Professional training session for Chinese teachers held by the Confucius Institute at the University of Southampton

On 20th and 21st January 2018, the Confucius Institute at the University of Southampton (CI Soton) held a training session for Chinese teachers at the Avenue Campus. The co-directors of the CI chaired the two-day-session and over 30 people participated, including professional teachers and volunteer teachers from the CI as well as local teachers.

There were lectures from two well-experienced teachers, Li Xuan from SOAS and You Kou from Rosendale Primary School. Li Xuan gave talks on GCSE Mandarin in regarding to its exam tires, the new syllabus, specifications and marking schemes. You Kou shared her experience in primary school teaching skills, activity designs and classroom management. They both held Q&A sessions for the teachers on all sorts of issues relating to teaching and learning.

Feedback from the teachers showed that the session was very fruitful and worthwhile. At the end of the session, participants continued to exchange notes and engaged in passionate discussions. The session was one of many such events held by the CI to improve teachers’ professional development.