Chinese Beginners 1

Course Times & Enrolment

This course is currently unavailable.

Course Summary

PLEASE NOTE: When online enrolment is closed, you can still book this course directly via the Confucius Institute for Scotland.

Website: http://www.confuciusinstitute.ac.uk/

Tel: +44 (0) 131 662 2180

Email: info@confuciusinstitute.ac.uk

This course for complete beginners of Chinese, is an introduction to the Chinese pronunciation and writing systems. Basic listening and speaking skills are emphasized along with thethe study of pinyin, the official romanisation system for Standard Chinese (普通话, Pŭtōnghuà, literally ‘common speech’) in mainland China

By the end of the course, students will be able to understand and take part in simple conversations in Chinese. Students are also encouraged to recognise and write Chinese characters. Only simplified characters (not full-form traditional characters) are used for the course. Teachers on this course will be more than happy to provide additional assistance if students wish to do so.

Course Details

Content of Course

Pinyin – the official romanisation system for Standard Chinese in mainland China;
Vocabulary and expressions regarding speaking about one’s name, nationality, language skills and family;
Expressions regarding stating one’s wishes;
A brief introduction to Chinese writing system;
Numbers;
Typing Chinese characters

Teaching method(s)

The course is tutorial based with a combination of joint class activities and group work. Supplementary material is prepared by the teacher. To benefit fully from the course and to achieve the learning outcomes, students are strongly encouraged to spend at least 1-2 hours revising each class.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, students will:

Have a basic knowledge of Chinese language;
Be able to use basic grammatical and sentence structures to introduce oneself and to engage in simple conversations;
Have basic knowledge of Chinese names, some traditional custom and family structures;
Type Chinese characters and simple sentences

Sources

Core Readings

Contemporary Chinese for Beginners (to complete Lessons 0-3)

http://www.epay.ed.ac.uk/product-catalogue/college-of-humanities-and-social-science/school-of-literatures-languages-and-cultures/confucius-institute-for-scotland/contemporary-chinese-for-beginners

Contemporary Chinese for Beginners MP3 Audio

https://www.epay.ed.ac.uk/product-catalogue/college-of-humanities-and-social-science/school-of-literatures-languages-and-cultures/confucius-institute-for-scotland/contemporary-chinese-for-beginners-mp3-audio

Please note that course materials are not included in the course fee.

Queries

If you have questions regarding the course or enrolment, please contact COL Reception at Paterson's Land by email COL@ed.ac.uk or by phone 0131 650 4400.

Student support

If you have a disability, learning difficulty or health condition which may affect your studies, please let us know by ticking the 'specific support needs' box on your course application form. This will allow us to make appropriate adjustments in advance and in accordance with your rights under the Equality Act 2010. For more information please visit the Student Support section of our website.