George
Mason University
Department of Modern & Classical Languages
Fall 2007
Course: CHINESE 110 Elementary
Chinese - Section 003
When:
T.R. 7:20 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Where:
E122
Instructor: Qin Xu
Office Location: Thompson Hall 234-A
Office Hours: by appointment
E-mail: qxu5@gmu.edu
Course Website:
http://mason.gmu.edu/~kzhang
Course Description
This course is
designed for students with no prior knowledge of Chinese. CHAPTER 1 – CHAPTER
10 of the main textbook are covered. The course focuses on developing basic four skills in language and culture necessary to
communicate orally and in writing with native mandarin Chinese speakers.
It includes practice in writing Chinese characters using essential vocabulary
and elementary grammar for oral and written communication, exploring aspects of
Chinese culture and society, and comparing between
the Chinese language and culture and those of the students. In addition,
authentic text or audiovisual materials are used to
enhance development of communicative competence.
Course Materials
1. Integrated Chinese Level I, Part I (2nd edition) :
textbook, workbook, character
workbook.
2. Audio CDs or tapes for Integrated Chinese Level I, Part I (2nd
edition).
Course
Objectives
Language Objectives
ØBe able to read and write pinyin form premier Chinese
and to recognize 350 characters.
ØBe able to understand and use words and expressions
introduced in Chapters 1 to 10.
ØBe able to understand and use basic sentence
structures introduced in Chapters 1 to 10.
Communication Objectives
ØBe able to communicate in writing and speaking in a
culturally appropriate manner.
ØBe able to understand authentic texts or audiovisual
materials presented in class.
Culture Objectives
ØUnderstand and appreciate different aspects of Chinese
culture such as manners and daily life of Chinese people.
Course Requirements
As students, your strong
commitment, hard work, and consistent cooperation will be the key to the
success of this course; otherwise, it not only hurts your own individual
progress, but can also negatively affect the morale and progress of the entire
class. In order to ensure your learning experience enjoyable and fruitful, it
is highly important and imperative that you should meet the requirements and
follow the rules outlined below.
1. Attendance. Attendance of
class sessions is crucial. Students should keep in mind that part of their
grade is based on attendance and that absences count against them regardless of
the reasons. There will be no penalty for the first two missed classes. After
that, however, each absence will reduce the final grade by one percentage
point. (That is, twelve absences over the course of the semester will result in
a ten percentage point subtraction from the final grade, so even perfect scores
on all tests and homework assignments will result in a "B").
2. Preparation & In-Class
Performance. Students are required to preview and review the materials
covered in each session. A detailed session-by-session schedule is provided for
this purpose. Besides, they are also
expected to participate in all class activities. Students' in-class
participation and performance will be graded on a 15-point scale for each
session. Absence, of course, scores a zero. Pagers and cell must be turned off
before the beginning of class.
3. Quizzes and Tests. At
the beginning of each session, there will be a quiz on a ten-point scale on
speaking, listening, vocabulary and character recognition. After each lesson, A
test on a 100-point scale will be given. There
will be no make-up quizzes or tests. Students are allowed to drop three quiz grades and two test grades (including zero for a missed quiz or test).
4. Homework Assignments. Homework
will be due on the due day. We’ll do the listening and speaking exercises in the
workbook together in class. Students are responsible for sections of the
reading comprehension, grammar and usage, and translation for which help is
available from the course website (http://mason.gmu.edu/~kzhang/homeworkanswers.html).
The last section of essay writing listed in the workbook is optional and just
for extra credits. Late homework will be corrected, but penalized 50% of the
possible score.
5. Oral Presentation and Oral Test. There
will be two different kinds of oral exams given at the end of the
semester. One is a 5 min oral presentation for which each student will be
required to give in front of the class on a topic of his or her choice.
Students should try to incorporate as much of the studied material/
grammar/vocabulary as possible, be creative in devising the form and content of
their presentations. For example, the presentation can be a role-play, the
telling of a story, the description of a picture or scene related to the
lessons covered during the semester. The other is an oral proficiency test. You
will be asked to come to your instructor’s office to conduct a conversation
with her/him in Chinese for around fifteen minutes on the topics we have
covered in class. Also, you will read a text of your choice in the character
form for your instructor, who will then assign you randomly another text for
you to read. Also, the instructor will then check your character workbook and
all the chapter homework corrected and returned to you during the semester.
6. Mid-term Exam and Final Exam. There will be a written
mid-term and a final exam. 40% of the midterm exam will cover Lessons 1 to 4,
and 60% of the midterm exam will cover L5. 40% of the final exam will cover
Lessons 6 to 9., and 60% of the final exam will cover L10. The comprehensive
exams will test each student’s listening, reading, and writing skills, and
knowledge of grammar and cultural aspects. More details will be given in class.
7. Honor Code. The George Mason
University Honor Code is in effect throughout the entire duration of the course
and applies to all course work carried out inside and outside the classroom. It
is the responsibility of each student to be familiar with the GMU Honor System
and Code as laid out in the Student Handbook. Please refer to http://www.gmu.edu/mlstudents/handbook/honor.html
for detailed information.
8. Policy on Disabilities. Students
with disabilities who seek accommodations in a course must be registered with
the GMU Disability Resource Center (DRC) and inform the instructor, in writing,
at the beginning of the semester. Please see www.gmu.edu/student/drc or call
703-993-2474 to access the DRC.
________________________________________________________________
Grading Policy
Final grade is composed as follows:
In-class performance 15 %
Homework
15 %
Quizzes
10 %
Lesson tests 20%
Oral presentation 10 %
Oral test 10%
Mid-term exam 10%
Final exam
10 %
Grading Scale
A+ 100-97
A
96-93
A- 92-90
B+ 89-87
B 86-83
B- 82-80
C+ 79-77
C 76-73
C- 72-70
D 69-60
F
59-0
________________________________________________________________
Session-by-Session
Schedule
|
Date |
Class |
Homework |
|
Week 1 August 28 |
|
|
|
Thursday August 30 |
Pinyin Initials |
|
|
Week 2 |
Hanyu
Pinyin Test L 1 Dialogue 1 |
|
|
Thursday September 6 |
L
1 Dialogue 2 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
|
|
Week 3 |
L1 Test L 2 Dialogue 1 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
L1 Homework Due |
|
Thursday September 13 |
L 2 Dialogue 2 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
|
|
Week 4 |
L2
Test L3 Dialogue 1 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
L2 Homework Due |
|
Thursday September 20 |
L3 Dialogue 2 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
|
|
Week 5 September 25 |
L3
Test L4 Dialogue 1 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
L3 Homework Due |
|
Thursday September 27 |
L4 Dialogue 2 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
|
|
Week 6 October 2 |
L4
Test L5 Dialogue 1 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
L4 Homework Due |
|
Thursday October 4 |
L5 Dialogue 2 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
|
|
Week 7 October 9 |
Tuesday Classes Do not Meet this Week |
|
|
Thursday October 11 |
Mid-term
Exam |
L5 Homework Due |
|
Week 8 October 16 |
L 6 Dialogue 1 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
|
|
Thursday October 18 |
L 6 Dialogue 2 |
|
|
Week 9 October 23 |
L6
Test L 7 Dialogue 1 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
L6 Homework Due |
|
Thursday October 25 |
L 7 Dialogue 2 |
|
|
Week 10 October 30 |
L7
Test L 8 Dialogue 1 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
L7 Homework Due |
|
Thursday November 1 |
L 8 Dialogue 2 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
|
|
Week 11 November 6 |
L8
Test L 9 Dialogue 1 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
L8 Homework Due |
|
Thursday November 8 |
L 9 Dialogue 2 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
|
|
Week 12 November 13 |
L9
Test L 10 Dialogue 1 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
L9 Homework Due |
|
Thursday November 15 |
L 10 Dialogue 2 Pattern Drills and WB Exercises |
|
|
Week 13 November 20 |
Preparation for the oral presentation |
L10 Homework Due |
|
Thursday November 22 |
Happy Thanksgiving ! (No Class) |
|
|
Week 14 November 27 |
Oral
Presentation Course Evaluations Sign up for Oral
Test |
|
|
Thursday November 29 |
Oral
Test Individual meeting with the instructor as
scheduled |
|
|
Week 15 December 4 |
Oral
Test(continued) Individual meeting with the instructor as scheduled |
|
|
Thursday December 6 |
General Review |
|
|
Tuesday December 11 |
FINAL
EXAM (in our classroom) |
|