Mandarin ab initio

Guide to the IB subject

Mandarin ab initio is a language acquisition course for students having little or no experience with Chinese languages. Learning a language is more than simply acquiring vocabulary and understanding some grammatical rules. It enables learners to interact in a new cultural context and function in a society different from their own. The Mandarin ab initio course develops students' functional literacy in the language as well as their appreciation for cultural diversity in general and for the cultural riches in Chinese-speaking communities in particular.

The language ab initio course aims to develop the receptive, productive and interactive skills to a high level of communicative competence. While providing a solid framework in terms of grammar and vocabulary, the Mandarin ab initio course is organised into a number of cultural and thematic topics related to three themes: individual and society, leisure and work, urban and rural environment in which grammatical structures and vocabulary can be practised. The topics provide the students with opportunities to practise and explore the language as well as to develop intercultural understanding. Through the development of receptive, productive and interactive skills, students are enabled to communicate and interact appropriately in a defined range of everyday situations.

Adapted from the IB Language ab initio Guide © International Baccalaureate Organization

The course:

• Focuses on developing critical character writing skills early and often. This is done using character sheets to develop correct stroke order. Work will be evaluated by a teacher.
• Utilises a number of technical and social solutions to maximise communicative speaking opportunities.
• Encourages students to be actively productive in their use of Mandarin.
• Utilises professionally recorded native speakers of Mandarin Chinese. The audio recordings are also available as a web-based resource, and for download, for continuing drill and practice.
• Provides students with opportunities for further understanding of both language and culture using authentic and contextual video.