Chinese language added to Iranian school curriculum
Iran has added Chinese and Arabic to the list of foreign languages that can be taught in schools in the country.
According to a latest decree from the High Education Council of Iran, signed into law by the president, the two languages were added in order to diversify school programs and to meet public demands to learn foreign languages.
According to the new law, schools can now choose between Arabic, French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish, and Standard Chinese to teach in addition to English.
Article 15 of the Iranian constitution has declared Farsi as the official and common language of the country.
Meanwhile, Article 16 states that teaching basic Arabic is mandatory in all classes and fields after elementary school in Iran given that Arabic is the language of the Holy Quran and Islamic sciences and teachings and that the Persian literature is completely intertwined with it.