Our goal is to make language come alive so that students can apply it readily as they negotiate their ways around Shanghai.  During the four–week period we focus on building a solid foundation in pronunciation and grammar, and in speaking and listening skills applicable to a broad range of daily activities and substantive conversations.

Students will take one and a half hours of Mandarin daily in small, ability–based groups, except for free days and excursions.  We emphasize on small group teaching: each instructor will work closely with two to four students to address individual learning needs (e.g. tones, vocabulary, or sentence construction) and content preferences (e.g. Chinese SAT II).  To help students recognize and overcome pronunciation problems, our instructors use digital recorders and multi–sensory teaching methods in class, and make available audio clips that students can listen to on ipods during free time.

For complete beginners, our curriculum, which is based on a range of practical, conversational scenarios that closely connect with the students’ experiences in China, will focus on phonetics as well as 200–300 vocabularies.  Those who are considering taking up Mandarin as a regular subject will find this an excellent opportunity to confirm their interest.

Intermediate and advanced learners will work on more sophisticated scenario–based conversations, as well as excerpts from literary works (e.g. poetry, proverbs, lyrics, Dao De Jing, newspapers) that speak to each student’s particular interest.  Apart from improving vocabulary, confidence, and the capacity to communicate, we put attention on the development of reading skills, which is most important to a student’s capacity to continue to learn Chinese over time.

Outside Mandarin classes, students are constantly encouraged to practice Mandarin with locals and teaching assistants during free time, as well as city trips and excursions.