Welcome to the Chinese homepage
Chinese is the language of communication of approximately one quarter of the world's population. It is one of the official languages of the United Nations. Amongst the many spoken varieties of the language, Mandarin/Putonghua, or Modern Standard Chinese, is pre-eminent. Chinese is recognised as one of the fastest growing languages in New South Wales and has one of the largest groups of non-English background speakers in Australia.
China has a significant profile in economic, political and cultural developments, both globally and, in particular, in the Asia-Pacific region. Australia has a strong connection through trade, political and cultural contacts with both the People's Republic of China and other nations where Chinese communities are important contributors to their growth and diversity.
The ability to communicate in Chinese contributes significantly to the sociocultural and economic understanding between Australia and Chinese-speaking countries and enables students to gain insights into the contributions that have been made by Chinese-speaking communities to Australia, and indeed, to global society. For background speakers, this valuable learning experience is further enhanced by the opportunity to maintain and develop their Chinese language skills.
The study of Chinese provides students with opportunities for continued learning and for future employment, both domestically and internally, in areas such as commerce, tourism, hospitality and international relations.
In NSW government schools, Chinese is taught in both primary and secondary schools.
To the best of our knowledge, the websites and books listed in the materials in this website contain no controversial information or links. However, it is always best to check these for yourself before recommending them to students. Permission has been granted for all images and works included in the materials.
For further information please contact the Chinese Languages Consultants, Evelyn Man on 9886 7476, email: evelyn.man@det.nsw.edu.au or Shao Feng Yuan on 9886 7433, email: shaofeng.yuan@det.nsw.edu.au.
Adapted from the Board of Studies NSW Chinese K-10 Syllabus, 2003
© State of New South Wales through the Department of Education and Training, 1999 - 2009. All rights reserved.
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