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Dannie Peng

A Chinese research university plans to phase out traditional English classes, citing the ability of artificial intelligence (AI) translators to bridge language barriers in real time.
In a video posted to the university’s social media account on July 2, Zhao Wei, the provost of Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology (SUAT), announced that the institution would do away with standard English courses in favour of classes that emphasised cross-cultural skills.
These new courses are designed to help students understand both Chinese and Western cultures so they can engage with people overseas with confidence and poise.
“If you apply to SUAT in 2026, we will be running the experimental [curriculum], which will gradually phase out university English and replace it with intercultural communication courses,” Zhao said.
He said that technological progress, particularly real-time translation tools, allowed people to communicate effectively even if they did not know each other’s language.
“Today, I don’t need to understand English at all,” Zhao said. “You can speak in English, and the translation comes through my earphones in Chinese. I can speak Chinese, and your earphones may receive it in Spanish. Real-time translation has become impressively effective.”
The university leader said that intercultural communication skills were what truly mattered. Zhao said that business negotiations and cultural exchanges called for qualities that “AI cannot teach you”, such as human judgment, empathy and cross-cultural etiquette.
“We need to teach students Western and Eastern cultures, helping them interact with foreigners properly and reasonably so that business can successfully be conducted,” he added.

China’s higher education sector has been debating how to overhaul university English teaching in the AI era.
In late June, Hunan province hosted a seminar on foreign-language education reforms. He Xuhui, vice-president of Central South University in Changsha, outlined two major shifts facing the sector: students born after 2000 were entering universities with stronger baseline language skills, and rapid AI advances were driving changes in teaching and education.
Li Defeng, deputy dean of the humanities faculty at the University of Macau, said foreign language education in the AI era should transition from just teaching language skills to a four-dimensional model centred on “language ability, intercultural communication skills, critical thinking and AI literacy”.
This approach also reflects China’s emphasis on cultural confidence and strengthening its soft power.
Yang Wendi, a professor at Central South University, said Chinese classics should be integrated into foreign language courses to bolster students’ critical thinking, cultural confidence and international communication abilities.
In recent years, some Chinese universities have sharply reduced the credits allocated to general English courses, while others have scrapped once-compulsory English proficiency certificates.
To help students maintain their language skills, many Chinese universities have traditionally required undergraduates to pass the national College English Test (CET) before graduation.
However, in September 2023, Xian Jiaotong University announced it would no longer make these exams mandatory for graduation.
This shift does not mean that educators now view English as unimportant, particularly as China grows into a global powerhouse for innovation and research output. Rather, education experts say it reflects the improvement in Chinese students’ English proficiency and universities’ need to adapt.
Wang Feng, a researcher at the China National Academy of Educational Sciences in Beijing, told China News Weekly in 2023 that given the marked improvement in high school students’ English abilities, universities no longer needed to force students to prove basic competence through exams.
“Universities can take students’ English levels into account and set more flexible requirements based on different disciplines,” he said.


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China

The institution will replace English lessons with intercultural communication courses as translation tools bridge language barriers


The institution will replace English lessons with intercultural communication courses as translation tools bridge language barriers.


China education

Artificial intelligence (AI)

Macau

Xian Jiaotong University

Will AI kill English classes? Chinese university to drop them as tech booms

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The institution will replace English lessons with intercultural communication courses as translation tools bridge language barriers

The institution will replace English lessons with intercultural communication courses as translation tools bridge language barriers