From 6 to 20 November 2019, the Open University of China (OUC) sent fifteen backbone tutors from its organisational system to take part in a 15-day academic training programme at Michigan State University (MSU), marking the first kind of overseas training organised by the OUC for its faculty members. Eleven tutors were from the OUC headquarters and four others came from the Hunan, Hainan, Wuhan, and Chengdu Branches.

The 15-day training had a condensed schedule filled with efficient, practical content. The trainees participated in lectures at the MSU School of Education and joined seminars with colleagues from MSU’s library, HUB, and Digital Scholarship Lab. In addition, they visited Lansing Community College, the University of Michigan, and Wayne State University. The trainees conducted in-depth discussions with experts and scholars in the fields of adult learning, teaching content and design, the application of teaching technologies, learning support, and learning assessments, which took the format of special lectures, group seminars, practical operations, and surveys and visits. The trainees all expressed their satisfaction with the training and said that they had learned a lot.