Duke University

Fall 2015
CHN131
LITERACY IN CHINESE
Session 1
(cap 18)

Tu, Th 10:05AM - 11:20AM 20

MW 11:45AM - 12:35 PM

Trent 038A
Fu, Wenwen
MW 1:25-2:15 PM

Classroom:
Allen 226

Trent 039

Ma, Wenjia

Ma, Wenjia
Session 2
(cap 18)

Tu, Th 1:25PM - 2:40 pm7

MW 3:05 PM-3:55 PM;

Trent 038B

Classroom:
Carr 135

Lin, Mingshan

Fu, Wenwen

Instructor: Ma, Wenjia

Mingshan
Office: B026FC
B027 FC
Telephone 660-4359
6960
E-mail:

Fu, Wenwen

Lin,

B027FC
613-6960

613-

Office hours:
Ma, Wenjia: Monday 2:30-3:30 pm, Wednesday 12:00-1:00 pm
Fu, Wenwen: Tuesday 11-12 am, Wednesday 1-2 pm
Lin, Mingshan: Monday 1-2 pm, Wednesday 1-2 pm

A. Course description and objectives:

CHN131 is designed for students who have been exposed to Chinese at home and can
communicate very basic things in Chinese but reading and writing skills in Chinese are
very limited. This course aims at helping students learn approximately 600
characters/phrases and basic grammatical structures. In addition, it helps students
understand Chinese culture as it is embodied in the language.
Finishing Chinese 131, students are expected to be able to follow conversations and
listening materials of normal speech pace, to carry out a variety of communicative tasks
with certain coherence and accuracy, to read linguistically appropriate materials and
reformulate stories /dialogues in their own words, and to express basic ideas in writing
with grammatically linked sentences and passages.

B. Teaching materials
Textbook
Oh, China! by Chih-p'ing Cho, Perry Link and Xuedong Wang,
ISBN9780691153087. Revised edtion
Relevant handouts
Chinese songs
Selected Chinese movies and TV clips
C. Recommended websites
Chinese pronunciation guide:
http://www.courses.fas.harvard.edu/~pinyin/
Pinyin pronunciation for Mandarin:
http://www.ctcfl.ox.ac.uk/Tables/b,p,m,f,d,t,n,l(2).htm
How to write Chinese characters:
http://www.usc.edu/dept/ealc/chinese/character/
Chinese dictionary http://www.zhongwen.com/
http://www.mdbg.net
http://www.yellowbridge.com/
http://www.nciku.com/
http://www.chineseetymology.org
http://www.sinosplice.com/
Chinese dictionary app: Pleco: https://www.pleco.com/

D. Teaching Requirement
Attendance at all sessions is required. If you must miss a class, please
notify the instructor in advance of the class. You are responsible for
material and assignments given during a missed session.
It is essential to prepare for each class in advance, to assure the most
beneficial and rewarding use of contact time with your teacher and
classmates. Hence, preview of new lessons before coming to the
lecture is required. In class, students are expected to have already
familiarized themselves with the new vocabulary, new grammatical
pattern and expressions, and to have listened to the tapes and read
the relevant text.
Learning activities include individual presentations, skits in groups,
projects in relevant cultural context, interviews with native speakers.
Students should follow the Duke Honor Code and act in accordance
with their pledge for the Academic Integrity.

E. Grading:

Your final grade will consist of :

Attendance &
performance----------------------------------------------------------------10%
Written assignments----------------------------------------------------------------------15%
Oral
presentation-----------------------------------------------------------------------------5%
Lesson tests
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------40%
Dictations & Pattern Quiz
----------------------------------------------------------------15%
Final
exam-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------10%
Final project
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------5%

Test
A dictation and a pattern quiz on vocabulary will be given before &
after each lesson, as well as a comprehensive review test after every
two lessons and the final exam.
Attendsance policy
Attendance and participation: Each absence with no justifiable reason
will result in deduction of 0.5% off your final grade. Students should
also come to class on time. Being late for three times will be counted
as one absence. Missing 3 classes will result in 0 points for class
attendance. Justifiable reasons for absence are: illness, family
emergency, religious holidays, and participation in authorized field
trips, conferences, job interviews, or athletic contests. Students are
obliged to inform the instructor of any of these circumstances at least
24 hours in advance. A make-up quiz or test has to be taken the day
after the illness notification is submitted, otherwise a 20% deduction of
your score will be applied. You may submit an online form as an
excuse of absence for illness, but we generally accept such
notifications up to three times per semester and official notices from
doctors or other parties concerned are required afterwards.

Individual Sessions
If you think you need practice your speaking, you can schedule a
fifteen-minute meeting with instructors to practice oral Chinese outside
of the classroom every other week.

F. Extracurricular activities :
Maximize your learning experience through extracurricular activities
such as (1) Chinese Language Table with students from Chinese Hall in
foreign language dorm (2) the Chinese Language Partner program and
Chinese Conversation Club in International House, (3) film, art
exhibitions and talks on topics related to China on campus are strongly
encouraged.
Meeting with a language partner on the week that you are not meeting
with the instructor for individual session is a great way to increase the
opportunity of using the Chinese language in a meaningful
conversation. You and your language partner can benefit from the
experience of exchanging language and viewpoints through discussing
the topics you learn in class. For the language partner signup sheet
and
details
on
the
I-House
events,
please
visit
http://studentaffairs.duke.edu/ihouse/ihouse-programs. The instructor
will give you the sign-up sheet for Chinese Table and inform you of the
special events on campus by email. A total bonus of 1% adding to
your final grade will be applied. More details will be announced in class
or posted on Sakai later.

G. Duke Community Standard

Duke University is a community dedicated to scholarship, leadership, and service and to
the principles of honesty, fairness, respect, and accountability. Citizens of this community
commit to reflect upon and uphold these principles in all academic and nonacademic
endeavors, and to protect and promote a culture of integrity.
To uphold the Duke Community Standard:
I will not lie, cheat, or steal in my academic endeavors;
I will conduct myself honorably in all my endeavors; and
I will act if the Standard is compromised.

H. Student Obligation to Act

In accordance with the Duke Community Standard, students should act if they witness
another student or professor partaking in unethical academic behavior. Appropriate
responses include, but are not limited to: approaching the individual(s) observed,
contacting the professor or teaching assistant about the event, and/or notifying other
faculty. For more information, visit: http://studentaffairs.duke.edu/conduct/aboutus/duke-community-standard

I. Policies on Collaboration
Presentations:
Group presentations should be created with equal input from all members of the group;
questions should be addressed to the professor or TAs and sources should be cited.
Papers:

Students can brainstorm preliminary ideas collaboratively, but the entire writing process
should be individual.
Group Projects:
All work on a project must be done together and discussed as a group.