Report comes as Sen. Cruz introduces bill to increase transparency of foreign curriculums in American classrooms
While Confucius Institutes at U.S. colleges and universities have largely been shut down as a result of legislative scrutiny in recent years, a new report argues a similar “Confucius Classrooms” program at the K-12 level remains a pressing concern.
Published by the National Association of Scholars in mid-July, “China and our Children” argues the Chinese Communist Party has installed “Confucius Classrooms” programs at strategic locations in the U.S. to infiltrate American society, gain secrets, and generate sympathy for China.
“It’s not only happening in blue areas,” said Michelle Perez Exner, director of federal affairs at Parents Defending Education Action, during a panel discussion on the report July 23 at the Heritage Foundation in Washington D.C. “It’s big cities and small rural communities.”
The research found that the Chinese-funded programs teach school children Mandarin, foster cultural support for China, provide materials that celebrate the communist country and its socialism, support teacher and student exchange programs, and more. Often they come at a cost — U.S. cities they are established in must agree to do business with China.
The research found 164 cases of Confucius Classrooms, including those documented by Parents Defending Education and additional cases found via open-source data from the U.S. and China, according to the report’s executive summary.
Parents Defending Education discovered the presence of Confucius Classrooms around 20 U.S. military bases, it added.
At the panel event, the report’s author Ian Oxnevad said others are set up near critical technology plants; for example, there is one near the Lenovo headquarters in North Carolina.
The unspoken mission of the Confucius Classrooms program is to subvert and steal American business, technology and education to eventually overcome the country, he said.
In this way, the Chinese Communist Party is abiding by the philosophy of Chinese military general Sun Tzu, attempting to subdue the enemy without using force, he said.
“It makes sense China would want Confucius Classrooms in these districts,” Oxnevad said.
Oxnevad also argued some nonprofits are complicit in funding the survival of Confucius Classrooms, including Asia Society, IL Texas Global, and The College Board. The 100,000 Strong Foundation, attempting to increase the number of students studying abroad in China, also included help from companies and locales, he said.
To combat the problem, the report argues, Congress must revitalize the Foreign Agents Registration Act and develop foreign language curriculums centered on American ideas.
Republican lawmakers appear to be doing just that.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz on Monday proposed legislation to require schools to inform parents when any foreign funding or curriculum is being used, The Hill reported, noting a companion bill in the House already cleared the House Education Committee.
“The Chinese Communist Party expends vast resources to control what Americans see, hear, and ultimately think. The CCP continues to target American educational institutions, as do other foreign adversaries,” Cruz said in a statement regarding his Transparency in Reporting of Adversarial Contributions to Education, or TRACE Act.
At the panel event, researchers said the reason China was able to dig so far into American education systems was because it was not always perceived as such a threat prior to COVID.
“Many of these partnerships emerged when China was looked at differently than it is now,” Oxnevad said.
Exner said a study done by Parents Defending Education found 87 percent of parents are worried about foreign influence and adversaries pushing propaganda in the classroom.
“To desensitize an entire generation of Americans to their cause is a concern for parents,” Exner said. The strategic placement of the Confucius Classrooms was a top concern among parents.
Exner said there is worry about the Chinese gathering intelligence from military children, calling their motives “unknown and scary.”
“It is no secret that China is an adversary,” Exner said.
Oxnevad said another solution to Chinese investment in schools is to change incentives for American investors. It must be a zero-sum game: every foreign dollar invested means one less tax dollar, he said.
“China is not a benign power: Chinese banks support terrorism, and Hamas has used Chinese banks,” Oxnevad said.
MORE: Contracts between U.S. universities, China total more than $2 billion: investigation
IMAGE: National Association of Scholars
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