Study Abroad in China: Intensive Chinese Language in Beijing – Faculty & Staff

Beijing Faculty

Chinese Language Faculty

CET Beijing faculty members are hired independently by CET. Most instructors come from the host university (BIE) and other institutions around the city such as: Capital Normal University, Beijing University, Beijing Normal University, Beijing Language and Culture University.

Chinese language instructors have graduate degrees in Chinese or Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language. Many have experience teaching at language programs in the US or at other study abroad programs of similar caliber.

Chinese Language Teacher Training

CET arranges a variety of training programs for its language faculty at all locations.

• Workshops. Each semester is preceded by a three- to five-day training workshop led by the program’s academic staff. Teachers view videos of successful classes, perform demo-teaching sessions and engage in peer critiquing.
• Class Monitoring. The academic staff monitors classes daily. The staff guides lesson preparation to meet the specific needs of students. The staff also organizes “group preparation sessions” and meets with teachers to share ideas and discuss teaching strategies.
• Guest Training Sessions. In 1996, CET asked Dr. T. Richard Chi, then Director of the Middlebury College Summer Chinese School, to offer a series of special workshops to language faculty. Since then, CET has continued this tradition, arranging workshops by faculty experts annually. Recent trainers are:
  • Ao Qun, United States Military Academy
  • Cui Shuqin, Bowdoin College
  • Li Kai, Oberlin College
  • Liu Xianmin, Vanderbilt University
  • Bai Jianhua, Kenyon College
  • Liu Yuehua, Harvard University
  • Cecilia Chang, Williams College
• Teaching at US Institutions. CET seeks opportunities for its teachers to fill temporary positions at US institutions. CET has sent faculty to teach at the Middlebury Summer School every year since 1997. CET instructors have also been selected to teach at universities such as Bowdoin College, Duke University, Kenyon College, Vassar College, Williams College and Yale University.

Beijing Staff

CET maintains full-time, bilingual staff at each of its study abroad locations.

The Academic Director directs the curriculum, and recruits and trains all faculty.

The Academic Coordinator monitors courses, oversees teacher preparation and works with faculty to accommodate specific student needs.

The Resident Director manages housing, local roommates, activities and student acclimation, health and welfare. S/he is trained to prevent and handle student emergencies.

Staff Bios

Zhu Li, Senior Academic Director, Beijing Programs

Before serving as Academic Director, Zhu Li taught at CET Beijing for almost 15 years. Having also served as Chinese instructor at Middlebury College, Capital Normal University in Beijing and Hochschule Bremen University in Germany, she has taught all levels and aspects of Chinese language. She has received certification in the areas of HSK testing, the development of multimedia teaching materials and the conducting of Oral Proficiency Interviews. The author of numerous publications and the recipient of many teaching awards, Zhu Li brings to our program superior teaching skills and intimate familiarity with CET and the field of Chinese language teaching.

Chu Chengzhi, Summer Academic Director

Chu Chengzhi is Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Chinese Language Program at the University of California, Davis, where he also serves as a faculty member of the Graduate Group of Linguistics and on the executive board of the Second Language Acquisition Institute. Before joining UC Davis in 2004, he taught at Stanford University and Beijing Language and Culture University for many years. In addition to other professional services, he is the President of the Chinese Language Teachers Association of California and Guest Professor at South China Normal University. He has published many articles, books and software programs in the areas of Chinese linguistics, cognitive semantics and Chinese L2 pedagogy and acquisition.

Jason Wang, Senior Resident Director

Jason is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a BA in Chinese language and a BS in Psychology. During his undergraduate years, he also worked in housing and residence education. In his third year, he studied abroad at CET Beijing and interned at a local health education NGO through UNC’s Jones Apparel Group Honors Asian Fellowship. After working in the US for a while upon graduating, he then relocated back to Beijing where he worked for New Oriental Elite, first as a teacher and then as a Director of Studies. Now at CET, he is excited to help provide CET students the same positive experience that he had as a study abroad student.

Zhou Xinying, Academic Coordinator

Zhou Xinying, a native of Beijing, started teaching at CET programs in 2001. She has taught at the CET Beijing and CET Hangzhou Immersion programs. She has also served as Chinese Lecturer at Middlebury College, both during the academic year and at the Summer School. Through these experiences, she has taught all levels and aspects of Chinese Language. Zhou Xinying began her post as Academic Coordinator in 2009. She is responsible for maintaining superior language instruction by supervising and training the program’s language faculty and by working closely with the students.

Zhang Yuan, Academic Assistant

Zhang Yuan, a native of Heilongjiang, China, is a graduate of China Youth University for Political Sciences where she received a BA in Social Work in 2010. She joined the CET team after graduating. Zhang Yuan assists the academic staff and faculty, making sure they have everything they need to keep the program’s rigorous academics moving ahead at full speed.

Li Xuan, Office Assistant

Li Xuan is a graduate of Beijing Union University where he received a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in 2009. Li Xuan was an outstanding Chinese roommate at CET Beijing for three semesters before joining the staff in 2009. As a native of Beijing, he is an excellent source of information on Beijing life and culture, and the city’s best kept secrets.

Jane Wang, Beijing Programs Assistant

Jane Wang is the Beijing Programs Assistant, working on both the CET Beijing and CET Chinese Studies programs. Having previously worked in several different professions, Jane found a home in Youth Education. With a lifelong goal of bringing the world together, Jane has found that CET provides the perfect environment where, through intercultural academic programs, cultures can meet and friendships are built. By introducing China and its culture to foreign students and faculty, by bridging people from different cultures and backgrounds, and by helping students navigate daily life in Beijing, she feels that her life’s goal is being met.

Beijing Alumni

Hear what CET Beijing program alumni have to say! Click here to contact a program alumnus.

Academic Advisory Board

CET maintains an advisory board of US-based scholars. The Chinese Language Advisory Board meets annually to discuss curricula and derive teaching standards. Board members visit the CET sites in order to evaluate programs and, when possible, conduct teacher-training sessions.

Dr. Madeline Chu
Professor of Chinese Language and Literature, Kalamazoo College

Dr. Shuqin Cui
Associate Professor of Asian Studies, Bowdoin College

Dr. Baozhang He
Associate Professor, College of the Holy Cross

Dr. Theresa Jen
Director, Lauder Chinese Language and Culture Program, University of Pennsylvania

Dr. Xianmin Liu
Senior Lecturer in Chinese; Chinese Language Program Coordinator, Vanderbilt University

Dr. Jingheng Ma
Professor Emeritus, Wellesley College

Dr. Scott McGinnis
Academic Advisor; Professor, Defense Language Institute

Dr. Claudia Ross
Professor of Chinese; Chair, Department of Modern Languages and Literatures; Chinese Section Coordinator, College of the Holy Cross