Established through a collaboration between a professional examinations body under the Ministry of Education’s Centre for Language Education and Cooperation and the Hong Kong Financial Services Institute, the centre recently held its first teaching and exchange session at a secondary school.
More than 200 students have attended trial classes and learnt about the international Chinese language curriculum.
The centre said it would create specialised teaching materials covering both Cantonese and Putonghua tailored specifically for Hong Kong’s non-Chinese speaking students.
A key feature of the programme involves reinforcing lessons: material studied in Cantonese during the week would be revisited on weekends using Putonghua and simplified characters.
Through these weekend classes over three years, the centre is aiming for students to achieve proficiency levels equivalent to HSK 3 or 4 – standardised tests for non-native speakers.
Students who succeed in passing the HSK 4 standard would be able to apply for admission to mainland universities.
Participating students expressed enthusiasm, finding the learning experience enjoyable and valuable for communicating with more people.
