On July 5, we had the pleasure of hosting our second cultural day trip of the summer! This time, we visited the Leshui Tribal Village in Yilan to dive into the rich traditions of Taiwan’s indigenous Atayal people.

What’s it like to live like the Atayal? Participants explored this firsthand through fun and educational hands-on activities—making bamboo tube rice, pounding mochi, competing in an archery contest, and learning about traditional Atayal ecological wisdom. The warm hospitality and delicious indigenous cuisine made the experience not only eye-opening, but also deeply memorable.

On June 7th, students joined our first summer cultural trip to the Sanchong Air Force Military Dependents’ Village. The day began with a guided tour that offered rich insight into the village’s unique history and architecture. After enjoying a local lunch during free time, students got hands-on at a DIY workshop where they crafted their own foldable book lamps—a perfect blend of culture and creativity!

This trip not only deepened students’ understanding of Taiwan’s post-war heritage, but also gave them the chance to connect with classmates and express themselves through art. It was a meaningful and memorable start to the summer cultural series!

Time flies! The spring session of the NTU Huayu BEST Program has successfully wrapped up.
Students not only enhanced their Chinese skills at ICLP and CLD but also joined our “Hands Together” activity, engaging with local elementary school students and sharing their cultures.

We hope they continue using their Chinese in daily life and warmly welcome them back to Taiwan in the future!

🌟 Exploring Taiwan’s Culture

In March, we organized a cultural day trip, and this time we visited Yilan, a city full of traditional Taiwanese charm, where students had the opportunity to learn about early rural life in Taiwan. During the activity, students not only had the chance to pick Welsh onion and make scallion pancakes, but also gained a deeper understanding of Taiwan’s unique crops.🌱

In addition to visiting the farm, we also arranged for students to visit the Neicheng Community to experience the Farming Village Tour on a tiller trolley, allowing them to get a hands-on experience of rural life.

This cultural journey not only provided students with a better understanding of the diverse aspects of Taiwan, but also left everyone with many wonderful memories.🧩

🤝 Hands Together

As part of the “Hands Together” outreach initiative, students visited Xingnan Elementary School and Dafeng Elementary School in New Taipei City. In addition to assisting with English instruction, they were warmly welcomed into the vibrant culture and daily life of Taiwanese elementary schools.

During their visit, the students also shared unique aspects of their own cultures with the local children. The Norwegian student introduced the traditions and lifestyle of Oslo, while students from the United States shared stories about Michigan’s natural scenery and the cowboy culture of Texas.

This meaningful cross-cultural exchange not only enriched the students’ understanding of Taiwanese education, but also sparked curiosity and connection among the local children. The experience fostered mutual respect, broadened global perspectives, and built friendships that extend beyond borders.

In the blink of an eye, the 2024 NTU Huayu BEST Program's Mandarin learning journey has successfully concluded! 🎉

🤝 Hands Together:
The students visited Yulin Elementary School in New Taipei City and Shang Ren Elementary School in Keelung City for the " Hands Together " program. In addition to assisting with English teaching, they also experienced Taiwan's unique elementary school culture, such as music classes🎸, physical education classes🏃, and nutritious lunches.🍽️

⭐Orientation&Welcome Party
Before the course started, we organized a welcome event. Through this event, students not only had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the environment in Taiwan and campus life, but also to meet fellow students from different universities.🙌

A Journey of Cultural Discovery & Chinese Language Learning

The 2024 Fall Highlight program has successfully concluded, leaving participants with unforgettable experiences and valuable cultural insights.

🌟 Exploring Taiwan’s Culture
Participants delved into Taiwan’s rich heritage, including a visit to the indigenous tribes in Hsinchu, where they explored the island's original cultures and traditions. From hands-on craft workshops to local food tours, they deepened their understanding of Taiwan’s unique history.

🤝 Hands Together: Interactions with Taiwanese Elementary Students
A highlight of the program was engaging with students at Elementary School. Through collaborative activities and cultural exchange, participants not only learned about Taiwan’s language and culture but also formed lasting friendships with local children.

🎓 Farewell Ceremony & Certificate Awards
The program concluded with a heartfelt farewell ceremony, where each participant received a certificate of completion, celebrating their growth and cultural exchange.

 Stay tuned for more exciting programs!

Time flies, and the summer learning journey of the NTU Huayu BEST Program has come to a successful close.

The students not only improved their Chinese language skills at the International Chinese Language Program (ICLP) and the Chinese Language Division (CLD) of the NTU Language Center, but also participated in our "Hands together" activity. Through this activity, the students had the opportunity to visit elementary schools in Taiwan, interact with local students, and share their cultures.

We believe that during this period, the students not only reached new milestones in their Chinese proficiency but also experienced Taiwan’s traditional culture and enjoyed their time studying in Taiwan.

We look forward to seeing the students’ Chinese language skills improve even further and hope they can apply these abilities in their daily lives. We also warmly welcome them to return to Taiwan for further studies in the future!

This Summer, nine students participated in the "Hands Together" activity. In June and July, we visited Da-Feng Elementary School and Chongde Elementary School.

Through this initiative, students had the chance to explore Taiwan’s elementary schools, gaining firsthand experience of the local educational environment while engaging in cultural exchange with Taiwanese students. From learning to cook Taiwanese dishes to playing chess and spinning diabolos, these activities have undoubtedly created lasting and unforgettable memories.

🔎NTU OIA FB

After a rewarding three months in Taipei, five international students from Indiana University, Michigan State University, the University of St. Andrews, and the University of Texas at Austin have completed their rigorous Chinese language program at the National Taiwan University Huayu BEST Program.

The CLD and ICLP program, which ran from February to May, provided over 180 hours of Chinese language instruction at various levels of proficiency. In addition to their daily language classes, the students actively participated in teaching English to young learners at Yulin Elementary School.

As the program draws to a close, NTU extends its best wishes to the students, who leave with improved Chinese language skills, a richer understanding of Taiwanese culture and education, and treasured memories of their time here.

We're excited to welcome a new group of students on March 20, 2024, who come from Indiana University, The University of Texas at Austin, and Michigan State University.

We're hopeful that all our students will find great success in this beautiful country. We also aim for our scholarships to provide strong support, helping students improve their Chinese language skills effectively.

We're confident that students will have a wonderful time learning in both the CLD and ICLP programs.

After an enriching three months in Taipei, a group of 7 international students from Indiana University, Michigan State University, University of St.Andrews, and University of Texas at Austin completed their intensive Chinese language program at National Taiwan University Huayu BEST Program.

The CLD and ICLP program, held from August to December, provided over 180 hours of Chinese instruction at various proficiency levels. Beyond daily language classes, students actively engaged in teaching English to elementary school students at Yulin Elementary School. 

As the program concludes, NTU wishes the students much success as they depart with improved Chinese language proficiency, a deeper understanding of Taiwanese culture and education, and cherished memories of their visit. 

Two NTU Huayu BEST program students from Michigan State University were paired with NTU students to participate in the Hands Together Activity during the 2023 fall quarter. From September 18 to November 9, the two MSU students became English teaching assistants and accompanied students in learning English in class. 

They visited Yu-lin Elementary School once a week and met with students from 1st through 6th grades to practice English conversation during various classroom activities and encouraged them to speak English. In total, our NTU Huayu BEST program students engaged with approximately 500 Yu-lin Elementary students.

The Hands Together Activity provided the NTU Huayu BEST program students the opportunity to learn about the Taiwanese culture through interacting with local students, and in a way, allowed both groups of students to learn from each other’s cultural and language backgrounds. 

We are delighted to welcome a new group of students on September 19, 2023, hailing from various universities, including Indiana University, The University of Texas at Austin, Michigan State University, and the University of St. Andrews. 

We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Professor Yuan, the Vice President of International Affairs, for delivering a warm welcome to the students. 

Our hope is that the students will all find great success in this beautiful country. We also aspire for our scholarships to provide ample support to enable students to enhance their Chinese language skills effectively. We trust that students will have joyful learning experiences in both the CLD and ICLP programs. 

Time flies, the summer learning journey of the NTU Huayu BEST Program has come to a close. During this quarter, 34 students from our partner universities - Indiana University, the University of Texas at Austin, Washington University in St. Louis, Michigan State University, and the University of St. Andrews - undoubtedly experienced numerous unforgettable moments while learning Chinese and immersing themselves in life in Taiwan.

The NTU Huayu BEST Program scholarships encouraged international students to enroll in the International Chinese Language Program (ICLP) and the Chinese Language Division Language Center (CLD) at National Taiwan University to learn Chinese. In addition to 3-4 hours of immersive Chinese courses each day, the Office of International Affairs arranged for scholarship recipients to participate in the "Hands Together" activity at Yulin Elementary School in Shulin District, New Taipei City. Encouraging children to speak in English not only made international students reflect more thoughtfully on their own English language usage but also gave them the opportunity to practice their Chinese through interactive exchanges.

Undoubtedly, this unique summer will become a cherished memory in their lives. Although the summer vacation is coming to an end, this distinctive experience will forever blossom in their hearts. We look forward to the not-so-distant future when, far away from this land, they can recall this place and this heartwarming time. May their life journeys be filled with happiness and success!
NTUOIA FB 

This summer, the NTU Huayu BEST program welcomed 34 students from our partner universities - Indiana University, the The University of Texas at Austin, Washington University in St. Louis , University of St Andrews , and Michigan State University - to NTU for Chinese language study.

And we invited Professor Yuan the Vice President of International Affairs to give a message of encouragement to the students in the opening session of the welcome gathering.

The NTU Huayu BEST Program provides scholarships for these students to attend NTU International Chinese Language Program(ICLP) or Chinese Language Division Language Center (CLD) for Chinese language immersion studies. And with the resources and support provided by NTU, they will enhance their understanding of Taiwanese culture and language, and through a different perspective, enable them to take their Chinese language one step closer🙌.

NTUOIA FB 

NTUOIA IG

At the BEST program's 2023 Spring Farewell Party on May 17, we invited Prof. Hsiao-Wei Yuan, Vice President for International Affairs, to have lunch with the international students. In addition to learning Chinese, international students from Indiana University also participated in an interactive English program called "Hands Together" held at the elementary school. He also performed his flute in a Mother's Day program at Yulin Elementary School. 

On Monday, March 6, 2023, we held a warm welcome event for our Spring 2023 BEST students to study Chinese at NTU. These are our second year of spring students, and they are from Indiana University and Michigan State University. We also invited Indiana University students who came to study Chinese last spring to join us. It was also the first time we hosted students from Michigan State University. We hope they enjoy learning Chinese in Taiwan as well as experiencing Taiwanese culture.

At the BEST program's Fall Farewell Party on December 5, we invited EVP Chiapei Chou to come and have lunch with the international students. In addition to learning Chinese, the international students also participated in an interactive English activity at the elementary school called " Hands Together". Arianne from the University of Texas at Austin participated in two quarterly summer and fall programs and Carson from Indiana University, both of them said their Chinese language skills have improved because of studying Chinese in NTU. Austin will continue to participate in the winter program until the end of next summer. The Dean of the International College also welcomed them back to NTU for the master program sometime soon.

The fall international students of the BEST program, from Indiana University, were invited to participate in a sports day on November 20, 2022, in addition to his weekly Hands Together English interaction with the children of Yulin Elementary School. On the day of the sports day, Carson also brought along two of his American friends from ICLP to experience the sports day at the Taiwanese elementary school. 

video link：https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4ZpsKPcZjA&t=70s

On November 13th, two international students from NTU's BEST program participated in a Yangmingshan hike with Yulin Elementary School, a partner school of Hands Together. During the journey, in addition to interacting with the children in English, the international students experienced a different trip in Taiwan. Although the weather was cooling, the international students could not see the Yangmingshan clearly due to the fog. Both international students are from the University of Texas at Austin and have been participating in BEST for more than a quarter.

In addition to learning Mandarin, the BEST Program Scholarship students will also participate in a " Hands Together Initiative" where they will work with NTU students at local elementary or junior high schools to assist local students to interactively practise speaking in English. Thus, a student from UT Austin participated in an e-book creation camp hosted by Yulin Elementary School last week, from July 13 to July 15, to assist the children in creating e-books. He also presented the English e-books that he had created with the NTU students and shared them with the children at the end of the camp.

For the interesting e-books created, please refer to the website (https://read.bookcreator.com/library/-N6QtR14Wo4zJ5tqh922). 

On Friday 8 July 2022, we held a warm welcome event for the summer 2022 BEST students to come and study Chinese at NTU. It was also an opportunity for all the BEST students to get to know each other and they will be participating in Hands together English teaching activities on the upcoming day, 25th July.

On Friday 1 July 2022 , a total of five international students and NTU students visited Minsheng Junior High School as a visit in advance for the Hands together initiative. These five students from the BEST program in the summer session of 2022 will attend four times during the summer session to assist in English teaching activities, allowing Taiwanese students to interact with international students, practise English conversation and develop English speaking skills.

"Hands Together Initiative" Welcome ceremony on March 22, 2022, at Yu-Lin Elementary School, New Taipei City