Why schoolchildren in Geneva are learning Mandarin

Since 2008 the Chinese Institute Geneva Foundation has been teaching Mandarin to local children. It collaborates closely with Swiss and international schools, integrating Chinese education into their curricula.

Sophia, one of 130 children attending Chinese classes every year, is just seven years old but already realises the opportunities that learning Chinese could bring. 

"Well, I could be a Chinese teacher," she tells CGTN. "I could travel for my business in China and lots of other things."

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The school operates on five campuses and employs 18 teachers. One of them, Alice You, explains why she thinks Geneva – home of the United Nations – is particularly open-minded, even for such a polyglot country as Switzerland. 

"Geneva is a very international city, and there are a lot of international organizations which require the employees to speak Chinese," she says. "And I also think here it is a very open atmosphere – open to culture, open to technology. 

"So I think the parents really encourage the children to learn Chinese – also because they are also foreigners."

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According to one of the school's founders Chu Jun, there's been a boom in learning Chinese over the past 18 years.

The school's popularity with the locals has grown due to its immersive teaching methods and diverse cultural programmes.

Demand for classes dropped during the pandemic - but it has been rising again since 2023.

"Now that China is getting stronger and stronger, the image is getting better," says Chu Jun. "So they say maybe that is a good opportunity when my children are grown up, they have the opportunity to go to the university, or even just for traveling, or to make friends and to have, like their parents, more opportunities for their children. So the parents have a very long, open-minded vision and outlook for their children."

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In addition to language courses, the school also offers Tai Chi and dance classes, introducing students to traditional Chinese arts.

Indeed, the Chinese Institute Geneva Foundation caters for all tastes. It's not only language classes that the school organises. There are cultural events, too, celebrating the Spring Festival and Mid Autumn Moon festival - which prove popular every year.