Students of the Confucius Institute taking Chinese language lesson in Dushanbe, capital of Tajikistan, on October 10th.
Two red lanterns hung outside a classroom filled with nearly 20 of the earnest students. Those unable to find a seat stood at the back of the classroom, focusing on what the teacher had written on the blackboard. This is the Chinese class of the Confucius Institute at Tajikistan Nationality University.
From October 11th to 12th, the 17th Meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of the Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization was held in Dushanbe. This year also marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Confucius Institute at Tajikistan Nationality University. Interest in learning Chinese is growing in Tajikistan.
“My students are especially interested in Chinese characters”, said Dushanbe-based Chinese teacher Abdurahimova Shabnam.
Shabnam teaches Chinese listening, reading, writing and other courses at a university in Dushanbe to more than 20 students. To facilitate students’ learning, she has kept close contact with the Confucius Institute which could provide them with opportunities to exchange with teachers from China.
Students at the Confucius Institute taking Chinese painting lesson at Dushanbe, capital of Tajikistan, on October 10th.
More than 100 Chinese teachers have come to Tajikistan since the establishment of the Confucius Institute at Tajikistan Nationality University in 2008.
30-year-old Sulob passed HSK Level 4 in 2016. He said that his understanding for the Chinese language has been greatly enhanced under the guidance of experienced teachers from the Confucius Institute.
Kossimov Fruh, Tajik Director of the Confucius Institute, said that understanding Chinese culture is of crucial significance to Chinese learning. The Confucius Institute also provides lessons on martial arts, Chinese painting and calligraphy besides language courses.
Sayora Qodirova is a senior student of the university. She has been studying Chinese and guzheng at the Confucius Institute for the past two years. "I’ve been interested in Chinese, and it is fun to learn to play guzheng.” She plans to proceed to her master degree in China while continuing to work on her Chinese proficiency. After graduation, she wants to go back home to be a Chinese teacher.
At the beginning, this Confucius Institute had a mere 200 students. For now, the number has grown to nearly 4,000. Over 1,700 students have been selected and awarded with the “Chinese Government Scholarship” and the “Confucius Institute Scholarship” to study in China. The number of Tajik students in China has been growing, making China the second largest host country for overseas Tajik students after Russia.
Jia Jingfang, Chinese Director of the Confucius Institute at Tajikistan Nationality University, said that the increasingly close relations between China and Tajikistan have driven the Chinese language craze. The frequent economic exchanges and growing demand for talents have also played a part. The Confucius Institute serves as a window into China for those students before they study overseas. (cited from Confucius Institute Headquarters, source: xinhuanet.com, Story by Li Ao, Liao Bingqing)
