Mandarin will soon be part of the CBSE curriculum.-16/09/2010

16/09/2010

Mandarin will soon be part of the CBSE curriculum.

HRD Minister Kapil Sibal said this was the best way to introduce China to India. MANDARIN, the language spoken by the majority of the Chinese, will soon be part of the CBSE curriculum as India and China discussed modalities on Wednesday to train a large number of Indian teachers to acquire the language skills necessary to make it part of the course.



"China is a powerful neighbour and is emerging as a biggest consumer of global resources. The best way to introduce China in India is to introduce its language at the primary level so that our kids develop interest and knowledge about China," Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal said.



The issue figured high on his talks with China's Education Minister Yuan Guiren, who promised to work out modalities to train Indian teachers in Chinese language in India.

"Let us get enough Indians to learn Chinese. Let us have a lot of Chinese trainers in India who will teach the school students. That is how we evoke interest in our kids about China," Sibal told Indian journalists here.

"I told Yuan I am willing to introduce Chinese in the BSE system as a course. I cannot do that unless I have standards and a there is a test. That cannot happen unless I collaborate with you," said Sibal, who also took part in the World Economic Forum in the Chinese city of Tianjin.



The Chinese side said that a two-way programme can be worked out to train about 200 teachers. Some can come here to learn and others can learn in India through different methods, Sibal said.
Sibal said he has already spoken to CBSE chairman Vineet Joshi and obtained his consent to make Chinese part of its curriculum.



Sibal has also proposed to China to extend its sponsorship programme to exchange scholars from universities in different subjects on the lines of Full Bright Scholarship.

India as a reciprocal gesture will support equal number of students, he said.



Sibal visited Peking University and held discussions with its officials on various subjects. To deepen the cooperation among universities, 10 Vice-Chancellors of India and China would meet here next month to discuss specific issues of collaboration.

Source: Indian Express