Some schools in Kolkata city are already offering Chinese
language as an optional subject in their curriculum, but understanding the
language without understanding the culture will not be of much help. With
increasing demand for learning Chinese language and culture, not only among
businessmen but also young students, India's first Confucius classroom has been
approved by the Chinese government, to be inaugurated in Kolkata by next year.
Around 15 teachers are to be brought from China as faculty and classes are
scheduled to start from middle of next year and will have an intake of around
800 students by the end of 2017.
Charisma Saraff, principal of the School of Chinese Language,
said that Confucius is a way of life. Most people in China do not follow any
religion, they just follow a way of life as part of their culture and they are
trying to promote that. Not just the language, but the institute will also
focus on the teaching of Chinese culture, literature, geography and other key aspects
of life in China. For example, the most common skill lacked by Indians who are
planning to work or study in China is that they do not know how to eat with chopsticks
and the institute will focus on such gaps to be closed along with orientation
on Chinese language and culture.
The Chinese consulate is also planning to organize an
education exhibition in which the 30 leading Chinese universities are
participating. One of them is the Tsinghua University, ranked among top 10 universities
of the world. The two-day exhibition will end on Saturday at the Milan Mela
grounds and is expected to gain a lot of interest from language lovers in the
city.
Tags: Confucius Classrooms
Confucius Classroom In India
Chinese Culture
Tsinghua University
