MOREthan2,300universitiesinover100countrieshaveintroducedChinesecoursestotheircurricula,andyoungoverseasnationalsflocktoChinaeachyeartolearnChinese.In2004,thenumberofinternationalstudentsinChinawas400,000.withanannualincreaseof20percentinthepastfiveyears,accordingtotheChineseMinistryofEducation.