Confucius Institute’s instructor, Cynthia, teaching the staff of the Central Bank of Barbados about the different sections of China which are populated.
Staff of the Central Bank of Barbados listening attentively during their first class in Mandarin.
Twenty staff members of the Central Bank of Barbados over the next nine weeks will be exposed to classes in Mandarin being conducted by the Confucius Institute.
These beginners’ classes are being conducted at the Bank and are being held for the duration of an hour weekly.
Addressing last Monday’s brief opening proceedings prior to the start of the first class, Public Affairs Officer, Central Bank of Barbados, Novaline Brewster, said staff were “privileged and honoured to be the first employees in Barbados whom the Institute is rolling out this training as it fulfils its purpose as a doorway and bridge connecting China to the rest of the world”.
Brewster further pointed out that the “enrolment in the classes was tremendous, overwhelming even. Within hours of advertising this, it was oversubscribed”.
She also shared the Bank’s plans to have another beginner’s class for staff early next year. Additionally, she spoke of a possible Level 2 course being conducted in 2017 for those enrolled in classes currently.
“Our plan is to prepare you for the HSK certificate in 2017. HSK is an international standardised Chinese language test to measure the ability of non-native Chinese speakers to speak Chinese.”
She continued, “To attain the first level of HSK certification, at least one other semester of teaching is required. We will commence Level 2 in 2017, which means that we may run beginners’ and intermediate classes simultaneously.”
At the conclusion of the course, staff will be more knowledgeable about China’s history and culture. They will also be introduced to the fundamentals of Chinese and should be able to speak and understand a survival level of Chinese. (MG)
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