Joël Bellassen

In 2006 he was made the first Inspector General in the field of Chinese Language Teaching at the French Ministry of National Education. His reference book in the field of Chinese teaching, Méthode d'initiation à la langue et à l'écriture chinoises (1989, .mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:linear-gradient(transparent,transparent),url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:linear-gradient(transparent,transparent),url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:linear-gradient(transparent,transparent),url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:linear-gradient(transparent,transparent),url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:#d33}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:#d33}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#3a3;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}ISBN 2-9504135-1-X, with the collaboration of Zhang Pengpeng，张朋朋), became one of the main textbooks used to teach Chinese in French secondary schools and which mirrors the international approach of the "zi benwei" (字本位 Character-based constructional approach to Chinese). Several of his texts on teaching have been translated into English. He is one of the vice-presidents of the International Chinese Language Teachers Association.

Bellassen taught at the École alsacienne in Paris, following by teaching posts at Université Paris VII and then at INALCO. In 2003, Bellassen received the Chinese Language and Culture prize from the Chinese Ministry of Education.

A graduate in Philosophy and Chinese at the Université Paris VIII - Vincennes, he departed for China in 1973, where he studied Philosophy and Chinese at the Beijing Languages Institute and Peking University from 1973 to 1975. Upon his return to France, he set about building the discipline of the teaching of Chinese language. He is particularly known for his pedagogical innovation of the 1980s when he conceived methods to teach Chinese language in primary education which included colour-coding Chinese characters to assist memorising of the four tones in Standard Mandarin (first tone: blue; second tone: yellow; third tone: black; fourth tone: red).

Joël "Marc" Bellassen or Bel Lassen (French: [ʒɔɛl belasɛn]; simplified Chinese: 白乐桑; traditional Chinese: 白樂桑; pinyin: Bái Lèsāng; born 27 May 1950 in Sidi-bel-Abbès, French Algeria) is a former professor (Professeur des universités) of Chinese at Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales and the first Inspector General in the field of Chinese Language Teaching at the Ministry of Education (France). He has been well known in his field in France since he co-wrote the book Méthode d'Initiation à la Langue et à l'Écriture chinoises, which became one of the main textbooks used to teach Chinese in French secondary schools. He is now the President of the European Association for Chinese Teaching.