- In-Person, Online
- $445
This course can be applied to the UBC Award of Achievement in Chinese or taken as a standalone course.
At this level, you should be able to understand most common and non-technical speech in Mandarin and be able to hold a conversation on a variety of topics, but still need improvement in more complex grammatical structures and complex sentence formation. A complete understanding of what is being communicated in the target language is essential to participate at this level. The needs of the students will determine specific topics in the class. Discussion topics include political, social and cultural topics relevant to the countries where the target language is spoken. You will improve your grammar and vocabulary through interesting conversational exercises such as debates, presentations, cultural discussions and small group work using authentic materials.
Course Outline
This is not a prescriptive list. Exact course outlines will be determined by the instructor to best meet the needs of the class. It is meant to serve as a guideline and suggest what may be covered at this level.
Communicative Objectives:
How to:
- Describe one’s experience with learning Mandarin (review)
- Order Chinese food and hold conversations with friends or clients in a Chinese restaurant
- Converse comfortably with local people while travelling in China
- Talk about the weather
- Conduct conversations when seeing a doctor and talking about Chinese medicine
- Speak about Tai Ji and other Chinese exercises
- Describe your trip and experiences to your friends when saying Goodbye and leaving China
- Narrate a story or relate the plot of a book or film
- Read classic essays and Tang poems and discuss the contents
- Learn to sing Chinese songs
Linguistic Objectives:
- Conditional If rúguǒ 如果
- Although suīrán…dànshì 虽然…但是…
- Passive form bèi 被
- Common Chinese idioms 成语和谚语
Prerequisite:
- To register in this class you should be able to:
- Describe one’s daily routines
- Do shopping and bargaining
- Speak about transportation (taking bus, skytrain, ferry, train, airplane…)
- Make and respond to invitations
- Hold simple conversations when visiting a friend’s home and attending a birthday party
- Express personal views and opinions
- Order something to drink and eat
Expected Effort
You can expect to spend about three hours per week attending live, virtual classes and completing course work on your own time. Expect double this amount during the intensive summer term.
Textbook
This course does not require the purchase of a textbook. Course materials are provided by the instructor.
Course Format
This course is offered online and/or in-person. See Available Sessions for details on the course format.
Our online conversational courses offer a virtual classroom experience where you can see and interact with your teacher and classmates over Zoom. Log in at a set time to participate in individual, pair and group work, ask questions and receive feedback from your instructor.
Outside of class time, access course materials online at your own pace for up to three weeks after the course ends.
In-person classes are offered at UBC Robson Square in downtown Vancouver.
Learn more about online learning at Extended Learning.
How am I assessed?
This is a non-credit course without letter or numerical grades. You receive verbal feedback on your conversation and grammar skills from your instructor during class. Written homework is typically corrected in class. Some lesson modules may include quizzes.
Record of completion
A record of completion will be emailed to students who participate and satisfy the course requirements within two weeks of the course end date. Course completion means 80% attendance and/or 80% completion of mandatory assignments.
Technology requirements
For all languages classes, you’ll need access to the internet, a personal email account and an up-to-date web browser.
For online classes, you will also need a video camera and a microphone on your device.
The day before your course starts, you will receive an email with instructions on how to access the course.