In this course, you will be introduced to basic standard Chinese, Mandarin, spoken by over a billion people in mainland China, Taiwan, Singapore, and other parts of the world. You will learn to comprehend, speak, read, and write topics related to greeting, self-introduction, family, hobbies, dates and time, and visiting friends, etc. The course will also introduce you to some essential aspects of Chinese culture.

If you complete this course and do well, you will be able to:

• Understand short conversations and responses to your questions;
• Participate in simple conversations, such as talking about yourself, your family, your friends, and your hobbies, asking for dates/time, and narrating what you did at a party, etc;
• Recognize about 200 characters and their new combinations;
• Read short passages, simple forms, name cards, Chinese calendar and so on;
• Write autobiographical information, fill out simple forms, make invitation cards; leave notes and describe simple past activities ; and,
• Acquire a high level of cultural awareness and sensitivity.

Your final grade will be based on the following scale. Please note that you must also pass at least 4 of the quizzes (from quizzes 2-6) and 1 exam in order to pass the course, regardless of your scores on the other assignments.

There are 2 exams in this course.

Last Updated: January 7, 2012