Chinese Teaching Minor

Statement of Purpose

The objectives of the Chinese teaching minor focus on developing language knowledge and skills to facilitate interaction in Chinese scoiety, developing an understanding of and appreciation for Chinese culture, fostering an understanding of issues in Chinese language pedagogy, and preparing students to be effective teachers of Chinese. The program seeks to foster self-managed learning skills for life-long learning. The knowledge and skills gained through the minor will enable students to interact with Chinese people regardless of their future plans.

The program accommodates native Chinese speakers, those with no previous experience with China, its culture and language, as well as other non-native Chinese speakers who have received previous instruction at other institutions and/or who have otherwise had prior exposure to the language and culture, including heritage learners. The minor is designed to help learners prepare to teach Chinese in secondary schools or as teaching assistants in a college or university setting, to develop sound thinking and effective communication skills, and to develop a sense of historical perspective and global awareness relative to China, Taiwan, and other Chinese speaking societies.

As part of the College of Humanities, the minor seeks to foster an understanding of and respect for the meaning and significance of life as a Chinese. The program also seeks to provide a spiritual foundation for Chinese studies in light of scriptural injunctions to gain "knowledge also of countries and of kingdoms" (Doctrine and Covenants 88:79) and to "study and learn, and become acquainted with all good books, and with languages, tongues, and people" (Doctrine and Covenants 90:15).

Learning Outcomes

1. Ability minimally to function at the Advanced level (ACTFL scale) in face to face interaction as well as other formal and informal contexts.
2. Ability to read minimally at the Intermediate high/Advanced level in a variety of written genres.
3. Ability to express oneself in and know the conventions of a variety of writing styles, including formal and informal correspondence, essays on general themes, express ideas and opinions in writing.
4. Be introduced to early classical forms of Chinese writing—common themes and literary styles.
5. Have a basic grasp of the grammatical patterns that form the basis of modern literary Chinese.
6. Have a basic knowledge of Chinese literary history
7. Be aware of the cultural context in which the language and literature gestated in the modern era
8. Have a broad understanding of Chinese cultural ideals and institutions.
9. Have a good understanding of methods and strategies for maintaining and extending their abilities in Chinese after graduation.
10. A basic understanding of issues in language acquisition and in Chinese language learning
11. Ability to evaluate pedagogical materials based on sound principles.
12. Ability to develop sound pedagogical materials.
13. Ability to evaluate effective teaching.
14. Ability to prepare an effective lesson plan.
15. Ability to teach Chinese effectively.