Description

This major aims at developing students' ability in speaking, listening, reading and writing Modern Standard Chinese (Mandarin). Mandarin is the official language of China and one of the world’s major languages. As Australia’s future is increasingly tied to the rise of China as a world power, the importance of Mandarin will continue to grow. Knowledge of Mandarin not only provides a means of understanding Chinese society and culture but it is also a skill valued in a wide range of professions, both in Australia and internationally. This major is also designed for heritage students of Chinese (background learners). For heritage learners, relevant language courses recognized in the major include advanced-level translation and readings courses (in Mandarin); Cantonese; and Classical Chinese.

Students in this major are encouraged to spend time studying at a tertiary institution in the PRC or ROC through a year of study in the flagship Year in Asia program. Competitive scholarships are available to qualified students.

A student may not take a course if that course is a prerequisite for another course which they have already passed.

Students with prior knowledge of the language will be required to take a placement test and may be exempted from the compulsory course.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the Chinese language major students should be able to:

1. express themselves confidently in a polite or informal register, appropriate to the genre and the audience.
2. read, comprehend and infer authors’ meaning in newspapers, magazines, and literary texts in Chinese.
3. engage with authentic media such as television news broadcasts, movies, short stories and novels by summarizing, analysing, evaluating and criticizing their content.
4. write texts in Chinese in the appropriate genre, with correct grammatical structures and thematic vocabulary relevant to the level of the student
5. Write, perform and record presentations or interviews in Chinese either individually or in cooperative groups, and answer questions based on those performances or interviews

Course Lists

The course lists in the "Requirements" section below is a definitive list and includes all courses that can be counted towards the major, whether or not they are offered in the current year. For a list of courses that will be offered in the current year, please see the Summary of Courses page.