BRIEF INTRODUCTION

  Zhejiang Education Institute (hereafter referred as the Institute), located in the garden city of Hangzhou, with the scenic West Lake to its south, is one of the National Model Institutions of Higher Learning for Adult Education mainly for training in-serve teachers and educational administrative personnel, which has grown out of Zhejiang Provincial Teacher-training College founded in 1955.

  Subordinated to the Government of Zhejiang Province, the Institute consists of 10 schools, namely School of Humanities, School of Sciences and Engineering, School of Educational Science and Administration, School of Arts, School of Computer Information and Contemporary Education Technologies, School of Vocational Education, School of Foreign Languages, School of Economics and Trades, School of Resources and Environment, and School of Sports as well as Zhejiang Qiuzhi College (specializing in sub-degree studies), totally offering more than 50 specialties for undergraduate and sub-degree studies. In addition, Zhejiang Provincial Training Center for Educational Administrative Personnel, Zhejiang Provincial Training Center for Primary and Secondary School Teachers (including the Sino-German Joint Program) and Zhejiang Provincial Training Center for Computer Science Teachers from Primary and Secondary Schools were set up in the Institute in succession.

  In the last few years, the Institute has experienced a rapid expansion in all respects. At present, there are 20,000 students taking courses in degree and non-degree programs here and the number of students who take undergraduate, sub-degree and higher vocational studies is larger year after year. At the same time, continuing education is carried out with full wings and the total number of trainees reaches 3,000 every year.

  Among its over 387 staff members and workers, there are 323 professional and technical personnel, 47.03% of which are professors or associate professors and 48.51% are teachers with doctor or master degrees. With respect to this, the Institute plays a leading role in all the teacher-training institutions of Zhejiang province.

  Boasting with a pleasant environment and convenient transportation, the campus occupies a total area of more than 660 ares and a floor space of 60,000 square meters in the downtown area. Emphasis laid by the institute on campus facility construction can be demonstrated by the newly-built but well-equipped edition building, teacher-training building, student dorms especially the multi-functioned library with 210,000 volumes of books. Besides, the Institute is well known in the province for the modern multimedia classrooms, microteaching classrooms, electronic-piano classrooms, electronic-reading rooms and campus web-site. The total value of teaching instruments and equipment nearly amounts to 30,000,000 yuan.

  Having given priority to research, the Institute has seen the publication and distribution of Journal of Zhejiang Education Institute, Teaching Monthly for Middle Schools, Teaching Monthly for Primary Schools, Moral Teaching and Pupil’s World, which helps cultivate a favorable academic atmosphere in the campus. The Institute has also attached great importance to the educational exchanges and cooperation with universities home and abroad. So far, we have built solid relationship with over a dozen institutions from Australia, the United States, Germany, Hongkong and Taiwan.

  Education is developing at a high speed. Dedicating to put the important thoughts of “Three Representatives” into practice, the whole staffs have played active parts in the Institute’s creation and construction, and every aspect of the Institute has had a full development. Sep. 16th, 2002 is a mile stone in the Institute’s history, when she gained official permission from the Provincial Government to transform into a general university and build a new campus in a suitable place for an enrollment of 6,000 students in the immediate future and 15,000 for the long-term planning while the training for in-service teachers and administration personnel should still be shouldered by the Institute.

  With the support from the Government of Zhejiang Province, a new stage for the Institute’s development has been opened up. With the government’s general plan as its blueprint, a comprehensive education university of unique characteristics, reputation and innovation is expected to make an appearance among the top list in ten years’ strive or even a longer time to make more contributions to the economic construction and social development of Zhejiang Province.