Language is the key to a bright future

Students at Nairobi's Hospital Hill High School have not only fallen in love with Chinese culture but have had their future careers shaped, thanks to a Confucius class established four years ago by China Radio International.

The students want to learn the Chinese language and about the country's culture so they can either pursue further studies in China or access career opportunities, such as translation.

Student Joe Mwangi says his dream is to become an engineer and work either in China or with a Chinese construction company.

"I want to perfect my Chinese so I can be a link between the Chinese people working on construction projects in Kenya and the local people. It's unfortunate that there is little communication between the two sides because of the language barrier," says Mwangi.

Felix Xavier, another student, says his dream is to be an architect and wishes to study and work in China.

"I want to learn about new building technologies because that's the future of construction," he says.

Also inspired in his career path is Lesley Orwako. He says his dream is to build a hospital in Kenya for foreigners, especially Chinese.

"Since I look forward to Chinese people being my future clients, I want to perfect my language proficiency and understand their culture. This will help me communicate with them," he says.

The three students were selected to participate in the 2016 Chinese Bridge Competition for foreign secondary school students, hosted by Hanban, the Confucius Institute headquarters in Beijing.

It provides an opportunity for foreign students to compete by demonstrating their Chinese language and cultural knowledge through speeches and demonstrations.

According to Ling Li, China Radio International Confucius Classroom director, last year two students were sent to participate in the competition, and this year there are three.

"The students are selected according to scores in their proficiency test. They take both written and oral exams," he says.

The three students enrolled in martial arts classes when they joined Hospital Hill High School. They say learning kung fu has been exciting.

Orwako says he was first exposed to Chinese martial arts at the age of about 5.

"I enjoyed watching kung fu movies and mimicking famous actors like Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. I yearned for an opportunity to practice kung fu so when I joined Hospital Hill High School and learned about the class, it was an answer to a prayer," he says.

edithmutethya@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily Africa Weekly 12/02/2016 page21)