China has fascinated the West since the Middle Ages with its traditions, history and knowledge that is thousands of years old. In the past few decades, the country has amazed the world with its dynamism, creativity and creativity. China has a firm place in the globalized world, which it fills with self-confidence.
Official name: People’s Republic of China
Area: 9,596,960 km²
Residents: 1.395 billion (2018)
Growth of population: 0.3% (2020, estimate)
Seat of government: Beijing (Peking)
Official language: Standard Chinese
Regional languages: Mongolian, Tibetan etc.
With a land area of 9,596,960 km², China is the third largest country in the world after Russia and Canada. It is 4,200 km from Heilongjiang, bordering on Siberia, in the far north to the tropical island of Hainan in the far south. From the oriental trading city of Kashgar in the west of Xinjiang to the metropolis of Shanghai on the lower reaches of the Yangzi it is even 4,500 km.
According to militarynous, China’s national border is a total of 22,133 km. 14,500 km of this is the coastline along the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea and the South China Sea. In the south, southwest, west and northwest, China is separated from its neighbors by large mountains. In the north steppes and deserts are the natural boundaries, in the northeast the rivers Amur and Ussuri. Along the land borders are the 14 direct neighbors of China (from southwest to northeast): Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, Bhutan, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Mongolia and North Korea.
Education
In China, learning has always enjoyed a very special appreciation. The importance of learning for the moral maturity of man is already emphasized in Confucius’ ” Talks “. The traditional official examinations of the Chinese Empire also required an enormous amount of learning.
Despite the strong teaching and learning tradition, in 1949 90% of the Chinese population was still illiterate. However, since its inception, the PRC has made great strides in literacy. Today, China can largely be regarded as literate. According to official information, in 2013 only 4.6% of the population were illiterate.
According to the last census in 2010, 8.9% of the population had a university degree. Another 14% had an upper middle school certificate, 38.8% a middle school certificate and 26.8% only had a primary school certificate.
School attendance is compulsory for nine years in the PR China. The primary school lasts six years, the lower secondary school three years. Upper secondary prepares students for entry into universities. At the end of the school career, there are nationwide entrance exams (Gaokao) for the universities, a major annual event that has a decisive influence on future career opportunities.
Although the official school enrollment rate is 99.9%, the educational system is still characterized by strong regional differences. With local governments responsible for the provision of educational services, it has traditionally been difficult to enforce compulsory education across the country. In order to achieve this goal nonetheless, a state-wide exemption from fees was implemented for the first time in 2008 by increasing government spending on education. However, the upper secondary level required for the higher education entrance qualification is still subject to fees, which means that equality in the education system is still not achieved with higher degrees.
In higher education, the number of students has more than quadrupled since 2000. In 2016, 7.04 million people graduated from university. The number of citizens of the PR China who are studying abroad has also been growing continuously for years: in 2016 there were 544,500 foreign students.
School and study
There are now international schools and kindergartens in many of China’s major cities. The language of instruction is usually English, although there are also two German schools in Beijing and Shanghai. In other cities such as Suzhou or Qingdao there is also the possibility of completing teaching units in German within the international schools. International schools charge high school fees of in some cases over 1,000 euros per month, which does not yet include meals and special expenses. Many schools also charge high admission fees. Anyone who goes to China with children should therefore ensure that the sending organization pays the school fees.
Anyone studying in China must be enrolled at one of the many Chinese universities and receive a student visa in return. If you do not have a scholarship from an international study organization (e.g. DAAD), you have to pay for the tuition fees yourself. These can be over 3,000 euros per year. In the first nationwide online network that connects all universities and research institutes (CERNET – “China Education and Research Network”), Chinese and international students can research information on enrollment formalities, exams and grants at Chinese universities.
