The opening ceremony of the Portuguese Language Summer Programme
The 40th Portuguese Language Summer Programme, organised by the Department of Portuguese of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities (FAH) at the University of Macau (UM), kicked off today (6 July) with an opening ceremony. Around 400 students from Macao, Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland, Malaysia, and Canada are enrolled in the programme. Over the next three weeks, participants will attend language and culture courses to improve their Portuguese proficiency and gain a deeper understanding of Portuguese-speaking cultures.
In his speech, UM Vice Rector Rui Martins said that UM’s Portuguese Language Summer Programme has, over the past few decades, helped participants develop a strong command of the Portuguese language, while fostering an appreciation of the diversity and richness of Portuguese-speaking cultures, as well as a deeper understanding of the growing global significance of the Portuguese language. He added that the programme provides opportunities to explore Macao and the Portuguese-speaking world from linguistic, historical, social, economic, and political perspectives. The programme also features dynamic teaching and learning activities that adopt innovative and engaging approaches to encourage meaningful exchange and interaction among participants.
Throughout the three-week programme, instructors will provide participants with guidance and support. The courses will be offered with a combination of theory and practice, alongside a diverse range of workshops covering folk dance, literature, linguistics, history, translation, and the cultures of Portuguese-speaking countries.
The opening ceremony was also attended by João Veloso, acting head of the UM Department of Portuguese; as well as Lu Chunhui and Tânia Ferreira, coordinators of the programme.
This year’s programme is supported by the Macao Foundation. A special class for Macao secondary school students has also been set up with the support of the Education and Youth Development Bureau of the Macao SAR government.
