Mandarin ab initio

Syllabus, prerequisites and materials

IB language ab initio courses are designed to integrate three main areas: language, texts and themes. These are interconnected and studied concurrently; they have intercultural understanding at their centre.

The language component of the course is designed so that receptive, productive and interactive skills may be developed in an integrated way. To that end, Mandarin ab initio students may be involved in many different forms of communication and a wide variety of texts, such as newspaper, telephone conversations, class discussions about a written text, informal conversations, conferences, drama, and e-mails. Furthermore, students are expected to develop accuracy and fluency in expression, and control over vocabulary, register, grammar, pronunciation and intonation.

The syllabus features three themes: individual and society, leisure and work, urban and rural environment subdivided into twenty topics that develop students' language competency and knowledge of different text types in a range of real situations. A range of texts are accessed in the course. Language skills are not developed in isolation but rather through the use of a wide range of contemporary materials such as advertisements, newspaper and magazine articles, catalogues, forms, instructions, and much more. Teachers and students collaborate to choose texts that address the students' needs and interests.

Intercultural understanding is at the centre of the course design. Students are expected to become familiar with aspects of the everyday life and culture of the world of the Mandarin language through the texts they study. The study of particular features of the culture is not an end in itself but a means by which the students learn about a different way of life, and consequently develop their language skills.

Prerequisites

No prior study of Chinese is expected. The language ab initio courses are language learning courses for beginners, designed to be followed over two years by students who have no previous experience of learning the target language.

Materials

There is no standard textbook for this course. The IB language ab initio subject guide asserts that language should be developed through the study of contemporary materials and primary resources that reflect the culture concerned. Relevant course materials will be made available online by teachers and course designers.

Hardware and software requirements

• Computer - (Windows or Mac PC)
• Browser - (Google Chrome recommended) with Flash player installed, and JavaScript enabled.
• Latest version of Java installed to support Virtual World and Elluminate activities.
• Headphones with microphone - For listening to audio and video and recording audio for review by classmates and teachers.
• Access to a printer and scanner - to print course worksheets and scan character writing sheets for submission to a teacher.
• Webcam or digital camera - (with video recording capability recommended) to photograph finished character writing exercise sheets and to video character writing for teacher review.
• Access to YouTube/Hanlexon.com/nciku.com
• For Windows PC users, Microsoft Pinyin IME is required to be installed to enable Chinese character input. Mac users can add Chinese via system preferences.

Please note that there is no need for a physical Chinese keyboard to study this course. Character input is done using freely-available software on Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X.

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