In September 2011, the First Minister for Northern Ireland, Mr Peter Robinson, and the Junior Minister, Mr Jonathan Bell, hosted an official dinner to celebrate Hanban's (Confucius Institute Headquarters) decision to award Confucius Institute status to the University of Ulster (UU) and Zhejiang University of Media and Communication. During the event they discussed how Chinese language and cultural education should not just be confined to within the University. The Ministers believe that all sections of society can benefit from learning more about China, especially the children and young people in our schools.

    In October 2011, Northern Ireland instigated plans that would help turn this desire into reality. The first step on this path was to engage with the Department of Education to investigate the current provision of Chinese language and cultural education within schools in Northern Ireland and assess how this could be developed so that it forms a significant part of the curriculum.

 

    In November 2011, University of Ulster (UU) decided to work closely with Hubei Normal University (HBNU) on the establishment of the Confucius Institute for Northern Ireland (CCHNI) since both universities had cooperated in many fields for several years. This arrangement received strong support from the most senior figures in Northern Ireland, including the First and Deputy First Ministers, the Speaker of the Assembly, and the Minster for Education, as well as the Chinese Ambassador, Mr. Liu Xiaoming. The President of Hubei Normal University (HBNU), Professor Xiang Xianzhi, led a delegation to the University of Ulster with the purpose of engaging in discussion regarding the proposal and agreeing a schedule of action. During the visit, the Vice Chancellor of University of Ulster, Professor Richard Barnett, and the President of Hubei Normal University, Professor Xiang Xianzhi, signed an agreement on the establishment of the Confucius Classroom Hub for Northern Ireland (CCHNI). Accordingly, a preparatory group for the application of CCHNI is established, which is mainly composed of the staff members of the Confucius Institute for Northern Ireland at the Ulster University (CINIUU) and staff members of International Exchange Department of Hubei Normal University (IEDHBNU).

    In December 2011, the Head of Education (Mr. Peter Hall) within the Northern Ireland Assembly visited Hubei Normal University (HBNU), accompanied by the Director of CINIUU where they further discussed the proposal.

In April 2012, the preparatory group of CCHNI sent details regarding the Confucius Classroom Programme to all 1070 primary and post-primary schools in Northern Ireland (852 Primary Schools, 148 Secondary Schools and 70 Grammar Schools).

    In total 20 applications to become a Confucius Classroom Hub were received by the preparatory group of CCHNI and the strongest eight have been selected for appraisal by Hanban/Confucius Institute Headquarters. These eight schools will in turn work in conjunction with a total of 101 partner schools. Each of the schools detailed below have proved that they are strongly committed to providing Chinese language and cultural education within their institution, amongst their partner schools and to the wider community. The eight proposed Confucius Classroom Hubs are not only well placed geographically across Northern Ireland, maximizing the potential benefit to the population, but they also each have unique strengths that will allow them to best achieve the aims and objectives of the Confucius Classroom Programme.

    The selected schools are strongly committed to commencing the process whereby Mandarin will eventually become part of their modern language offering, alongside established courses such as French and Spanish. They recognize the value of the YCT and HSK exams and will be promoting them to their students as a means of personal and professional development. CCHNI will also work to highlight the value of the official Chinese language exams, both to children and adults. We will use the number of individuals in Northern Ireland sitting the exams as well as the results they receive to measure the commitment from individual Classrooms and the quality of teaching that is being provided. After attending the teaching materials training provided by Hanban/Confucius Institute Headquarters in London, the staff at CINIUU appreciated the importance of making language education fun and stimulating and as a result we will be encouraging interaction between the various Confucius Classrooms as well as holding competitions for the best scores in the YCT or HSK exam.

    At CINIUU we have and will continue to work extensively with other organizations such as the British Council and the Confederation of British Industry to ensure the ongoing success of our Confucius Institute and the future success of the Confucius Classroom Hub for Northern Ireland.