Today, in the context of globalization, language promotion and cultural dissemination, interpenetration and integration have turned out to be an irresistible development trend. President Xi Jinping pointed out, “Telling China’s story well, spreading China’s voice well, and presenting a true, three-dimensional and comprehensive China to the world is an important task in strengthening the international communication capacity of the country.” As a major channel for spreading Chinese culture, International Education of Chinese Language is duty-bound to well tell Chinese story while teaching Chinese language. Given this, during the Chinese language teaching under the BUCT-UNIGE Dual Degree Program in the autumn semester of 2021, teachers of BUCT carried out a series of special cultural activities to let students know more about China.
Chinese Language, a Bridge to the World
Language and culture are inseparable. Chinese language teaching is not only to spread language, but also to connect China with the world. In order to make online teaching more effective and more interesting, the BUCT-UNIGE Dual Degree Program on Chinese Language and Culture turned to a team-teaching model that combines “lectures and practices”. Teachers for lectures used a flipped classroom approach to teach students about the phonetics, vocabulary and grammar of Chinese. Teachers for practices organized various forms of online interaction to help students conduct corresponding practices so as to enhance their understanding and application of the Chinese language. Such a lecture-practice combined teaching model has proved to be very effective and very popular with the students.
Interesting Chinese Language Class
Showcasing the Essence of Chinese Culture and Spreading the Voice of China
To let students better understand Chinese culture, especially the Chinese spirit and wisdom, the Center for Chinese Language International Education has specially opened the course An Introduction to Chinese Culture for Italian students of the dual degree program. The course content is very informative and interesting. It not only contains serious topics such as the Chinese history and the continuity and innovation of traditional Chinese thoughts, but also includes those interesting ones, such as Chinese food, marriage customs, etc.
A presentation is given on cultural comparisons between Italy and China
Experiencing the Charm of Chinese Culture
To fully motivate students to learn Chinese culture, the Center for Chinese Language International Education carried out a variety of online activities for the BUCT-UNIGE Dual Degree Program. For instance, Prof. Wu Dong, a doctoral supervisor from Beijing Sport University and a renowned teacher in Beijing, was invited to give lectures on Changquan (or Long Fist) and Tai Chi Quan to help students know more about the spirit and thoughts embodied in the Chinese martial arts. Moreover, Prof. Wu also guided students to further appreciate the unique characteristics of Chinese boxing from practical exercises and to feel the positive effects of Chinese martial arts on the physical and mental health of our human body. In addition, Chinese paper-cutting cultural experience activities were also held online. Chinese paper-cutting has become a representative cultural symbol of China with its unique skills and visual images. During the paper-cutting experience, the teacher led students to complete the cutting of a three-dimensional Chinese character “春” (or spring) and paper-cutting for window decoration and talked about the customs of Spring Festival, making students better understand the meanings and uses of paper-cutting for window decoration and the three-dimensional “春”. This activity gave students a better understanding of the Chinese culture and aesthetic taste embodied in paper cutting. BUCT held the first Chinese Language Competition. Students were very active in participating in the event and showed their talents, such as calligraphy, logo design and cooking, with very good results. Among the 14 contestants, two won the “Award for Chinese Talents”; one got the “Award for Chinese Language Proficiency”; and two secured the “Best Online Popularity Award”.
Students experience Chinese boxing online
Students experience Chinese paper-cutting art online
Students' entries
Building a Platform for Language Practice
Online teaching lacks real language practice. To increase the opportunities for students to use Chinese and build a platform for both Chinese and foreign students to communicate with each other and improve their language skills, the Center for Chinese Language International Education organized an online gathering every Friday evening, during which, more than 10 Chinese students studying Italian at BUCT got together with their counterparts in Italy to talk about and discuss some topics of common interest under the guidance of Chinese teachers. This move absolutely helped to improve the language skills of both sides and at the same time, it enhanced their mutual understanding and friendship.
At the language practice class for both Chinese and Italian students
Language is a carrier of culture and its promotion is closely linked to the spread of culture. In the future, we’ll make continuous efforts in well integrating the promotion of Chinese language with the dissemination of Chinese culture. We look forward to increasing the interest of international students in learning Chinese and enhancing their understanding of Chinese culture so that the world can better understand China.
