Peking University, Nov. 24, 2010: Training program on teaching materials for overseas Chinese language teachers commenced on Nov. 20, 2010 in Beijing. The program was hosted by the National Office for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language (NOCFL) and co-hosted by Peking University School of Chinese as a Second Language. (SCASL)

Prof. Yang He, Vice Chairman of Peking University Council, gave a speech at the opening ceremony, reviewing  the history of PKU School of Chinese as a Second Language. As he pointed out, Chinese language teaching is playing an important role in PKU's becoming a world-class university, and there are two directions of Chinese language teaching at PKU. One is the combination of theoretical study and practical appliance, and the other is the unity of "going out" and "coming in." So far, PKU has trained Chinese language teachers for 15 countries such as the US, UK, Russia, New Zealand, Egypt, Thailand, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, and Republic of Korea, and has collaborated with world-famous universities such as Cambridge University, Oxford University, Yale University, and Stanford University, and has established eight Confucius Institutes under international cooperation.

Prof. Yang He at his speech

Prof. Zhang Ying, Dean of School of Chinese as a Second Language, emphasized the significance of the program in her speech. She said that the teacher, the teaching material, and the teaching approach determined the international promotion of the Chinese language, and the training course revealed NOCFL's efforts on the reinforcement of Chinese language's international promotion.

Prof. Zhang Ying at her speech

Prof. Liu Xiaoyu, a teacher from PKU School of Chinese as a Second Language, introduced the general content of the program, expecting it to be an interactive exchange activity rather than a unidirectional training.

Catherine Channell, a Chinese language teacher from the US, expressed her understanding of Chinese language teaching and this program on behalf of all the trainees. She said that both culture study and classroom training manifested Chinese language teachers' shared wish for their improvement in Chinese language teaching. She said that her aim in participating in this program was helping her students to study Chinese better and enabling herself to teach Chinese better.

Teaching materials for this program were Chinese Paradise, Happy Chinese, Learn Chinese with Me, Contemporary Chinese, New Practical Chinese Reader, and Great Wall Chinese. PKU School of Chinese as a Second Language had given weight to this program with a detailed arrangement of the training venues, trainers, course schedules, cultural study projects, accommodation. Cultural study activities were also provided in addition to the teaching material training lessons. The program finished on Nov. 23, 2010.

Trainees reading the teaching materials

Translated by: Zhao Ning
Edited by:  Chen Miaojuan
Source: PKU News (Chinese)