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Foreign Languages Centre, Unit Catalogue 2008/09


FL10231 Mandarin Chinese stage 1 semester 2 (3 credits)

Credits: 3
Level: Certificate
Semester: 2
Assessment: CW 100%
Requisites:
Aims: The course aims to consolidate language already acquired, for example in Stage 1 Semester 1, and to extend students' active and passive vocabulary, improve fluency, pronunciation, accuracy and comprehension skills. The course aims to revise and extend high frequency language of personal relevance and to introduce students to informal and formal styles. The course aims to increase students' awareness of cultural information and social conventions in countries where the target language is spoken
Learning Outcomes:
On completion of the course, students will be able to
* Participate in an everyday conversation with one sympathetic native speaker.
* Ask for clarification, talk about routine activities in the past and express plans for the future.
* Express likes and dislikes.
* Catch main points in short, clear messages and announcements.
* Find specific, predictable information in everyday material using Pinyin and a limited number of Chinese characters.
* Write messages and short texts, e.g. letters, using Pinyin.
Skills:
Speaking, Reading, Listening and Writing in the target language - all assessed
Interpersonal skills, communication, team skills - facilitated
IT skills - facilitated
Intercultural skills - facilitated and taught
Autonomous learning - facilitated
Research and organisational skills - facilitated
Cognitive - taught.
Content:
The unit builds on the basic elements of the target language previously studied, for example in Stage 1, Semester 1, through the four core skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing. It increases the role play framework of typical scenarios. It follows a graded programme of study expanding the vocabulary base and linguistic functions. Language structures introduced in Semester 1 will be revised and consolidated and new structures introduced, including the most common structures and phrases for talking about the past and future. Students will be required to demonstrate the assimilation of new vocabulary and structures by writing short passages in Pinyin.