IN the most Westernized city of the Chinese mainland, where more than 160,000 expatriates live, the locals' enthusiasm for learning foreign languages has created a thriving market for foreign language training.

A recent survey showed that among the 1,000-plus independent training centres in Shanghai, most have foreign language courses.

English has always been the most popular foreign language among students, but the demand has become more specialized, with students determined to find courses meeting their individual needs.

Some agencies, such as New Oriental and Only Training School, offer general English, but others have different specialties with foreign backgrounds, such as Wall Street and Web International English, Kai En English Training Centre.

Japanese, German, French and Korean are also gaining popularity as growing business demands better communications with these countries.

About 300,000 people in Shanghai spend up to 1 billion yuan (US$121 million) every year on foreign language training, from general comprehension to business and occupational language. Intermediate and advanced interpretation is popular among employees of foreign enterprises.

During the last summer holiday, enrollment in well-known foreign language training classes doubled, especially oral English and English certification.

Shortcomings in China's English education system mean students tend to be good at grammar and reading but poor in communication and comprehension. After graduating from universities, many students find they have difficulty using the language they studied for nearly 14 years and have to get additional training.

"The reason I chose a foreign teacher for oral English classes is that I like the way they teach," said Ji Qin, a student studying at Wall Street. "The atmosphere in the classroom is so relaxed that it encourages us to practise more."

Market driven

Analysts say the language training market is fueled by the fast-paced economic growth both in the city and the nation, as well as individual needs. The demand is expected to grow with the economy and foreign investment in China.

Statistics from the Ministry of Commerce show that the number of foreign and joint-venture companies registered in China reached 11,000 by the end of 2004. The number is expected to increase by 20 per cent each year.

But according to a global investment index survey recently released by Jone Lands La Salle, China gets lower scores for the foreign language skills of its people than the Phillipines and India.

"The multinational companies in China are in great need of top talent, people who have rich experience, advanced skills and good command of English. Their language skill play a very important role as they communicate directly with their foreign peers and report to foreign headquarters," said Zhang Fengzhu, director of the human resource department of a US-based company. He said that those who have good foreign language skills, especially in English, will have more opportunities - higher salaries and more promotions - in big companies.

"Though an increasing number of people take foreign language training classes, most of them are not really interested in language itself, but have mixed motives," said Zhang Yi, head of the English Department of East China Normal University.

Zhang Wenxin, a recent university graduate, now works for a migration agency. Though busy with her work, Zhang makes use of her leisure time to study BEC (Business English Cambridge) intermediate level at the Only Training Centre.

"I just want to improve my English skill so that I can use it in my daily work. In fact, through communication with teachers and students, I have made great progress in business conversation, faxing and making phone calls, and have received compliments from my boss," said Zhang.

Shanghai's successfully bid for the 2010 World Expo has triggered even more interest in learning foreign languages. Building enthusiasm for studying abroad resulted in a record

50,000 people taking the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) examination on the Chinese mainland in 2003.

The majority of those in language training are college students and employees, but the students have become younger. One English training centre claims to recruit students aged from zero to 100.

After a recent promotion exercise by the Ladder Digital Education Corp, nine parents who attended the course paid

7,608 yuan (US$920) to buy the English courses on DVD.

What drove these people to part with such a huge amount of money was not just the convincing promotion; it was also their ambition for their children.

"I want my daughter to learn English well. Besides the English course at school, she attends English oral courses on weekends, which cost me some 300 yuan (US$37) each month," said the mother of a local eight-year-old girl.

Good command of foreign languages in the eyes of parents is a necessary advantage for their children as they compete with their peers at school and in the future. For that reason alone they are willing to pay as much as 4,000 yuan (US$484) per month for bilingual kindergarten, 10 times the ordinary charge for public kindergartens.