Hey guys! It feels so great to get back into the swing of things! I hope you all are as enthusiastic as I am for this year’s posts on The Daily China.
As Cole had mentioned briefly, this summer I attended the Middlebury Language Summer Academy for a study abroad experience in China where I studied Chinese at Capital Normal University in Beijing. This experience not only helped to improve my Chinese speaking abilities, but it also allowed myself to build greater conviction and confidence in conversational Chinese speaking
I genuinely believe that the Academy was unique because of its fidelity to the mission of the Middlebury College Language Schools. This signature mission defines the teaching of other languages and cultures as a seamlessly integrated and holistic learning objective centered on the premise that without real competency in language there can be no true cultural understanding. While studying at Capital Normal University, it was mandatory for myself to oath to “The Language Pledge” in order to meet the challenges of living and learning in a 24/7 full immersion community. Honestly, to live by the language pledge is not an easy task. Most importantly, I had to overcome the rigor of this pledge—some friendships were forged, new material was learned, and I became an active member of the Middlebury Academy community.
At the Academy, my goal was to improve my language proficiency and equip my self with the skills to become an engaged, informed, 21st century citizen. The immersion pedagogy is designed to link the learning of language with cultivating a deeper understanding of the target culture and developing an appreciation for cultural differences and traditions.
What I found most interesting was that the Academy did not use traditional textbooks. The curriculum embraces the Middlebury immersion method, which is drastically different in comparison to the way students learn languages in their own high schools. In the mornings, I would learn about the topic of the day, which varied (shopping, bargaining, food), and then in the afternoons we would go into the campus streets of Beijing asking native Beijing speakers and/or college students studying at Capital Normal University questions on their favorite clothing apparel.
On the weekends, we visited the Great Wall of China, Tianjian, the Forbidden City, and many other historical sites in China. My favorite place we visited was the Pearl Market! I got to use my newly learned bargaining skills from my morning class and use the phrases I leaned with the saleswoman in the handbag department. It was awesome! I came out of the Pearl Market with 3 handbags, 2 shirts and a few bracelets as souvenirs to take home for my friends at home. Thanks to my Chinese bargaining skills my trip to the Pearl Market was a success!
Wow, I could go on and on talking about the month I spent in China. I’ll save some more for next time, friends!
I look forward to writing more for you all next week! Additionally, I will be posting some pictures of my trip in next week’s blog! Until next time!
Your experiences sound very interesting, I would like to go to the Pearl Market also and try out my bargaining skills
你的中文很赞?，希望你再去中国～
From the looks of it, it seems like you really enjoyed China. Reading about your experience in China has really made me rather envious because I too would like to go back to China one of these days. The oath you took during your time there must have been rather difficult to deal with, but I hope it was worthwhile. Your Chinese definitely seemed to have improved greatly since the last school year. I hope you continue to pursue Chinese and find continual success in learning the language!
I’m so glad that you had wonderful learning experience in China, as you can tell, there are some dramatic differences between Chinese and American education methods, personally I prefer the way that American students are taught since it forces much more on the shaping of individual including knowledge and personalities instead of teaching all student in the same way inflexibly like Chinese schools.