Authentic
Chinese is a comprehensive series of textbooks for teaching Chinese to high
school students in grades 9-12 in North America (primarily in the United
States), designed to develop students' comprehensive language skills in
Chinese. There are four levels in the set, matching the four grade levels, and
each level comes with the textbook, workbook, task workbook, and character
book, as well as compiled and organized electronic versions of supplementary
exercises and resources for free download.
This
is the first workbook in this set, which is based on research-approved
principles and strategies for teaching Chinese in secondary schools and focuses
on developing essential communication skills for real-life situations. The core
language skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing are reinforced and
integrated in this workbook. The workbook features a spiral cycle of vocabulary
and grammatical structures that help learners master language functions through
different types of exercises. In this workbook, each lesson is divided into two
parts that correspond to the dialogues in the textbook. The exercises in each
lesson include pinyin, Chinese characters, listening, speaking, reading, and
writing, and the exercises in each section are designed with graded difficulty
levels to cater to the needs of different learners.
The
book simulates situations through full-color illustrations that add visual
interest and variety to the text, helping to capture learners' attention and
stimulate their curiosity and engagement.
Miao-Fen Tseng was the founding director of the Institute of World Languages at the University of Virginia, professor of Chinese at the University of Virginia, director of the Virginia StarTalk Chinese Language Teacher/Student Institute, AP Chinese Language Advisor, AP Chinese Language Program Advisor/Senior Reviewer, founder/president of the Virginia Chinese Language Teachers Association. Director of StarTalk Chinese Teacher Training and Student Programs, Director of the National Chinese Language Teachers Association, Board Member of StarTalk Online Teaching Preparatory Committee, AP Chinese Advisor to the College Board, Senior Academic Advisor and Reviewer of AP Chinese Curriculum Review, Reviewer of K-16 Chinese Language Program and Teacher Training Program.
The
North American branch of Beijing Language and Culture University Press has
worked with Professor Miao-Fen Tseng's team at the University of Virginia for
three years to create this AP Chinese curriculum Authentic Chinese , which is
based entirely on real-life materials, to present a real and comprehensive view
of China through a rich variety of authentic materials; to build a strong
vertical progression system from Level 1 to AP Chinese through six themes:
contemporary life, family and community, personal and community identity,
aesthetics and art, science and technology, and global challenges. The
curriculum centers around students' genuine interest in everyday experiences,
allowing them to develop a deep appreciation for learning and communicating in Chinese.
The task-based language teaching and course design integrate communicative
goals directly into the classroom, transforming the learning mode of language
acquisition. It can be said that "Authentic Chinese" is a highly
innovative textbook that draws upon years of research and proven success in
practice. It provides an engaging, communicative, and authentic learning
experience, making it a truly creative educational resource.
It
is recommended that Book 1 of the workbook be used for one year at the high
school level and two years at the middle school level. In addition, it is
recommended that teachers continually ask students questions about different
aspects of their learning and create a strong Chinese learning community
through joint efforts.