CRI听力:Xiamen University Plays Active Role in Bringing Chinese Language, Culture to World

Xiamen University Plays Active Role in Bringing Chinese Language, Culture to World 

As one of the oldest institutions in China offering Chinese language programs for overseas students, the Overseas Education College at Xiamen University has attracted thousands of international students since its inception in 1953.

Emily Hollins from the UK is one of those who has chosen to enroll at Xiamen University.

"Well, initially I first visited China in 2010 and that was after the Beijing Olympics. I saw all the culture when I was visiting. I thought wow this place is really like something quite incredible. So I want to come back and the British consulate offered a scholarship and it was lucky to get it so I'm back here."

Every year there are more than two-thousand international students who enroll in OEC from over 100 different countries.

7-years after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Xiamen University became the first in southern China to offer Chinese language education for international students.

Many of the students who enroll in the program are from Southeast Asia, including countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

Most end up returning to their home-countries and find jobs connected with China.

Zheng Tongtao, the dean of OEC, says they're hoping to take the program beyond just language learning.

"I think the main goal for the Confucius Institutes, or OEC, is to offer a platform to make the world know more about China and to understand each other better. We are going to produce more professional teachers to better promote the Chinese language. We think language learning should be followed-up with the consistent use of the language. That's why we're also offer accounting, international trade and other classes to our overseas students."

Since 2005, Xiamen University has been behind the launch of 16 Confucius Institutes across the world.

Mao Tongwen is one of the directors in-charge of moving the program to other parts of the world.

"The 16 Xiamen University-launched Confucius Institutes are developing well and our cooperation has also been working well. We and our overseas counterparts work well with each other. Most of the institutes are very active in promoting the Chinese language. They are seeing an increasing number of students as well as higher recognition. Local students are not only learning Chinese as a foreign language in the institute. They're also taking what they've learned into college."

To help facilitate the increasing number of people interested in studying Chinese, the central government has also established training programs specifically to help mould directors and teachers for Confucius Institutes.

For CRI, this is Wang Wei in Xiamen.