Established on May 2, 2006, Confucius Institute at Nuremberg-Erlangen is the second Confucius Institute in Germany, jointly constructed by Beijing Foreign Studies University and Friedrich-Alexander University.
Overview
With its two office locations in Nuremberg and Erlangen, the Confucius Institute at Nuremberg-Erlangen makes full use of the resources of the two cities, benefiting them and the vicinity area with Chinese language and culture learning services.
At present, the number of the whole staff reaches 17, including 12 Chinese teachers and 5 managerial officers. The exclusive office and teaching area is 450 square meters while the common classroom is 500 square meters. Meanwhile, it runs a small library with 4,000 books in total.
Organizations and Management Structure
Registered as non-profitable public welfare association, the Confucius Institute is set up in a creative way, namely with government, enterprises and universities as the founding members including governments of Nuremberg, Erlangen and Fuerth, Simens, Erlangen-Nuremburg University, Beijing Foreign Studies University, Chinese Studies Department of Erlangen-Nuremberg University and the Chinese Language College of BFSU.
The institute adopts dean responsibility system under the leadership of council, which is composed of 6 members, half Chinese and half German. German side acts as the chairman while the Chinese as the vice-chairman, both of who enjoy equal power. The daily administration is in the charge of two deans who are of the equal power, one Chinese and one German.
A senior advisory committee is founded in the Confucius Institute, with the former governor of Bavaria State and former mayor of Nuremberg as the president and vice president. Other members are parliament men, spokesmen, heads of districts, headmasters and CEOs from Bundesrath, the SPD, German parliament, Bamberg University and Infineon Technologies AG cooperation.
Scope of Work
The four pillars of daily work in the Confucius Institute aim to promoting Chinese education in worldwide, China-Germany cultural exchanges, study on Chinese, and international promotion of Chinese teaching.
In 2014, the number of registered students in the Confucius Institute reached 834 and there are 13 teaching local universities, primary and middle schools currently. Since its foundation in 2006, the Institute has opened over 60 lessons including Chinese language, Chinese culture, Chinese teacher training and the teenager culture exchanges on Chinese. The population of students here rises steadily. 58 activities were held by the Confucius Institute in 2014, with 21,000 person-time participants. These activities value the high-level exchanges and received high attention and reputation among the local government, creating favorable conditions for its entering into the main stream society there. The Institute cooperates with the first-class Chinese department and international human science in the university by bringing its advantages into full play. The total number academic lectures held in 2014 reached 12 and attracted 650 person-time audience and 2 symposiums with 100 person-time participants. Over the past 8 years, it has published three paper collections, concerned greatly by the Chinese study circle at home and abroad, which has been reported by many media. Meanwhile, the Confucius Institute also participates the lifetime learning program by European Union —“ChAT Chinese and Multi-media Technologies”.
In addition, the Confucius Institute adopts many methods to popularize the Chinese teaching worldwide, such as, visits to China by the middle school headmasters, multi-media exhibition of traditional Chinese culture in local schools, a series of lectures on Chinese language and calligraphy, organization of local students to China for summer camp and conduct of teaching symposium and demonstration lessons.
The Confucius Institute has become a window of promoting Chinese culture in Nuremberg region as well as a bridge for the cultural exchanges for China and Germany. It maintains a cooperation relation with 62 government agents and civil groups in Nuremberg region and it is also the member unit of coordination group for Chinese program in Bureau of International Relations in Nuremberg. The Confucius Institute held 27 training classes on Chinese national conditions, 4 promotion activities for Chinese education and 6 China-German cultural comparison classes in 2014. The whole year has witnessed consultant services on Chinese issues for over 100 people and visits by 100 person-time in the Institute to look up materials.
Since its foundation, the Confucius Institute is in the spotlight of Chinese and German media along with its activities. Reports on these activities can be seen on theSueddeutsche Zeitung,German Time Magazine, Voice of Germany,Nuremberg Daily,Erlangen Zeittung,Frankfuturter Zeittung, North Bayern State TV Station, Chinese magazineFortnightly,China Business News, CCTV, CRI,People’s Daily,Guangming Dailyand the websites of the Xinhua News Agency, Xinhuanet, Sina.
DevelopmentGoals and Plans
In the further development, the Confucius Institute will make full use of the current resources and experiences to deepen the cooperation with the local middle schools and enterprises in a positive way, promoting the Chinese language teaching in the local middle schools as well as the popularization of Chinese tests in German and designing cultural lectures and activities for enterprises and supporting them financially. It will organize large-scale activities on Chinese culture and arts, making the Confucius Institute a household brand and improving the Chinese education. More localized teaching materials are compiled to put into use in the Confucius class in primary and middle schools. The visitors from all trades such as politics, business and education will be invited to pay friendly visits to China, benefiting the cultural exchanges between China and Germany.
Contact Information:
Nuremberg Office：Konfuzius-Institut Nürnberg-Erlangen e. V. Virchowstrasse23. D-90409 Nürnberg, Germany
Tel: 0049-911-92 31 8 22 5
Tel: 0049-913-18529388
E-mail:info@konfuzius-institut.de
Fax: 0049-911-52827661
(As of December 31, 2014)
