University students studying Chinese

29 February 2016

Chinese Studies students take their study of language skills to another level and the Confucius Institute is here to support them.

University programmes in Chinese Studies focus on contemporary culture and society, history, language, media and visual arts. Some of those Chinese Studies students decide to take their Chinese language learning to another level and the Confucius Institute is here to support them.

The Palaver Festival for example offers fabulous opportunities for students to explore links between language and performance across a range of genres. This year the festival will feature the revolutionary Chinese Play Bus Stop, which revolves around eight Chinese characters who are all waiting for a bus that keeps driving past. The modern play raises philosophical questions about the Cultural Revolution by highlighting issues Chinese society faced during this time and how those issues still affect China today. Bus Stop will be performed in Chinese with English subtitles by students that have spent various amounts of time studying Chinese, from four and a half months to a lifetime, with three actors who are first year students.

The Chinese Bridge competition is a large-scale international Chinese Proficiency Competition sponsored by Hanban, and is well-known in the cultural and educational exchanges worldwide. Over the years, Manchester students have showcased their skills in speaking Chinese, performing martial arts and singing Chinese songs, even conducting wine tasting in Chinese. This year, we have three candidates taking part to demonstrate their language abilities and artistic skills. Last year, 30 contestants from a total of 17 universities competed at the 14th Chinese Bridge UK Competition that was held in London in March 2015.

Return to the full list of news stories.