On July 12th , Chinese Consul General Dong Zhihua attended the 25th National Conference of the Chinese Language Teachers' Federation of Australia(CLTFA) at the invitation of the Chinese Language Teachers' Association of Western Australia(CLTAWA). Hon.Samantha Rowe MLC on behalf of State Education and Training Minister Hon.Sue Ellery MLC as well as State Tourism Minister Hon. Paul Papalia MLA, OMI executive director Ms. Kim Ellwood, CLTFA Founder and Life Member Mr. Geoff Davis AM, CLTFA National President Dr. Li Fuxin, CLTAWA President Mrs. Zhang Jieqi and some 250 CLTFA members from all across Australia participated.
Consul General Dong started her speech by conveying the congratulatory messages from H.E. Chinese Ambassador Cheng Jingye. On behalf of Ambassador Cheng, Consul General Dong congratulated the 25th anniversary of CLTFA and thanked the Federation and its members for their incessant hard efforts and remarkable contributions to promoting Chinese language education in Australia as well as to enhancing mutual understanding, practical cooperation and people-to-people linkages between China and Australia.
Consul General Dong stressed that the world is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century. We face both increasing opportunities and unprecedented challenges. The well-being of people in all countries has never been so closely intertwined as it is today. We need to have a sense of global citizenship and work together to build a community of shared future for mankind, as proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping. This year marks the 70th Anniversary of the People's Republic of China. 40 years of reform and opening up has transformed China into the second largest economy in the world and a powerful engine of growth for global economy. China stands ready to build and strengthen partnerships with all countries and build bridges for exchanges and mutual learning among different cultures. To deepen education cooperation is China's main focus.
Consul General Dong emphasized that China's development will provide tremendous opportunities for Australia and the region. China represents the future and opportunities. Chinese language is not only a tool for communication and career development, but also a golden key to understanding Chinese history, culture and society. Chinese language education will not only change the lives of many individuals, in the long run, it will influence the way Australians perceive China. Consul General Dong encouraged the CLTFA and its members to continue pressing forward with Chinese teaching in primary and secondary schools across Australia. She advocated that all kinds of culture experience programs and student exchange activities such as choir, martial arts and summer camps be organized to arouse interests of students in Chinese culture. She encouraged the CLTFA members to go China and present to their students a real China.
The Chinese Language Teachers' Federation of Australia was established in 1994. Presently the Federation has more than 3,500 member teachers, who are teaching around 170,000 Australian primary and secondary school students Chinese.
