CLE Empowers Students Through Immersive Innovation Learning in Wuxi
The Center for Language Education (CLE), in collaboration with the Entrepreneurship Center, successfully organised the second Wuxi Tech Innovation Enterprises Study Tour from August 24 to 28. This five-day immersive learning experience demonstrated how university language education can extend beyond the classroom, enabling students to develop bilingual communication, digital literacy, AI-supported learning skills, and professional confidence through authentic engagement with industry and entrepreneurship.
Through visits to a diverse range of technology enterprises and institutions in Wuxi, students explored the city’s dynamic innovation and startup ecosystem while applying language skills in real professional contexts. The itinerary covered high-tech fields including spacecraft manufacturing, brain–computer interface technology, bio-based food processing, supercomputing, precision-tool production, drone development, and intelligent detection equipment research and design.
Students and teachers also visited the Wuxi Youth Innovation and Entrepreneurship Base, where they took part in roundtable discussions with young resident entrepreneurs and government representatives from Liangxi District. The discussions explored regional startup ecosystems, government incentive policies, challenges faced by emerging ventures, talent-attraction strategies, and the local costs of operating a business and living in Wuxi. Students showed strong interest in the entrepreneurs’ startup journeys and gained practical insights into innovation, business operations, and career development.
Industry and entrepreneurial learning formed the foundation of the study tour, while the CLE’s experiential language education approach gave the initiative its distinctive value. The tour integrated corporate field visits with purposeful communication tasks, bilingual practice, digital-literacy development, and AI-assisted learning in authentic technology and startup settings. This carefully designed approach enabled students to apply Chinese and English communication strategies flexibly, build confidence in presenting and discussing professional topics, and develop the digital and AI literacy needed in future academic and workplace environments.
The Wuxi experience enhanced students’ understanding of the technological landscape and youth entrepreneurship environment in the Yangtze River Delta, while offering valuable perspectives for their long-term career planning, personal development, and readiness for a rapidly changing global workplace.
CLE faculty members Doreen, Krista, and Yam accompanied students throughout the on-site visit and provided comprehensive academic support through group workshops, regular cohort guidance, and individual coaching.
Students documented their learning through group oral presentations, social-media posts, reflective journals, and personalised study vlogs. These diverse outputs highlighted their growing industry knowledge, entrepreneurial perspectives, bilingual communication abilities, digital competencies, and capacity to learn meaningfully from real-world experiences.
The successful study tour reflects the CLE’s commitment to innovative, student-centred language education—preparing students not only to use language accurately, but also to communicate effectively, think critically, and participate confidently in multilingual professional communities.
