The number of foreign students in Shanghai has increased by 13,000 to 60,200 in the past five years due to enhanced efforts in international exchanges. The city has set up sister city ties with 84 cities in 57 countries and regions, with “rich communication and cooperation in education, arts, sport, science and technology,” Shanghai Education Commission said.

The French have a reputation for their enviable lifestyle and smug confidence in their superiority. Books on why French women don’t get fat and the beautiful behaviour of French children have reinforced the image. Now the Sorbonne, one of the world’s most elite universities, is inviting Britons to France to be lectured about the virtues of being French. Aimed at expats, students and retired couples, the summer course will be taught in English and French, to appeal to Francophiles across the Channel.