"Dashan & Friends in Canada"

"Dashan & Friends in Canada" is an English language educational program produced for China Central Television (CCTV). Viewers practice intermediate-level English skills while they learn about Canadian business and culture.

Dashan is the host and lead character, travelling across Canada with his two friends from China. The three visit a Canadian home and tour a Canadian business. They go to a shopping mall, visit a doctor and watch a kid's hockey game. The program is educational and entertaining.

Each episode also contains a short vignette that provides more detailed information about Canadian business and industry, tourism and culture. 13 episodes of "Dashan & Friends" were produced in 1997 and began broadcast in December of that year.

CCTV's official ratings estimated the weekly audience at approximately 20 million viewers. In 1998 "Dashan & Friends" was awarded Second Prize in the educational program category of the National Radio, TV and News Awards by the Ministry of Radio, Film and Television. "Dashan & Friends" is now available on video cassette, VCD, and CD ROM published by the Foreign Language Teaching & Research Press, the premier publisher of foreign language educational material in China. A textbook and a set of 4 audio cassette tapes to accompany "Dashan & Friends" were also produced. All of this material is currently being sold in bookstores across China.