On March 18, the 24th Foreign Language Festival was held at Oriental Art Building of Nankai University, with a theme of “Conversance with both Eastern and Western Learning and Brilliant Translations”. There are overall more than 200 students from Tianjin and Beijing’s universities and colleges, such as Peking University, China Foreign Affairs University, Tianjin Foreign Studies University, Tianjin Normal University, and Nankai University, etc.
The festival was held jointly by Students’ Affairs Department, Graduate Students’ Affairs Department, Youth League Committee, and CFL of Nankai University.
Vice Director Liu Lixin of Graduate Students’ Affairs Department, Dean Yan Guodong and Vice Dean Jiao Yanting, Vice Dean Li Na of CFL, and some teachers from English Department, Translation Department, Western Languages Department, and Japanese Department also attended the festival.
Professor Yan Guodong, Dean of CFL, delivered a warmly opening remark. The festival provided a special stage for the students to have international experience. As a great activity covering Tianjin and Beijing, Nankai University Foreign Languages Festival has a 23 years’ tradition and creation, and has now developed into a famous grand campus activity, with its characteristics of academic, knowledgeable, interesting, artistic, and entertaining nature.
After the opening ceremony, “British Parliamentary Debate of Beijing and Tianjin” began its competition. Debaters from Peking University, China Foreign Affairs University, Tianjin Foreign Studies University debated on the topic of “whether we should collect taxes on the beautiful looking”. The debaters from China, Japan, Malaysia and other countries were debating with each other by imitating British Parliamentary system.
The festival took “academic” and “national perspective” as its key words and had lasted for two weeks. Main activities included British Parliamentary Debating Ceremony, “academic big shot” classes, multi-language dubbing, the “FLTRP Cup” pick-up game on English public speaking contest of Chinese university students, the fifth national interpretation pick-up contest (aka “translate your heart and mind”), Mini Olympics on “travel the world fun games”, “Eating Fun and Delicious” Food Festival, photo exhibition of Three Lines Love Poems, Designing contest of 7th Teaching Building of Nankai University, Sunny morning reading, and Foreign languages song contest etc.
The purpose of holding Foreign Languages Festival is to develop a Nankai special “public Interests and all-round capabilities”, and foster a rich academic atmosphere. The festival is aiming to provide an academic exchange and contest stage and further the students’ international perspectives.
About 100 Chinese volunteer teachers for Asia, Africa, Europe and America and some foreign languages lover also attended the opening ceremony and debate contest. These Chinese volunteer teachers were being trained at Nankai University as required by Confucius Institute Headquarters.
