A US-based education organization plans to recruit about 20 Mandarin-speaking Chinese teachers in southwestern China to meet growing demand for Chinese courses.

 

The Sino-American Education Consortium (SAEC) said on Wednesday the posts were open to both college graduates and experienced teachers who had passed the Chinese Proficiency Test and the College English Test.

 

Those hired would get a three-year contract at primary and high schools in the state of Georgia, said Song Zhihui, vice chairman of the southwest branch of the SAEC.

 

Chinese lessons were growing in popularity in the US and more schools had started courses, said Song.

 

"The problem is the US has a great shortage of professional Chinese teachers," said Song.

 

Overseas Chinese students generally lacked necessary qualifications in Chinese language proficiency and teaching experience, he said.

 

"Many US schools want to hire teachers in China and that's why we launched this program," said Song, adding the SAEC would hire more teachers if the program went well.

 

The successful applicants were also encouraged to pursue a masters' degree in education at a US university, and work there long-term.

 

The SAEC would hold interviews from May 25 to 28 at the seventh Western China International Exposition to be held in Chengdu, the provincial capital.

 

Established in the US in 1987, the SAEC, formally known as USA-SINO Teacher Education Consortium, is an international academic organization to promote the education levels of both countries via exchanges and cooperation.

 

(Xinhua News Agency May 11, 2006)