Taiwan Can Be a Reliable Partner for India on Mandarin Education Policy
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Asian Journal of Education and Social Studies 13(3): 25-35, 2020; Article no.AJESS.63297 ISSN: 2581-6268 Taiwan Can be a Reliable Partner for India on Mandarin Education Policy Peters Li-Ying Chen1* 1Graduate Institute of National Development, National Taiwan University, Taiwan. Author’s contribution The sole author designed, analysed, interpreted and prepared the manuscript. Article Information DOI: 10.9734/AJESS/2020/v13i330332 Editor(s): (1) Dr. Bashar H. Malkawi, University of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. (2) Dr. Roxana Plesa, University of Petrosani, Romania. Reviewers: (1) Kamila Alhadi Salim Algwil, University of Al-Asmaryia, Libya. (2) Firdaus Chaudhary, Aligarh Muslim University, India. (3) Azkia Muharom Albantani, Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah, Indonesia. (4) Müfit Şenel, Ondokuz Mayis University, Turkey. Complete Peer review History: http://www.sdiarticle4.com/review-history/63297 Received 10 November 2020 Accepted 03 December 2020 Policy Article Published 15 December 2020 ABSTRACT This isan unprecedented policy paper on the development of Taiwan’s Mandarin education in India and its suggestion to Indian government for future policy direction. This research conducts literature review by having comprehensive study and interpretation of key figues and key terms in history and news. Although the perceived lack of dissertation and paper is seen in the paucity of research devoted to understanding this issue. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has responded to the China’s aggression in the border of Eastern Ladakh in 2020, maybe even in terms of language, Indian government has dropped Mandarin among foreign languages in its National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Indian government reviewed China's Confucius Institutes amid global concern, as well as university level memorandum of understanding between India and China. However, learning Mandarin would be encouraged in India by considering its national security, academic research, historical ties and economic development. Under these circumstances, the best policy option for India would be to get Mandarin teachers or train more Mandarin teachers from Taiwan, where Mandarin is official language as well. This article explores the reasons from historical context in India to Taiwan’s current development on Mandarin education, including its qualified teacher, test and satisfaction of partnering institutes. This paper indicates that Indian government should strategically consider having more cooperation with Taiwan in providing Mandarin learning for its young generation. Taiwan is a reliable partner for India on Mandarin Education Policy. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ *Corresponding author: Email: [email protected]; Chen; AJESS, 13(3): 25-35, 2020; Article no.AJESS.63297 Keywords: India; Taiwan; mandarin; Taiwan education centre; Chinese language. 1. INTRODUCTION place for early religious beliefs and social practices. When Faxian arrived, Nalanda was a India and China have had strong economic and place where the gathering and research of cultural ties since ancient times, which is the Buddhist scriptures prevailed, but when starting point of language exchanges between Xuanzang and Jingyi arrived, there were already two sides. Nowadays, young generation is large-scale lecture halls. They both studied there motivated to learn Chinese language by the for many years, especially for translation of texts. increasing amount of investment between two sides, fast-growing market, job opportunities and In India, modern Mandarin Chinese learning international relations. Due to so called one- began with the French Sinologist Sylvain Levi China policy, most Indians did not know about (1863-1935) who taught Mandarin courses in the Taiwan, in which Mandarin Chinese is official Department of History of the University of language spoken in this nation. Fewer Indians Calcutta in 1919. Tan Yunshan and Chinese know that Taiwan has long history in training Academy in Shantiniketan were founded Mandarin Chinese for foreigners. There is no afterwards. Tan Yun-Shan joined Visva Bharati previous study talking on this topic. Therefore, as a Professor of Chinese Studiesin 1928. He this is an unprecedented study on the held discussions with the intellectual fraternity at development of Taiwan’s Mandarin education in Shantiniketan. Through the establishment of the India and its suggestion to Indian government for "Sino-Indian Cultural Society" for fundraising, he future policy direction, through literature review gained financial support from the ruling party and interpretation of key terms in history and Kuomintang (KMT), particularly from Yu Youren, news. Dai Chuanxian and others. Together with the strong support of Rabindranath Tagore, the 2. HISTORICAL TIES WITH CHINESE Chinese Academy (Cheena Bhavana) was LANGUAGE IN INDIA established on April 14, 1937, with Tan Yunshan as the dean Li, [5]. The stone inscription on the Regarding the history of India’s exposure to the main board outside the existing building was Chinese language, the most famous among the from Lin Sen, the then president of the Republic available historical materials are the Chinese of China, and the plaque inside the building was senior Buddhist monk and translator Faxian written by Dai Chuanxian, the key supporter. (approximately 337-422AD) Sheng, [1], Xuanzang (602-664AD) Lee, [2] and Yijing (635 - The Chinese nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek 713AD) Ludvik, [3]. The three masters arrived in who became the leader of Taiwan afterwards ancient India to study Buddhist scriptures and visited Cheena Bhavana in 1942. They donated translate them into Chinese. This should be precious and rare ancient literature to the called “book road”, rather than “silk road”. The Cheena Bhavana library, like Records of the influence was far-reaching. Xuanzang's famous Grand historians, Han Book, Book of Later Han, book "Da Tang Xi Yu Ji (Story of the Western Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, Kangxi Regions of the Great Tang Dynasty)" even Dictionary, etc. They also had a donation of Rs. confirmed the Chinese translation of "India". The 50,000. China between 1912 and 1949actually three monks also went to study Buddhist was governed by the government of the Republic scriptures at the location of current Nalanda of China, namely, currently Taiwan’s International University. government. Most Indians didn’t understand this part of history. According to historical literature, Nalanda University was established in the 5th century. With the changes in Sino-Indian relations, the Sharma [4] indicates that it was an eminent School of Foreign Languages, established by the centre of learning long before Oxford, Cambridge Ministry of Defence in New Delhi, added and Europe's oldest Bologna University were Mandarin courses in 1959. The Ford Foundation founded. It was not until 1193 that the Turkish of the United States donated funds to the Bakhtiyar Khalji Invaded and destroyed this University of Delhi to develop Chinese studies centre of knowledge disseminationin the current and Mandarin teaching in 1964. According to Bihar State, North India. It attracted people from Singapore Archives [6], the Indian government all over the world to study at the university, also established a five-year Mandarin program in including Chinese at that time. It was a gathering the School of Foreign Languages at Jawaharlal 26 Chen; AJESS, 13(3): 25-35, 2020; Article no.AJESS.63297 Nehru University in 1969. Krishnan [7] reported for India and annually provided 100 scholarships, that, in 2012, under the MoU signed by Indian which marked a significant milestone for India Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and China in Mandarin education. However, and China’s Hanban, China trained 300 teachers nowadays, many Indian teachers who Table 1. Higher education institutions in India which offered Mandarin programem/course No. HE institution 1 Amity University 2 Ashoka University 3 Assam Don Bosco University 4 Banaras Hindu University 5 Bengaluru Central University 6 Central University of Gujarat 7 Central University of Jharkhand 8 Chitikara University 9 Delhi University 10 Doon University 11 Dr.BabasahebAmbedkarMarathwada University 12 English and Foreign Language University 13 Flame University Pune 14 Graphic Era University 15 Hindustan Institute of Technology and Science 16 Indian Institute of Management Bangalore 17 IIT Bhilai 18 IIT Bombay 19 IIT Delhi 20 IIT Kanpur 21 IIT Madras 22 Indira Gandhi National Open University 23 Jadavpur University 24 Jamia Millia Islamia 25 Jawaharlal Nehru Academy Of Language 26 Jawaharlal Nehru University 27 K.R. Mangalam University 28 Lovely Professional University 29 Magadh University 30 National Defence Academy 31 National Defence College 32 Nava NalandaMahavihara 33 O.P. Jindal Global University 34 Panjab University, Chandigarh 35 Pondicherry University 36 Raksha Shakti University 37 Sanchi University of Buddhist-Indic Studies 38 SavitribaiPhule Pune University 39 Shiv Nadar University 40 Shoolini University 41 Sikkim University 42 SRM Institute of Science and Technology 43 Tezpur University 44 University Of Calcutta 45 University of Mumbai 46 University of Mysore 47 Vel Tech RangarajanDr.Sagunthala R&D Institute of Science and Technology 48 Vellore Institute of Technology 49 VisvaBharati University 27 Chen; AJESS, 13(3): 25-35, 2020; Article no.AJESS.63297 teach Mandarin in Indian schools or universities International Chinese Language Program (ICLP) are graduates