Acquaintance with the culture of the People's Republic of China for the delegation of Euphrosyne Polotskaya State University of Polotsk began at the 2nd Associate Forum of Scientific and Technological Parks and Areas of High and New Technologies 'Silk Road'.
The opening of the Chinese Language and Culture Centre on November 10, 2017 was conceived to develope professional education in the field of teaching Chinese language and culture of the People's Republic of China, as well as to strengthen cooperation between countries, friendship and mutual understanding between peoples.
China is a country of great history and culture. Currently, almost every fifth inhabitant of our planet speaks Chinese. Mutually beneficial cooperation and wonderful relations have developed between our countries, both at the level of the heads of state and at the level of ministries, departments and individual business entities. It means that the demand for specialists who speak Chinese will only grow every year.
Inga Zenkova, PhD in Economics, Associate Professor, Head of the Department of Economy: 'We hope that the work of the Chinese Language and Culture Centre at Euphrosyne Polotskaya State University of Polotsk will contribute to the popularization of the Chinese language and culture among the population of Polotsk and Novopolotsk, especially among children, youth, teachers of schools and gymnasiums, university employees. Language education and acquaintance with Chinese culture will allow partner universities to open faculties with in-depth study of the Chinese language in Belarus, and master's programmes in both countries'
Inga Zenkova
Nowadays, the Centre is developing along several directions in accordance with the goals and objectives of the dynamic development of the university.
The first direction is education without borders.
Over the entire period of the Centre's operation, more than 500 residents of Polotsk and Novopolotsk have successfully been trained there. And the most purposeful have passed exams in Chinese, with the awarding of international-class certificates. It is not so difficult to learn Chinese, because classes are held according to the modern methods and textbooks from China by professionals who came to us from China, Li Zhonghua from Henan and Liu Jiqiang from Harbin.
We thank the volunteers Zhang Yu from Shandong, Zi Yuping from Hebei, Zhang Lei from Heilongjiang, She Danhui from Xinjiang, who gave a piece of Chinese culture and knowledge of the Chinese language to Belarusian students, schoolchildren, workers and pensioners.
Knowledge of the Chinese language opens up new opportunities and prospects in the future work of students, regardless of the chosen specialty. Ivan Skopyuk, a graduate of the educational programme, told us about his emotions about the path in studying Chinese culture and the Chinese language: '5 years ago China was a country that I could only dream of. To overcome your fear, decide to leave your home and learn the language every day for 6 hours on the other side of the world, all this deserves a lot.
As a freshman I successfully completed the first year of Chinese language courses at the PSU, so I was offered to take courses at a summer school in China. So, from July 3 to July 17, 2018, I was studying at the Northeastern University in Shenyang, where the 4th Summer Scientific and Technical Camp was held. It is not easy to start learning new material, to adapt there in the proposed conditions, to improve language communication skills, but it was interesting to work on it, useful for self-development. I knew perfectly well that all this would come in handy in my profession.
The cultural programme of our trip was rich, very entertaining and interesting. The conquest of the Great Wall of China was hard work, but still surmountable. A visit to NEUSOFT was informative (a multinational supplier of various technologies, medical equipment, goods ranging from watches, headphones up to cars). A tour of Yiheyuan Park with various places to relax and the great views were amazing, breathtaking from the beauty.
If you are still in doubt about learning Chinese and visiting China itself, then don't even think about it. Start learning the language, culture, traditions and be sure to visit this country. Firstly, it is useful for personal growth. Secondly, you will have unforgettable emotions and feelings. And thirdly, nowadays it is extremely important for the profession of an economist to know several languages. For the sake of your future career it is important to keep up with his country, because of the economic policy of the Republic of Belarus and the People's Republic of China. And our native university will help in this!'
She Danhui with students
Students of Gymnasium No. 1 named after F. Skaryna are studying Chinese with genuine interest, as well as students of Polotsk Gymnasium No. 2. To support the most capable and gifted children and to prepare students for specialized training in the specialties necessary for the economy of the Vitebsk region and the Republic of Belarus, a whole range of activities was offered to school students:
- participation in the International scientific and practical seminar Entrepreneurship Development in the Digital Economy
- participation in the International scientific and practical seminar Small Business Development in the Republic of Belarus and the People's Republic of China
- participation in the workshop Development of International Cooperation to Strengthen Export Operations of Small and Medium-Sized Businesses
This event was a continuation of the trip for students of Polotsk Gymnasium No. 1 named after F. Skaryna to the Great Stone Industrial Park, where they took part in a virtual tour of China and a master class in Chinese.
Roman Afanasyev told about his plans and experience of learning Chinese: 'I have been interested in history for a long time and at some point I began to study the history of China. So there was a desire to start learning Chinese. I talked to my parents and started taking courses. That's how my language learning began. My first teacher for a year was Li Zhonghua. Then I continued studying Chinese for several years, and this year or next year I plan to take the HSK exam'
To date, the goal of the Centre's work has been fully achieved – to promote the popularization of the Chinese language and culture in our country, as well as to deepen friendship and mutual understanding between the peoples of the Republic of Belarus and the People's Republic of China.
Roman Afanasyev and Li Zhonghua
The second direction of development is scientific and technical.
The Department of Economy with the participation of Candidate of Economic Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Economy Li Zhonghua and institutions of the real sector of the economy National Centre for Marketing and Price Study, Joint stock company Naftan, Private unitary enterprise Zejia implemented several contracts in the field of marketing and management.
Li Zhonghua shared his personal path of successful growth with us: 'I have been in Belarus since 2011, and in 2013 I entered the graduate school of Belarusian State Economic University at the specialty Marketing. Thanks to my participation in the International Innovation Forum, I met representatives of Polotsk University, where I was invited to work. I got my first job as a lecturer at the Department of Economy in 2017. In 2018, I defended my PhD thesis on Development of Internet marketing in foreign economic activity.
Since the opening of the Chinese Language and Culture Centre at Polotsk University, I have been helping volunteers get acquainted with the university, the city and the culture of Belarus. I also teach at the Chinese Language Centre. I am very pleased to be the first teacher of Chinese in Polotsk.
In 2017, the Department of Economy opened the specialty Economics and Enterprise Management (with in-depth study of the Chinese economy and the Chinese language), where I am a leading lecturer and lead a block of disciplines related to foreign economic activity, the economy of China, and also teach Chinese.
Together with the students, we visit the Chinese-Belarusian joint stock company 'Industrial Park Development Company', where my friend, a leading specialist in the personnel department, Liu Jiqiang, who was also the first teacher of Chinese at the Chinese Language and Culture Centre, works.
As a lecturer, I am appreciated not only by students, but also by the leadership of the city and the university. With warm and vivid emotions, I bring back to memory meetings with the leaders of two cities, Polotsk and Novopolotsk, Igor Markovich and Dmitry Demidov.
In 2018, as a representative of the university, together with the head of the Department of Economy Inga Zenkova, I completed an internship at Weihai Higher School, where we signed a trilateral cooperation agreement between Weihai Higher School, Polotsk Gymnasium No. 1 named after F. Skaryna and Polotsk State University. As part of this agreement, a lecturer of our university taught Russian to students of Weihai College in China. I am very grateful to all the Belarusian people for their kindness and support, I am happy here'
Teachers and students of the Centre
The third direction of development is cultural exchange and social responsibility.
China has its own traditions, mythology, philosophy, literature and art. Thanks to the work of the Centre, university students, schoolchildren, residents of two cities were able to participate in the Chinese-Belarusian Youth competition of research and innovation projects on the basis of the Scientific and Technological park of the Belarusian National Technical University with the support of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Republic of Belarus, in the Huawei programme 'Seeds of the Future', as well as in photo contest 'Belarus and China through my eyes'.
The students participate with interest in master classes on Chinese calligraphy, in the work of the event 'Acquaintance with Chinese cuisine'. The most memorable activity for residents of both cities is an open lesson for schoolchildren on Chinese language and culture, dedicated to the celebration of the Chinese New Year.
The fourth direction is the development of entrepreneurial initiatives.
The systematic work of the Chinese Language and Culture Centre of Euphrosyne Polotskaya State University of Polotsk contributes to the fact that wishes of the Administration of the Chinese-Belarusian Industrial Park 'Great Stone' (at the opening ceremony of the Centre for Startups and Entrepreneurial Initiatives) will definitely come true in real cases and projects: 'The Industrial Park 'Great Stone' opens up great opportunities for work high-tech companies from all over the world. We hope that in the future the ideas that come to the startup centre will be transformed into a successful business and will come to the park as its residents'
All these directions of development became possible thanks to the fruitful work of the Chinese Language and Culture Centre, which was able to connect the hearts of the people of the Republic of Belarus and the People's Republic of China.