
Mark Herbert, head of education programs at the British Council, stated: "This year, the number of people learning Chinese has increased by 18%, but compared to French, Spanish, and German, investment in Chinese language education is still not ideal."