Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description


CODE CHN1016

 
TITLE Chinese Language 1

 
UM LEVEL 01 - Year 1 in Modular Undergraduate Course

 
MQF LEVEL 5

 
ECTS CREDITS 6

 
DEPARTMENT Middle Eastern and Asian Languages and Cultures

 
DESCRIPTION This study-unit is suitable for people who have no prior knowledge of the Chinese language. It is designed for beginners to develop and reinforce language skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing as it relates to everyday life situations. Pinyin as a pronunciation tool will be taught during the class.

The Chinese sentence structure, grammar and commonly used Chinese Characters (the simplified Chinese characters) will be introduced in the course of this unit. Essential vocabulary and conversations frequently encountered in everyday life will also be provided through typical everyday scenarios. Learners will also acquire essential skills in using Chinese and be ready to go on to the next level.

Study-Unit Aims:

- To familiarise students with the Chinese phonetic system (initials, finals and tones) with satisfactory pronunciation;
- To provide students with the practical knowledge and skills to recognise and reproduce a number of Chinese character;
- To introduce basic Chinese grammar and sentence structures;
- To enable students to understand modern Chinese related to topics of everyday life;
- To provide students with the essential skills to read and comprehend very short passages in elementary Chinese.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Knowledge & Understanding
By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

- Master Pinyin, the Chinese phonetic system;
- Recognize and write up to 200 Chinese characters;
- Develop a vocabulary of about 200 words and frequently used phrases;
- Master the basic Chinese grammar and sentence structures;
- Understand simple Chinese etiquette and customs related to the course content.

2. Skills
By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

- Make a close reading of texts;
- Develop a greater attention to detail;
- Learn to dialogue better;
- Appreciate better other cultures.

Main Text/s and any supplementary readings:

Main Text:

- Liu, Xun. A New Practical Chinese Reader Vol. 1 (textbook & workbook). Beijing: Beijing Language and Culture University Press, 2010.

 
STUDY-UNIT TYPE Lecture

 
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Assessment Component/s Sept. Asst Session Weighting
Assignment No 40%
Examination (2 Hours) Yes 60%

 
LECTURER/S Sun Yi

 

 
The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.
Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice.
It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years.

https://www.um.edu.mt/course/studyunit