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Chinese 8 (CHIN20028)

Undergraduate level 2Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)

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Overview

Availability
Semester 2
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This subject is for students who have an intermediate level of Chinese language skills and minimal literacy skills. It aims to help students make the transition from beginning level textbook Chinese to a more advanced level where they can not only deal with original Chinese materials intended for native-speakers of the Chinese language, but also learn how to effectively analyse various socio-cultural issues related to present-day China.

Students will develop their ability to communicate in Chinese at an advanced level and their analytical skills of the Chinese language by engaging with a range of social-cultural topics associated with contemporary Chinese society and culture. Student expertise in the utilisation of both linguistic and cultural resources will be further developed through reading Chinese texts addressing each of socio-cultural situations, writing and presenting opinion pieces on current socio-cultural or socio-political issues in Chinese, conducting newspaper reading comprehension tasks, and participating group discussions. The study of Chinese texts will be supported by brief English passages, video, audio and additional reading materials introducing the cultural topics.

Intended learning outcomes

On completion of this subject, students should be able to:

  • Improve their skills in the comprehension of written Chinese
  • Read independently, comprehend authentic written and audio-visual media in various styles, extract information from materials, and analyse that information in both writing and speaking
  • Be familiar with key socio-cultural themes that inform the construction of Chinese society at both local and national levels
  • Acquire skills to extract information from complex specialised materials written in Chinese, and render those accurately into English
  • Expand their experience of Chinese writing styles, and further develop their skills in translation at an advanced level
  • Discuss social and cultural issues relevant to contemporary China, and express their views on a range of issues, affiliated with key cultural situations, in both writing and speaking.

Generic skills

Students who successfully complete this subject should be able to:

  • Acquire public speaking skills through tutorial and seminar discussion and class presentations
  • Apply their Chinese language skills and socio-cultural understanding to issues of public debate
  • Further develop analytical skills in cross-cultural interaction through active and purposeful communication gained in the course
  • Engage in critical debate over a range of socio-cultural and socio-political issues relevant to present-day China
  • Conduct independent research and analysis over a range of issues concerning China, and articulate their opinions in Chinese in writing and speaking
  • Further develop analytical skills in cross-cultural interaction through active and purposeful communication gained in the course.

Last updated: 20 November 2024