International Chinese teacher Duan Yiruo has worked in three African countries, Cameroon, Mozambique and Rwanda, and currently serves as a Chinese teacher at the Confucius Institute at the University of Rwanda. Having worked in Africa for many years, she and her colleagues have opened a new window for African people to observe the colorful world, understand and love Chinese culture through Chinese education.
In October 2023, Duan Yiruo, a Chinese teacher at the Confucius Institute at the University of Rwanda, was giving an open class to students
In February 2012, Duan Yiruo came to Africa for the first time as a Chinese teacher volunteer, teaching at the Second University of Yaoundé in Cameroon. University Confucius Institute. Duan Yiruo told a reporter from the main station that although she received detailed pre-job training and made various preparations before leaving, she still faced many challenges in life and work when she first arrived in Africa.
Duan Yiruo: The most important thing is teaching. Most of the students speak French. Faced with this situation, I can only force myself to learn some French classroom terms and some daily teaching terms as soon as possible. At that time, the Internet penetration in Cameroon was not very high, which made it very inconvenient for us to check some teaching materials online. We usually relied more on paper books and some CDs brought from China.
The Confucius Institute at the University of Yaounde II in Cameroon has carried out a variety of Chinese teaching and activities. The students have developed a strong interest in Chinese and have become more familiar and understanding of China. Duan Yiruo has also gained a lot from this.
Duan Yiruo: Every time I see them copying the text densely and neatly into their notebooks, I can't help but praise them. With this persistence, many of them have become qualified local Chinese teachers. They have also made more and more Africans fall in love with Chinese and China in their hometown.
In 2016, Duan Yiruo led students from the Confucius Institute at Mondlane University to participate in the 9th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Competition for Foreign Secondary School Students and took a group photo at the Great Wall
In January 2016, Duan Yiruo set foot on the land of Africa again. Arrive in beautiful Mozambique. This time she is teaching at the Confucius Institute at Mondlane University as a government-sponsored teacher, and it can be said that the responsibilities on her shoulders are even heavier. As the first Chinese language major class teacher and part-time teacher, Duan Yiruo has been working non-stop since taking office.
Duan Yiruo: The class of more than 30 students was selected from more than 200 students who applied for the Chinese major. The furthest among them came from a place more than 2,000 kilometers away from the capital Maputo. I took this group of young people to experience eating with chopsticks, writing Chinese characters with a brush, and reciting poetry in Chinese for the first time. I also saw them pick up a microphone and host a program in Chinese for the first time. I also used my camera to record these unforgettable first times, which was very touching.
Wang Hao, a student at the Confucius Institute at Mondlane University, won the first prize in the "Excellent Essay Collection for the 40th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between China and Mozambique"
Duan Yiruo said that students in Mozambique start from the most basic pinyin and gradually improve their Chinese proficiency. Every transformation they undergo makes me very moved.
Duan Yiruo: What impressed me most were the two students in the first class, one of whom was named Wang Hao. He is very lively, likes to dance and write songs, and is sometimes invited to TV stations to record programs. After learning Chinese for three months, he changed the content of the text into rap lyrics. This learning method surprised all the teachers and was very refreshing. After studying Chinese for a year and a half, he got his wish and went to study in China. I wish him the best of luck in his Chinese language journey.
In 2018, Chinese teachers from the Confucius Institute at Mondlane University carried out home visits
In July 2023, Duan Yiruo began to teach at the Confucius Institute at the University of Rwanda. In Duan Yiruo's view, as a Chinese teacher, we should not only introduce excellent traditional culture to Rwandan students, but also introduce the style of contemporary China, especially the work, study, and life confusions of contemporary young people, because they will interact with each other. If you have resonance, you will be interested. If you are interested, you will take the initiative to learn more about Chinese culture.
Duan Yiruo: We will explain the four great inventions of ancient China during class, and I will also add the four new great inventions of contemporary China, such as mobile payment, online shopping, etc. Students are very interested in some things about contemporary China, and their concentration in class will be relatively high.
Duan Yiruo said that now many Chinese companies have come to Rwanda to invest and build factories, bringing employment opportunities to local people. Some of her students have also benefited from learning Chinese, and the students are full of support and help for her. of gratitude.
Duan Yiruo: Now more and more Chinese are investing here, and my students have also received some job opportunities such as translation. I am also very proud. At the end of last semester, a student gave me a small local schoolbag, which I felt very touched. When I return to China, when I see this gift, I will also think of the time I worked here.
The Confucius Institute at the University of Rwanda organizes students to practice calligraphy with calligraphy
Ye Xing is a junior local student at the Confucius Institute at the University of Rwanda. He is 25 years old this year. Ye Xing said that the Chinese teachers at the Confucius Institute work conscientiously, patiently and meticulously, and are good at introducing Chinese culture in a way that young people like to hear and see, and have formed a deep friendship with the students.
Ye Xing: Teacher Duan sometimes recommends some excellent online bloggers to us, and we learn about Chinese culture from these videos. Teacher Duan also recommended many TV series to us. From the TV series, we learned about the friendship and entertainment of Chinese young people. These will be of great help to me when I study abroad in China. I am particularly grateful to her and hope that Teacher Duan will be healthy and safe in Rwanda.
| Picture provided by the interviewee
| Reporter | Li Xuewei
| Editor | An Ran
| Host | Ge Peng
| Producer |
