China is the second largest economy in the world and one of the trading partners of the United States. As the official language of China, Mandarin is spoken by over 917 million people in China and in Chinese communities overseas. The U.S Department of State has listed Mandarin as one of the languages critical to U.S. national security and economic prosperity.
Students wishing to deepen their skills in Mandarin can major in Liberal Arts, take as many courses as possible in this language, and transfer to Hunter College, where they can pursue a BA in Chinese. Our courses are fully articulated with the program in Chinese at Hunter College. Other opportunities for exposure to Chinese cultures include the Chinese club, the study abroad summer program in China, and external scholarship programs, including the Critical Languages Scholarship Program offered by the U.S. Department of State.
- This course is for students who have no previous background in Modern Chinese (Mandarin). The pronunciation is that of Peking. Skills in comprehension, reading, and writing are developed, but emphasis is on speaking.
- This is the continuation of the study of Chinese, developing and strengthening skills in comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing. The pronunciation taught is that of Peking. Emphasis is on speaking. Prerequisite: CHI 101 or departmental approval.
- This course is for students who have had no previous background in Mandarin Chinese. Grammar is taught inductively and simple texts are read. Speaking, reading, and writing are emphasized.
Prerequisite: Departmental Placement - Students will continue the study of basic Chinese grammar begun in CHI 105. They will also further their skills in listening comprehension, reading and writing in Chinese.
Prerequisite: CHI 105 or Departmental Placement - This course is designed for heritage students of Chinese who have some listening and speaking skills in Mandarin or other Chinese dialects. The focus is on reading, writing, and grammar, along with improvement of oral communication skills. Students will be introduced to the Romanized writing system (pinyin). Characters writing and recognition are emphasized. Students who have taken CHI 105 and/or CHI 106 will not receive credit for this course.
Prerequisite: Departmental Approval - This course includes a review of grammar plus the study of Chinese civilization and selected readings in Chinese literature. Self-expression through oral and written reports is emphasized.
Prerequisite: CHI 106 or CHI 107 or departmental approval - This course involves intensive oral work consisting of discussions of Chinese popular culture. Drills in pronunciation, intonation and rhythm as well as several oral presentations are included throughout the course. Videos will be screened during lab time and discussed during class sessions. A wide variety of topics ranging from pop culture to major social and political issues will be discussed.
Prerequisite: CHI 200 or departmental approval - This is an intensive writing and reading course in Chinese language. While developing integrated language skills, it emphasizes writing and critical analysis of content materials. The texts concentrate on Chinese contemporary and classical literary writings, as well as texts treating Chinese culture and history.
Prerequisite: CHI 200 or departmental approval - This course will introduce representative Chinese films during the 20th century. This course will examine the social and cultural impact of films from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan over six basic periods: before the 1930s, 1930-40s, 1949-1966, 1966-1976, 1976-90s, 21st century. Students will develop academic competence in critical thinking and literary appreciation from historical and cultural perspectives. Readings, written work and oral reports will be in Chinese. Prerequisite: CHI 210 and/or departmental approval
- A study of 20th century Chinese literary development, this course examines the literary writings, major authors and literary movements in cultural and historical contexts. The course also reviews the development of China's ethnic minority literature, the growth of popular literature, and the evolution of regional literature. Course readings include selected writings from four historical periods: 1900-16, 1917-49, 1949-85 and 1986-2000. Written projects and oral reports are required. Prerequisite: CHI 210 or departmental approval or any other 400-level Chinese course, except CHI 476
- This is a study abroad course that further develops students’ Chinese language skills and expands their knowledge of Chinese culture and social development. The course is offered as the major part of the Study-Abroad-in-China Program, which includes a combination of class meetings, seminars and field trips to places of historic interest and cultural importance. The course provides opportunities for students to gain first-hand experience about contemporary Chinese cultural life. While participating in skill-based language learning activities that improve students’ competence in listening, speaking, reading and writing, the course gives students opportunities to attend lectures that provide information about Chinese cultural patterns, customs, literature, history, social development and traditions of art and music. The course adopts a unique transcultural-linguistic approach to instruction that efficiently facilitates and enhances the learning of Chinese language and culture.
Prerequisite: CHI 106 or above or departmental approval
