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1 1 (April 15, 2019)

handle is hein.crs/govzjv0001 and id is 1 raw text is: April 15, 2019 Confucious Institutes in the United States: Selected Issues The People's Republic of China (PRC)'s Confucius Institutes, which offer Chinese language classes in universities and other academic institutions around the world, have been the subject of controversy since appearing on U.S. campuses in 2005, particularly for their perceived effects on academic freedom and lack of transparency. They have attracted further attention in recent years as some Members of Congress and others have alleged that they may play a role in China's efforts to influence public opinion abroad, recruit influence agents on U.S. campuses, and engage in cyber espionage and intellectual property theft. PRC officials and scholars deny such charges, and suggest that the Institutes have been become victims of a U.S. Cold War mentality and cultural containment of China. Some raise additional concerns, which are discussed at length in other studies. These include the lack of PRC reciprocity toward U.S. educational efforts in China, the improper use of U.S. Exchange Visitor (J-1) visas for Institute instructors in some cases, and possible incomplete reporting by U.S. universities to the Department of Education (DOE) regarding funds received from China for the establishment and operation of Confucius Institutes. U.S. supporters of the Confucius Institutes assert that the activities of the Institutes are narrow in scope and do not impinge upon academic freedom in the broader university environment, and that the Institutes provide Chinese language and cultural programs that benefit students, universities, and local communities. Some note that in some U.S. colleges and universities, Chinese language instruction is only available through the Confucius Institute. Some analysts point to a 2009 quote by Li Changchun, a former Chinese Communist Party senior official, stating that Confucius Institutes are an important part of China's overseas propaganda setup, as evidence that they promote PRC policy positions in the classroom. Other observers state that China's use of the term propaganda does not connote proselytizing, and that although Confucius Institutes aim to help soften China's international image, they play a relatively passive role in China's public diplomacy efforts. Background The first Confucius Institute opened in 2004 in Seoul, South Korea, followed by one at the University of Maryland. Today, the Confucius Institute Headquarters in Beijing, also known as the Chinese Language Council International or Hanban (3Mt), oversees 525 Confucius Institutes reaching 1.7 million students in 146 countries and regions. Hanban reportedly has spent over $158 million in the United States, establishing Confucius Institutes in approximately 100 U.S. educational institutions. In addition, there are over 1,000 Confucius Classrooms based in primary and secondary schools worldwide, including 519 in the United States. The Confucius Institutes are patterned after other national language and cultural programs, such as France's Alliance Francaise, Germany's Goethe Institute, the U.K.'s British Council, and Spain's Instituto Cervantes. Although Hanban describes itself as a nongovernmental organization affiliated with the PRC Ministry of Education, many experts say that Confucius Institutes are closely tied to the Chinese government and exercise less autonomy than their European counterparts. Furthermore, Confucius Institutes and Classrooms operate mostly within foreign universities and schools, while their European counterparts are not situated within foreign educational institutions. Nearly all Confucius Institutes focus instruction on Chinese language at the introductory level. U.S. Confucius Institutes generally offer noncredit courses to the public for a fee. In a minority of cases, they offer classes to enrolled students for credit, or Institute instructors teach credit courses in academic departments. Confucius Institutes also sponsor programs for foreign students and scholars to study Chinese language in the PRC, and they serve as platforms for academic collaboration between Chinese and foreign universities. Confucdus Institute Agreements, Management, and Operation To establish a Confucius Institute, U.S. and PRC partner educational institutions sign an implementation agreement, and each side also signs an agreement with Hanban. The agreements and the Confucius Institute Constitution together govern Institute activities. They reportedly allow for some flexibility and variation regarding the operation of ongressgc

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