Chinese (Mandarin)
A-level Chinese (Mandarin) Edexcel
Aims
The course will enable the students to
- develop an advanced level knowledge and understanding of the Chinese language.
- develop an advanced level knowledge of the culture of China and other Chinese-Speaking countries.
- develop practical and valuable language and transferable study skills.
Themes:
Theme 1 The changes of the modern Chinese speaking communities |
Theme 2 Chinese culture |
Family The structure of family and generation gap. Family plan and aging population. Education and job |
Traditions Festivals(Spring Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival and Qingming Festival) and customs Cultural activities File, TV programme, music and literature. |
Theme 3 The changes in Chinese society |
Theme 4 The impact of the Open and Reform policy to China in 1978 |
Communication and technology Internet and social media Economy and environment Economy development, Environmental issues. |
Transformation Gap of wealth, metropolitans, city immigrant The relationship between China and Britain Trade, Culture communication, Education communication. |
Assessment:
Paper |
Content |
Assessment overview |
Paper 1 Listening, reading and translation.
40% of the qualification |
Vocabulary and structures across all the 4 themes. Student will comprehend spoken and written material and translate from Chinese into English. |
Listening: Listen to spoken passages covering different registers and types, including authentic materials. Reading: comprehend texts containing both factual and abstract content with authentic or adapted authentic materials. Translation: content will be one of the 4 themes. |
Paper 2 Written response to works and translations.
30% of the qualification
|
Translate a previously unseen passage from English into Chinese.
Develop a detailed understanding and appreciation of the literature and(film) studies. Present viewpoints, develop arguments, persuade and analyse and evaluate in writing. |
Translation: translate from English into Chinese.
Written response to works: students must write an extended response to either two literatures or one literature and one film. |
Paper 3 Speaking 21-23 minutes assessment time including 5 minutes’ preparation time.
30% of the qualification
|
Knowledge and understanding of the cultural context by giving ideas, examples and information on one of the themes. The ability to analyse aspects of the cultural context by presenting and justifying valid arguments, viewpoints and conclusions. The ability to respond to written language in speech. |
Task 1 (discussion on a theme) Content for this task will be based on any of the 8 subtopics.
Task 2 (Presentation and discussion on student’s independent research project) The task is in two parts. Content for this task will be based on the subject of interest that students have chosen for their independent research project. It must relate to the cultural and social context of the Chinese speaking world. |