Introduction

Set up in China, the Volunteer Chinese Teachers Program (hereafter referred to as “Volunteer Program”) provides voluntary services to help meet Chinese teachers’ shortage in other countries. The Office of Chinese Language Council International (Hanban), a non-governmental organization under the Ministry of Education, P. R. China, is responsible for implementing the Program. The Volunteer Center of Hanban is in charge of the program’s daily operation.

Volunteer Chinese Teachers (hereafter referred to as “Volunteers”) are primarily recruited and selected from professional teachers, as well as postgraduate students and graduates of the current year with a bachelor’s degree or above. They all majored in disciplines of liberal arts such as Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language, Chinese Linguistics and Literature, Foreign Languages, Education, History, Philosophy, etc. After taking a series of training, qualified volunteers will be dispatched to teach overseas. The term of service for the volunteers is normally one year. If the performance of a volunteer is evaluated as “Good” or above at the end of one year, and if both the volunteer and the host institution apply to extend the term, the volunteer’s service can be extended upon the approval of Hanban. In principle, individual volunteer will work overseas no longer than 3 years.

Volunteers should be enthusiastic about voluntary service, equipped with the volunteerism of “devotion, friendship, mutual help and progress” as well as the sense of honor, mission and responsibility in the career of teaching Chinese to speakers of other languages.

Return topImplementation

As a pilot program, Hanban sent the first group of volunteers to Thailand and the Philippines in 2003. Experiences were accumulated to prepare for the full operation of the program. In 2004, approved by the Ministry of Education, the Volunteer Chinese Teacher Program was officially launched. By the end of 2008, Hanban had sent over 5,000 volunteers to 48 countries in Asia, Europe, America, Africa and Oceania. The volunteers have impressed people of these countries with their endurance, devotion, and outstanding performance. They are called “Angels from China” and “the loveliest people”.

The teaching of Chinese language in these countries has been greatly improved by volunteers work, and many countries have applied to Hanban for a bigger number of volunteers. Practices in the past few years have demonstrated that the Volunteer Program has played a positive role in helping other countries to develop Chinese language teaching, in promoting the cultural and educational exchange between China and the rest of the world, and in enhancing the understanding and friendship between the Chinese people and people all over the world as well.

Return topOrganization and Management

Hanban is responsible for the overall planning and coordinating of the Volunteer Program. Based on requests for volunteers submitted by different countries, the Volunteer Center will either directly organize the recruitment, selection, training and dispatch of volunteers, or entrust the responsibility to the Departments of Education of concerned provinces/municipalities/autonomous regions), or universities and colleges. After their arrival in the host countries, volunteers will be mainly supervised by the Chinese Embassies or Consulate Generals and the host institutions.

The Volunteer Centre will usually dispatch administrative teachers to regions where volunteers are in relatively big numbers. The administrative teachers assist host institutions by providing volunteers with professional tutoring and relevant administrative support. When the volunteer’s term of service is about to finish, the Volunteer Centre will entrust certain organizations or the administrative teachers to conduct an overall assessment of his/her performance.

Return topRelevant Costs

Volunteers receive no salary but living allowance. Hanban disburses the following expenses through the state budget: expenses occurred during pre-departure training, processing formalities for going abroad, relocation payments, living allowance, international round-trip airfare, and personal accident insurance. Host institutions should provide volunteers with housing, medical care and local transportation. Through negotiation, part of volunteers’ living allowance, expenses for local training and field trips could also be born by overseas organizations.

Return topApplications

Hanban releases recruitment information based on overseas requests for volunteers. Applicants meeting the outlined requirements can apply to the Volunteer Centre or to the entrusted organizations in order to participate in the tests and interviews. Applicants should fill in the Application Form for Volunteer Chinese Teachers that can be downloaded from Hanban website at www.hanban.org.

Return topRequest Submissions

Hanban is willing to establish cooperative relationships with governmental education departments, educational institutions, organizations, and associations of Chinese language teachers from all other countries to provide voluntary service in Chinese teaching. When there is a need for such volunteers, please contact Hanban Volunteer Center or Education/Culture Section of Embassies (Consulate) of PRC. The Application Form of Volunteer Chinese Teachers (download from www.hanban.org) should be filled in and submitted meanwhile. Since the procedure of selection, training, and dispatch of volunteers normally takes three to four months to complete, please submit your request for volunteers fairly in advance.

Chinese Teachers to United States