Research On Volunteer Service In International Chinese Education

Volunteer Service is a global phenomenon with a long history and a structural element of society.Volunteer Service originates from the spirit of altruism in human society and can be traced to the cultural traditions of different countries and nations.Under the influence of multiple factors such as the level of economic development,national political system,social and cultural traditions,the development forms of Voluntary Service vary from country to country.However,the internal logic of Voluntary Service in different countries is similar,which is convenient to be based on common development needs of mankind.Under the background of China’s increasingly strong comprehensive national strength and the "going global" of Chinese culture,the "Volunteer Project in International Chinese Education" is an overseas volunteer service project with rapid development under the vigorous promotion of international Chinese education led by Confucius Institutes.By the end of 2021,the"Volunteer Program" has sent more than 61,000 volunteers to more than 4,000 universities,primary and secondary schools and Confucius Institutes in 151 countries and regions around the world,exerting extensive influence both domestically and internationally.On the one hand,the "Volunteer Project" gave full play to the advantages of volunteer supply and provides differentiated Chinese teachers,opening up a unique path for the development of international Chinese education.On the other hand,the "Volunteer Project" followed the law of language communication,based on the national conditions of contemporary China,gave play to the advantages of the system with Chinese characteristics,and innovated a set of Chinese voluntary service development model for reference."Volunteer Project" is not only the innovative practice of China’s volunteer service in the context of globalization,but also the social consciousness of individuals actively carrying out volunteer behavior under the background of China’s rapid economic and social development.Exploring the practical experience and theoretical value of Volunteer Service in International Chinese Education can provide relevant ideas for the current development of international Chinese education,the development of volunteer service with Chinese characteristics,and the "going out" of various forms of Chinese culture.From the perspective of volunteer service supply theory and social exchange theory,based on the empirical analysis and theoretical investigation of "volunteer project",this paper attempts to construct a basic framework for the study of Volunteer Service in International Chinese Education.Centering on the research theme,this paper tries to answer the following questions.Firstly,how Volunteer Service in International Chinese Education produces and governs?Secondly,what are the general characteristics of global distribution and the development of major countries?Thirdly,compared with overseas voluntary service in other countries,what is it general and special?Fourthly,what are the group characteristics of international Chinese teacher volunteers?Fifthly,in the new era,how should Volunteer Service in International Chinese Education transform?Focusing on the above issues,this paper is divided into seven parts.Chapter One,Preface.This paper introduces the research background and significance,literature review,core concepts and theoretical basis,logical framework and research methods.Chapter Two,Emergence and Development of Volunteer Service in International Chinese Education.The "Volunteer Project" originates from the shortage of Chinese teachers.Its intrinsic nature is volunteer supply of Chinese teachers globally.The increasing demand for international Chinese teachers,the strong promotion of overseas Chinese communities,the global development layout of Confucius Institutes,and the driving force of voluntary service activities are the main driving factors for the development of the project.The construction of"Volunteer Project"system has experienced four stages,namely,international demand and project formation period(1987-2003),Confucius Institute establishment and project development period(2004-2013),career stability and project maturity period(2014-2018),career deepening and project transformation period(2019-present).Based on the principle of"implementation,development and improvement",the "Volunteer Project" has gradually established a systematic governance framework,including the recruitment and selection mechanism based on the education system network,the training and development mechanism based on both international and local concepts,the management guarantee mechanism based on people-to-people exchanges between China and foreign countries,and the incentive cycle mechanism driven by both internal and external values.Chapter Three,Global Distribution of Volunteer Service in International Chinese Education.The global distribution of "Volunteer Project" shows the characteristics of scale,agglomeration,type,complementary and diversification.From the perspective of the number of people,the project basically covers major countries in the world,showing the characteristics of scale compared with the domestic and international activities of the same type.From the perspective of regional distribution,the project has the characteristics of agglomeration.More than 50%volunteers are distributed in Asian countries,and more than 70%volunteers are distributed in 20 countries around the world.According to the degree of orientation,the project can be divided into three modes:oriented,semi-oriented and non-oriented.From the perspective of function orientation,the program interacts and complements with other international Chinese education programs;From the perspective of cooperation objects,the project has established good cooperative relations with government departments,social organizations and international communication agencies.The "Volunteer Project" gives full play to the advantages of volunteer supply,meet the diverse needs of the international community,and is embedded in the social structure network of different countries and regions.It has formed a variety of regional and national development models in more than 10 countries and regions on five continents,including Thailand,South Korea and Cambodia in Asia,Britain and Germany in Europe,United States and Latin America,some countries in Africa.Australasia,Australia and New Zealand in Oceania,etc.Chapter Four,International Comparison of Volunteer Service in International Chinese Education.Compared with the Peace Corps of the United States,the British Volunteer Service Overseas and the Japanese Youth Overseas Cooperation Corps,the "Volunteer Project" has similarities and differences.The commonality is mainly reflected in four aspects:purpose and mission,function orientation,governments role and management mode.Overseas voluntary service activities are always closely connected with national strategies,practice the mission of national public diplomacy,and are connected with the language promotion system of the country to varying degrees.The government has always been the "helmsman" directly or indirectly involved,and promoted the formation of a systematic circular management system.The differences are mainly reflected in four aspects:global regional distribution,composition of participating groups,interpretation of volunteer spirit and main service content.The global distribution of "volunteer projects" has certain spontaneity,imbalance and agglomeration,and the global distribution needs to be further optimized.Compared with social recruitment and global recruitment in other countries,the recruitment system of"Volunteer Project" is limited to the education system and focuses on former volunteer groups and overseas Chinese groups,which needs to be further strengthened in terms of absorbing social forces.Different countries have nationalized interpretations of the international spirit of volunteerism and spread their own languages and cultures in different forms.The "Volunteer Projects" need to be further expanded in terms of service scope,fields involved and global perspectives.Chapter Five,Group Characteristics of Volunteer Service in International Chinese Education.A questionnaire survey was conducted among 872 volunteers,and an in-depth interview was conducted among 36 volunteers and 10 staff members.The analysis of the questionnaire results shows that the volunteer group is gradually turning into the "post-00s"young students.They always maintain a higher educational level,and most of them take up their posts during the period of bachelor’s and master’s study.Chinese as a foreign language/education for learning Chinese as a foreign language is still the main professional source.The gender imbalance persists for a long time,and a significant number of volunteers have two or more years of teaching experience."Love for Chinese teaching and spreading Chinese culture" was the top motivation of volunteers,but there was a significant difference in motivation within the group.The volunteers’ perception of teaching experience is generally positive,and they agree with the positive influence on personal growth.The employment destination of volunteers is very diverse,among which the proportion of domestic primary and secondary schools is the highest.According to the analysis of the interview texts,volunteers generally have a strong willingness to study abroad and develop,and show positive personality traits and sense of responsibility.They regard the dissemination of Chinese language and culture as their "feelings",and living allowance is also an important consideration for individuals.Volunteer experience has a profound "imprint" on the individual,and promotes the career development and growth of the individual to varying degrees.In recent years,while the scale of volunteers is expanding,they are also faced with problems such as decreasing number of applicants,weakening volunteer spirit and declining overall quality.There is distinct heterogeneity in volunteer groups.According to the two dimensions of participation time and willingness,volunteer groups can be divided into four basic types:"ideal type","transfer type","tool type" and "passive type".Through the investigation of volunteer behavior,it is found that volunteer behavior participation is affected by individual,organizational and environmental factors.Individual factor is the primary factor that attracts individuals to participate for the first time,organizational factor is the key factor that affects the continuous participation of individuals,and supporting policies,as a negative variable,directly affect the continuation or suspension of behavior.Environmental factors acted comprehensively as moderating variables at different stages,and the comprehensive effects of the three factors constituted the influencing mechanism of volunteer behavioral participation.Chapter Six,Transformation of Volunteer Service in International Chinese Education.The transformation and development of "Volunteer Project" presents three paths,including domestic dual selection path,overseas local growth path and network technical support path.The development of "Volunteer Project" is confronted with multiple opportunities and challenges from inside and outside.The future development can adopt four strategies.Firstly,we need to adapt to national conditions,including referring to international experience,expand service content,and give full play to voluntary advantages.Secondly,we should give full play to the synergy effect of the organization,including the cooperation with the cultural exchange system between China and foreign countries,the cooperation with the national diplomatic platform,and the cooperation with the international Chinese education.Thirdly,we also need to improve overall design of the project,including broadening the scope of recruitment and selection,deepening the country training system,consolidating the responsibility of risk management,and improving the incentive cycle system.Fourthly,we must pay attention to individual professional growth,including emotional value,pay attention to development management,improve the career development system.Chapter Seven,Conclusion.The main views,conclusions and innovations of this paper are summarized,and the follow-up research directions are put forward.