Professional development for teachers

To support the long-term provision of Mandarin language teaching in Wales, we invest in Continuing Professional Development opportunities for local teachers.

Each year we organise two intakes for our six-week Introduction to Mandarin for Teachers courses, provided after school hours and designed especially for busy teaching professionals to give a basic introduction to Mandarin. Once completed, teachers can progress on to one of our established part-time courses for adults in the Chinese language, fully funded, where they can work towards a 10-credit level 3 or 4 module in Chinese.

Courses for primary and secondary school teachers (April to July 2024)

Overview

Introduction to Mandarin for primary school teachers

• Weekly on Thursdays
• 16:00 to 17:00
• Online (Zoom)
• Part 1: 11 April to 23 May
• Part 2: 6 June to 18 July (14 weeks)

Introduction to Mandarin for secondary school teachers

• Weekly on Thursdays
• 17:30 to 18:30
• Online (Zoom)
• Part 1: 11 April to 23 May
• Part 2: 6 June to 18 July (14 weeks)

Introduction to China and Chinese Culture for primary school teachers

• Monthly on Tuesdays
• 16:00 to 17:00
• Online (Zoom)
• 12 March, 16 April, 14 May, 4 June, 2 July (5 sessions)

Introduction to China and Chinese Culture for secondary school teachers

• Monthly on Tuesdays
• 17:30 to 18:30
• Online (Zoom)
• 12 March, 16 April, 14 May, 4 June, 2 July (5 sessions)

Introduction to Mandarin for primary and secondary school teachers

These free courses are for teachers who wish to learn some basic Mandarin Chinese. You might choose this option to support your pupils with current or future learning, or simply to discover the language for yourself. The courses are also an opportunity to explore some of the resources used by Confucius Institute tutors in primary/secondary school classes, giving you a basic but grounded understanding of what is being taught to your students.

Progression

On successful completion of this course, you will have the chance to join Cardiff University’s Chinese for Beginners II part-time course for adults from September 2024. This will be fully funded by the Cardiff Confucius Institute.

Entry requirements/registration

If you have not completed the four-week taster for this course, we will send you four recorded sessions which you will need to watch as an entry requirement.

Sign up for Introduction to Mandarin for primary school teachers or Introduction to Mandarin for secondary school teachers.

Introduction to China and Chinese Culture for primary and secondary school teachers

Our free monthly Introduction to China and Chinese Culture sessions allow you to learn more about the country and cultures of China.

These courses aim to introduce you to 5 key areas of Chinese culture and provide you with at least one full lesson to use with pupils. After each session, you will be granted access to PowerPoints and resources/activities prepared by Cardiff Confucius Institute tutors.

The topics covered in these courses are:

• Chinese Festivals I
  • Dragon Boat Festival
  • Qingming festival
• Chinese arts & crafts
• Chinese health & wellbeing
• Chinese food
• Chinese festivals II
  • Mid-Autumn Festival
  • Chinese New Year / Spring Festival

Please note that these sessions have been designed as an introduction to China rather than have a linguistic focus. This allows teachers to use the presentations and resources independently with pupils, without the aid of a Chinese tutor.

Entry requirements/registration

Sign up for Introduction to China and Chinese Culture for primary school teachers or Introduction to China and Chinese Culture for secondary school teachers.

In addition to providing language teaching, we also support a vibrant community of Mandarin teachers across Wales through our quarterly newsletters and regular Forums. Both offer the opportunity to share best practices and exchange ideas on Mandarin teaching with other teachers across Wales.

Please contact our Schools Project Manager for more information.