Confucius Classroom

The outreach of Confucius Institute does not stop at the university level. It reaches elementary and secondary education with Confucius Classroom, which often is directly connected to the Confucius Institute at the university in the region. Almost half of the 644 Confucius Classrooms worldwide are in the US, according to the latest data from Hanban.

The Confucius Institute at UMD serves as mentor to four Confucius Classrooms operating in the state including Garrison Forest School, a pre-k to 12th-grade school exclusively for girls.

B.J. McElderry, coordinator of the Confucius Classroom at the school, said she was excited to discover during a trip to Beijing in 2009 that Hanban had the program she wanted for her school. With a master's degree in Asian Arts, McElderry has been doing arts and cultural programs related to China for her students on her own for years.

Hanban's fund and support has enabled McElderry to set up two selective Chinese classes, enrolling 64 students in total. The school also provides after-school Chinese program for its pre-k to 5th graders plus a wide range of Chinese cultural activities. Last year, their Mid-Autumn Festival celebration gala drew more than 600 attendees from the community.

"[The program is] giving them a much broader global perspective," McElderry said. "Our students need to develop a good sense of their own by looking at both sides of playing field, both sides of the world."

Confucius Classroom has reached as far as Allegany County, the most northwest corner of Maryland. Gong Wenjing, a Chinese teacher sent by Hanban to teach at the Confucius Classroom there, has kept busy by presenting intensive Chinese courses for three high schools in the region.

"American students are so curious about Chinese culture. They raise intelligent and challenging questions. I have to drive myself pretty hard to keep their interest running high throughout the class," said Gong, who teaches five hours and commutes between schools to see her 50 students each day.

"Chinese teachers being dispatched to the United States are selected from applicants of best quality," said Gong who has a master's degree in teaching Chinese as a second language and had taught Chinese in Thailand for two years before coming to the US. Gong attended intensive-training courses offered by Hanban, which covers every aspect of Chinese culture.

"I am utilizing all I have learned to provide my students a comprehensive understanding of China. When they are happy, I am happy," Gong said. "I am also learning about the US and my students have provided me with a new perspective to see my own culture."

Gong is one of the more than 10,000 teachers and volunteers in overseas Confucius Institutes and Classrooms "They are the living embodiment of China and Chinese culture," said Xu, the director-general in an earlier exclusive interview with China Daily.

Gong is also the player and benefactor of the people-to-people exchange between US and China that Chinese Vice-Premier Liu's delegation has been promoting with her US counterparts.

According to the Development Plan of Confucius Institute 2012-20, announced by Hanban earlier this year, the total number of Confucius Institutes worldwide will reach 500 by 2015.

Mote, the former president of UMD and current president of the US National Academy of Engineering, who also is a member of the Council of Confucius Institute Headquarters along with GWU president Knapp, has believed in the value of Confucius Institute since its first day of existence in the US.

"The benefits students have received from Confucius Institute are long-term benefits," he told China Daily. "You are really changing the way people think about China over their lifetime. That's absolutely crucial for the future."

And he added: "If China does not take on the mission of teaching the world about Chinese culture and language, no one else in the world can do it. I do not see plan B for this."

Contact the writer at charlenecai@chinadailyusa.com

(China Daily USA  11/22/2013 page20)