Taiwan Today
Date: June 15, 2016
Participants in the U.S. Department of State’s Critical Language Scholarship Program are all smiles
Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen sings national song with the Puzangalan Children’s Choir during the inauguration ceremonies in Taipei, Taiwan, on May 20, 2016.
Photo: AP
at the prospects at studying for eight weeks at the Chinese Language Center of National Cheng Kung University in Tainan City, southern Taiwan. (Courtesy of NCKU)
Taiwan has been selected for the first time in recent decades as a location for Chinese language instruction under the U.S. Department of State’s Critical Language Scholarship Program.
Founded in 2006, CLSP is one of the important ways the U.S. Department of State offers instruction in 14 key international languages such as Arabic, Chinese, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Russian and Turkish.
The U.S. Department of State has selected 20 elite undergraduate and graduate students majoring in international relations or national security with two years of Chinese training from Ivy League, or other well-known universities, to attend the Chinese Language Center of National Cheng Kung University in Tainan City, southern Taiwan, for an eight-week intensive language course and cultural immersion program starting June 15.
Ho Mai-chen, director of the language center, said compared with Taipei City, Tainan boasts a lot of cultural sites. “In addition to learning language, the American students will have classes on gourmet food, seal carving, tea ceremony etiquette and Taiwanese opera.
“They are living with the local families, studying during the weekdays and participating in a series of off-campus activities centered on learning Taiwan history and culture.”
