Top UK independent school has made learning Mandarin Chinese compulsory.

As so many of the boarders at Roedean now are Chinese, non-Chinese girls are being required to learn Mandarin Chinese from the age of 9. As the influence of China grows learning this language should help greater social understanding across the cultures.

A Telegraph journalist wonders about the benefits and disadvantages of his children learning to live in China

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/family/7947932/Expat-life-Have-children-will-...

Follow the link to decide whether you agree with the journalits point of view.

John Prescott and the China Policy Institute

The Rt Hon John Prescott MP, who as Deputy Prime Minister played a major role in the forging of closer relations between the UK and China, is to become the new Honorary Patron of the China Policy Institute at The University of Nottingham.

Mr Prescott will be officially inaugurated into his new role when he visits Nottingham on Tuesday March 30 to talk on China and Climate Change as part of the University’s Energy and Climate Change Special Lecture Series.

Richard Pascoe, Director of the China Policy Institute in the University’s School of Contemporary Chinese Studies, said: “We are delighted that John has agreed to become our new Honorary Patron.

John Prescott and the China Policy Institute

The Rt Hon John Prescott MP, who as Deputy Prime Minister played a major role in the forging of closer relations between the UK and China, is to become the new Honorary Patron of the China Policy Institute at The University of Nottingham.

Mr Prescott will be officially inaugurated into his new role when he visits Nottingham on Tuesday March 30 to talk on China and Climate Change as part of the University’s Energy and Climate Change Special Lecture Series.

Richard Pascoe, Director of the China Policy Institute in the University’s School of Contemporary Chinese Studies, said: “We are delighted that John has agreed to become our new Honorary Patron.

How does Mandarin Chinese link to the new Primary Area of Learning Understanding English communication and languages?

Learning Mandarin Chinese fits into 'Breadth of Learning' point 4.

d. By engaging with other languages (i), including, where appropriate, those used in their communities, children should:

1.look at the patterns, structures and origins of languages (i) in order to understand how language works

Mandarin Chinese is so very different from English, French, German and Spanish because of its origins and so lends itself to this outcome of understanding how language works. Ask us more to understand how to achieve this understanding of both English and Chinese when teaching Chinese.

2.listen to and join in with conversation in other languages and communicate about simple, everyday matters

Learning to speak Chinese especially working with a partner school in China fulfils this goal in a way that children engage so easily with. How can children start having conversations through understanding differences between the way the two languages work

3.understand how learning other languages can help them appreciate and understand other cultures as well as their own.

The potential for cultural work that spans the curriculum and which can be led by a non-native class teacher is huge. This is not 'educational tourism' but serious engagement with modern and ancient China. It is a very powerful way of making Mandarin Chinese belong to the whole school

Politicians Ed Balls and David Laws debate introduction of compulsory language lessons for 7-11 (KS2)....

Ministers have already announced the introduction of compulsory language lessons for seven- to 11-year-olds in 2011 to stimulate interest in the subject from a young age.

A spokesman for the Department for Children, Schools and Families said: "Introducing compulsory languages teaching in primary schools will instil a love of language learning in young children and help to encourage them to continue studying it as they move up through school and beyond.

In line with Bamboo's development of a Scheme of Work in Mandarin Chinese for KS2..

Ed Balls will announce that pupils aged seven onwards will be able to learn languages including Mandarin and Arabic to meet the challenges of a globalised world. Officials cited CBI surveys showing that 52% of employers looking for language skills now want people with French, 43% with German and 38% with Mandarin/Cantonese. They said Labour was keen to prepare the next generation of workers for the new global economy.

Balls said yesterday: "In this new decade, our ties with emerging economies like China will become even more important and it's vital that young people are equipped with the skills they need. That's why we want all secondary pupils to have the opportunity to learn Mandarin if they choose, either at their own school or a nearby school or college."

In line with Bamboo's development of a Scheme of Work in Mandarin Chinese for KS2..

Ed Balls will announce that pupils aged seven onwards will be able to learn languages including Mandarin and Arabic to meet the challenges of a globalised world. Officials cited CBI surveys showing that 52% of employers looking for language skills now want people with French, 43% with German and 38% with Mandarin/Cantonese. They said Labour was keen to prepare the next generation of workers for the new global economy.

Balls said yesterday: "In this new decade, our ties with emerging economies like China will become even more important and it's vital that young people are equipped with the skills they need. That's why we want all secondary pupils to have the opportunity to learn Mandarin if they choose, either at their own school or a nearby school or college."

I want not just hundreds but thousands of Chinese companies in Britain, and British companies in China.

In his speech to the CBI Gordon Brown highlighted the global economy as a route for the UK - 'To succeed in that future, we also need an outward-facing Britain, attracting inward investment and sustaining high value added jobs.

Over a very short time, more than 400 Chinese companies have come to Britain. In our new growth strategy, I want not just hundreds but thousands of Chinese companies in Britain, and British companies in China.'

The family tree of Confucius is revealed to celebrate the continuation of Chinese history into moderm times.

The revival of China's love-affair with the ideas of Confucius has taken another significant step forward after 1,000 members of China's most powerful aristocratic clan unveiled the first complete edition of their family tree for more than 70 years.

James Hung, grandson of the clan elder studies Mandarin and Confucius analects with Bamboo teachers Xian hua Long and Wang Fei.