Top-notch teachers of Chinese are in critical demand around the world amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, said Zhong Yinghua, president of the International Society for Chinese Language Teaching and president of Tianjin Normal University.

He made the remark at the 14th International Chinese Teaching Seminar of the International Society for Chinese Language Teaching held over the weekend.

He said the average age of international Chinese learners is trending younger, while more learners see Chinese language proficiency as a key rung in their career ladder.

Amid rising global demand, individual countries and regions have shown differentiated demand.

"More custom-made, innovative courses using intelligent technologies that cater to the needs of widespread populations are new features of the current international Chinese learning," Zhong said.

Other experts explained the reasons behind the rising demand for high-quality international Chinese teachers.

Ma Jianfei, head of the Ministry of Education's Center for Language Education and Cooperation, indicated that global Chinese learning has a major trend:

"Chinese plus professional studies have enhanced the sense of gain for Chinese learners, offering them a wealth of job opportunities," Ma said.

In addition, a series of teaching standards to help regulate global Chinese teaching and learning made by the International Society for Chinese Language Teaching in recent years have improved the sector's overall standards, he said.