by Burak Akinci
ANKARA, May 26 (Xinhua) -- Muberra Batuhan, a young teacher considering China as her "second motherland," has been working to promote the Chinese language and culture to Turkey's youngsters as more and more students in Turkey seek opportunities for higher education in China.
Batuhan, now living in the Turkish capital of Ankara, got a Chinese language and literature degree from a university in northwest China's ancient city of Xi'an, where she studied for over four years.
"I have been teaching Mandarin lessons for five years now in different universities and private education establishments," she told Xinhua.
"My job is not only teaching Chinese, but also giving my students a broad approach to immerse themselves into the Chinese culture," she said.
As Turkey and China have beefed their cooperation in all fields during the past years, the people-to-people exchanges between the two sides have also been upgraded.
"I think that the growing influence of Chinese economy plays a big part in the rise of interest in the Chinese language in Turkey. People nowadays feel that knowing English is not enough for professional opportunities, therefore they are turning towards Chinese which is a plus," Batuhan said.
One of her best students, Ekin Peksen, who is majoring in law at a university in Ankara, aspires to become a lawyer specializing in trade and marine issues.
She envisions being able to work in China after she graduates, where she can benefit from the diverse business opportunities that China is offering to foreigners.
"Definitely one of my purposes of learning Chinese is to ultimately go there," she said.
Peksen's affection of China started with watching Chinese TV series and listening to Chinese music. She thinks that this culture has a "broad spectrum," something that she says lacked in her Western-centered studies.
More than 100,000 Turkish students annually choose to study abroad in order to receive better education. With greater opportunities offered by China, the trend is turning towards this nation, both Batuhan and Peksen said.
"Today, compared to the year of 2015 when I went to China for higher education, there is a significant increase in Turkish students traveling to China for graduate and postgraduate studies," Batuhan noted.
"I would definitely recommend any Turkish student to pursue higher education in China," the instructor added. ■
