Three parties shake hands at a signing ceremony for the establishment of the Canada Beijing Zhicheng Experimental School on Aug 6 in Toronto. From left:  Ji Bin, chairman of the board of Thornton Academy; Wang Hongjun, vice-principal of Beijing Zhicheng (No. 35) High School; Wang Caiyun, secretary-general of CAN-CHIN Innovative Education Alliance.   NA LI /CHINA DAILY

A signing ceremony between China Beijing Zhicheng High School, the Canada Thornton Academy School and Can-Chin Innovative Education Alliance (CCIEA) marked the launch of Canada Beijing Zhicheng Experimental School on Aug 6 in Toronto.

Founded in 1923, the prestigious China Beijing Zhicheng High School was designated a model school in 2005. Thornton Academy in Cookstown is a traditional, independent boarding school for students Grades 7 to 12.

"This co-operation embodies the increasing globalization of Chinese education and its prestigious schools as well as the internationalization of Canadian education," said Howard Lin, professor and co-director of the Canada-China Institute for Business and Development at Ryerson University.

"We are glad to set up our first Sino-foreign cooperative school in Canada," said Hongjun Wang, vice-principal of Beijing Zhicheng High School. "We believe the traditional Chinese educational resources and local Canadian education resources will integrate their respective merits into a powerful combination."

This fall’s open enrollment will bring 180 domestic students and international students, especially Chinese, to the new school.

"With excellent teaching experience and expertise in personalized tutorial settings, we will be keeping a pattern of teaching in small classes averaging in 8 to 15 students, so that there can be more intimate interaction between teachers and students," said Ji Bing, chairman of the board of Thornton Academy.

The two sides were connected by the CCIEA, which was started by Canadian and Chinese educators as a long-term commitment to education research, development, experimentation and innovation.

"Canada has excellent educational resources while China has a huge student pool," said Wang Caiyun, secretary general of CCIEA. "Through building the relationship between Canada and China educational sectors, the two sides can complement each other's advantages."

According to Wang, the second Can-Chin Innovative Education Forum will be held in March 2017.

renali@chinadailyusa.com