RIYADH — A total of 175 Chinese language teachers will begin their careers in Saudi elementary and intermediate schools from the middle of August. They will become the first batch of Mandarin teachers to serve in Saudi Arabia, according to China Daily newspaper. The program is part of an agreement concluded between the two countries in 2023 to enhance cooperation in Chinese language education. Accordingly, the teachers have completed pre-service training at Tianjin Normal University from July 29 to Aug. 2. The training was organized by the university, in association with the Saudi Education Ministry and the Chinese Ministry of Education's Center for Language Education and Cooperation. The website of Cankao Xiaoxi, a newspaper affiliated with Xinhua News Agency, said Saudi Arabia will open Chinese language classes in elementary schools. China will send 800 Chinese language teachers to Saudi Arabia, according to another website, jiaohanyu.com, which offers details of the latest Chinese language teaching programs and job opportunities. Yaqin Talal A. Jebreen, a human resources specialist at Tatweer Co. from Saudi Arabia, the chief representative in organizing the training, thanked the center and the university for organizing it. "The successful completion of the pre-service training for the first batch of Chinese teachers who are about to go to Saudi Arabia is a reflection of the solid partnership and fruitful cooperation between Saudi Arabia and China. And I believe these teachers' fulfillment of the jobs will set a brand-new beginning for China-Saudi Arabia educational cooperation," she said. Liu Xiaoting, a representative who spoke for the 175 teachers, said: "We are grateful for such a valuable training opportunity and ambitious to contribute to Chinese language education in Saudi Arabia soon." The year marks the 60th anniversary of Tianjin Normal University's international Chinese education initiatives, along with the 20th anniversary of its international Chinese teacher volunteer service. Qu Kai, a university official, said its efforts have yielded more than 60,000 international students who are proficient in Chinese language and culture and it will continue to boost China-Saudi Arabia international Chinese education cooperation, providing students and teachers with better Chinese training services.
