Dublin’s Confucius Institute for Children officially opens for the 2019-2020 academic year

On the afternoon of September 14, Dublin’s Confucius Institute for Children officially opened for the 2019-2020 academic year. This year, the number of applicants for the Confucius Institute increased to an all-time high of almost 500. The teaching philosophy of Dublin’s Confucius Institute for Children centres on teaching students in accordance with their individual ability. Based on the various ages and language levels of the students, the school has scheduled 31 classes this year, including 23 immersive Chinese classes and 8 bilingual Chinese classes.

In preparation for the new academic year, the school committee held pre-school training to strengthen classroom management and improve the quality of teaching. From August 20th to September 9th, the Confucius Institute at University College Dublin hosted a series of talks and workshops for all teachers, and organized a number of special lectures, all of which played a part in standardizing the teaching practices.

In addition, the school committee places great importance on the selection of teaching materials. The teaching resources were created after comparing various teaching materials used both in Ireland and around the world. The compiled teaching materials are suitable for students in Ireland and comprehensively cover the four language skills of reading, writing, speaking, and listening. The pre-school to adolescent curriculum system is designed for students of all levels and allows each child to choose the course that best suits their Chinese level. In addition to teaching Chinese, the Confucius Institute for Children also holds Chinese culture classes for students, including art, song, and calligraphy. Language and culture are taught side-by-side, allowing students to fully appreciate the unique charm of Chinese culture while learning Chinese.

Since its establishment in 2016, the Children's Confucius Institute in Dublin has become a professional platform for Chinese teaching and cultural communication for children in Ireland. The Confucius Institute works constantly to create an optimal learning environment for children who are keen on learning Chinese.

(Written by: Duan Ting)