BA Linguistics and Chinese / Course details

CHIN28551 is an additional language class for final year students in Chinese Studies Single and Joint Honours programmes who need extra support in order to reach the level of Chinese proficiency required for CHIN38661: Advanced Chinese 1, namely successful completion of the HSK level 5 exam. As such, this course is only open to students in their final year who have not passed HSK level 5. Running concurrently with CHIN38661, the course provides students with additional training in the requirements for the HSK 5 and provides supplementary materials and instruction designed to help students acquire the vocabulary and grammatical knowledge necessary to pass the final year of Chinese language instruction at undergraduate level.

Pre requisite: CHIN28222; Residence Abroad in China

Co requisite: CHIN38661

This course aims to:

• Ensure students are able to perform at a level equivalent to or above HSK 5
• Provide additional support and instruction for students struggling with the requirements of Advanced Chinese 1 in their final year
• Improve students’ confidence in dealing with unseen texts and unfamiliar Chinese vocabulary
• Provide further opportunities for students to improve their spoken and written Chinese, as well as their ability to comprehend written and audio-visual Chinese-language materials

By the end of this course students will be able to:

• Pass the HSK level 5 exam
• Approach unseen Chinese texts and audio-visual materials with a greater degree of confidence and accuracy
• Apply more efficient self-study strategies in their continued study of the Chinese language
• Converse more freely on a range of topics previously studied at levels 1 and 2, as well as during Residence Abroad in China

The precise topics to be covered in this course depend on the needs of individual students assigned to CHIN28551 each year; as such, the syllabus is flexible and will be adapted as necessary to students’ varying levels of vocabulary and grammatical understanding. Materials to be used in classroom instruction include HSK level 5 examination preparation materials and the New Practical Chinese Reader book 5. Sample topics include:

1. Environmental protection
2. Celebrity
3. Animals
4. Personal privacy in the age of the internet
5. Valentine’s Day

Two hours of small group language instruction per week

By the end of this course students will be able to:

• Possess the vocabulary and grammatical knowledge necessary for passing the HSK level 5 exam
• Understand a wider variety of topics related to contemporary Chinese society and culture
• Comprehend advanced-level written and audio-visual materials

By the end of this course students will be able to:

• Analyse difficult authentic texts by using the reading comprehension skills
• Explore various social issues in China
• Write a clear report using coherent paragraphs

By the end of this course students will be able to:

• Synthesise complex information from a wide range of different sources
• Make good use of various resources for communicative purposes
• Be familiar with social media for communicative purposes
• Demonstrate accomplished note-taking and summarising skills in Chinese

By the end of this course students will be able to:

• Demonstrate more effective independent learning skills
• Work effectively in pairs and groups
• Acquire advanced critical reading skills
• Develop high-level presentation skills
• Write clearly and effectively

Written examination - 2 hours - 40 %

Class participation and coursework - weekly - 30%

Oral exam - 15 minutes - 30%

• Oral feedback on class participation
• Written feedback on written coursework and oral exam
• Additional one-to-one feedback (during class, consultation hour, or by making an appointment)

Liu, Xun. A New Practical Chinese Reader (Textbook & Workbook), Book 5. Beijing: Beijing Language and Culture University Press, 2010 (set textbook).

Ma, Yanhua. Jump High: A Systematic Chinese Course (Intensive Reading and Workbook) Book 2. Beijing: Beijing Language and Culture University Press, 2011 (additional learning material)

Exceptions to word-processed assignments: Assessed coursework and the essay should be hand-written.