Chinese Language Flourishes with Sincere Love for China - Story of Yulia, a Local Chinese Language Teacher in Russia

In 2016, Yulia graduated with a master's degree in International Chinese Language Education from Dalian University of Foreign Languages. After graduation, she chose to return to her home country to pursue her career as a Chinese language teacher. However, after getting married and having children, she had to switch to a less demanding job to take care of her family. Just when she felt she was drifting away from her beloved career in Chinese language education, Novosibirsk State Technical University reached out to her and invited her to teach Chinese there. Despite the busy workload, Yulia decided to follow her heart and immerse herself once again in Chinese education.

Yulia's tryout

Upon her arrival at the university, she firmly believed, "We are not only teaching students the grammar, vocabulary, and characters of the Chinese language, but also introducing them to Chinese culture. The quality of our teaching will shape these students' attitudes towards China, the Chinese language, and Chinese culture in the future. This is a noble task."

With the dedication of both a strict teacher and a caring mother, Yulia put all her efforts into her work. She prepared her lessons meticulously and designed various novel and interesting classroom activities tailored to different students. She even purchased a printer to provide colorful handouts for her students, aiming to achieve the best teaching results.

Yulia organizes students to make Mid-Autumn Festival paintings

In 2020, Yulia's Chinese language class at Novosibirsk No.4 Middle School was temporarily changed to correspondence teaching. Yulia worried that this method would not achieve high-quality teaching, so she tried recording video lessons for her students, setting up a WhatsApp class group, and requiring students to submit audio assignments to encourage them to speak Chinese. Although this approach was effective, it required a lot of time and effort, such as preparing scripts and lecture notes, recording and editing videos, and checking voice assignments. Sometimes, she had to spend more than a day checking and correcting the assignments of all 48 students.

Video lesson on grammar teaching

Beyond her tenderness, Yulia also possesses a resolute and decisive character that is characteristic of the vast land of Russia. Novosibirsk State Technical University was to host the "Chinese Bridge" competition in the Ekaterinburg region that year, when professional hosts were unavailable to accept any invitations to the events, but there was a need for hosts for the live broadcasts of the "Chinese Bridge" competition, in collaboration with the director and cameramen.

Host of "Chinese Bridge" (first from right)

Yulia stepped forward and decided to assume the role of host herself. Due to her lack of experience, she worried about letting the team down. For days, Yulia tirelessly rehearsed, revised her script, and scrutinized her own video recordings for mistakes. In the end, the "Chinese Bridge" competition was a complete success, and Yulia's poised hosting style received unanimous praise from the audience and contestants.

Yulia hosts the first Chinese Show for Foreign Primary School Students

Since then, Yulia has been involved in various online and offline activities at the university. She has served as a host and mentor for the first Chinese Show for Foreign Primary School Students in the Yekaterinburg region, an interactive reviewer at the Contemporary Chinese Film Festival, and a participant in the recording of Chinese cultural programs for STS-MIR and NSC-49 TV stations. She has also collaborated with students to record music videos for Chinese songs such as "Flying Together" and "You Are My Idol," as well as organized online knowledge quizzes for the Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival. Yulia, interprets her sincere love for China through her actions.

Yulia interacts with the audience at the Contemporary Chinese Film Festival

Yulia's colleagues speak highly of her, describing her as a motherly figure, a sister, and a close friend. Whenever Chinese teachers in Russia encounter difficulties in their lives, Yulia is always willing to lend a helping hand. When teachers face challenges in their teaching, she generously shares her notes and teaching materials, humbly seeking advice and exploring better teaching methods and approaches together.

In the cold Novosibirsk, Yulia is like a warm spring breeze. She remains dedicated to her role in Chinese language education, bringing knowledge and warmth to every student who is passionate about learning Chinese and loves China.