Chinese

Chinese. Learn Chinese with us.

Our beginners Chinese classes are suitable for people who have no prior knowledge of the Chinese language, while subsequent courses progressively increase the complexity of language concepts. If you want to learn to speak Chinese, our Chinese courses are ideal for adult learners to enjoy a practical and social experience while you learn Chinese language and culture. Learn Chinese the smart way with Chinese courses at the University of Sydney.

The Centre for Continuing Education offers a highly structured set of Basic Chinese courses based on our cooperation with the Confucius Institute.

The cooperation between the Centre for Continuing Education and Confucius Institute enables us to offer a two-year intensive program (taught over 4 hours per week in two sessions for 10 weeks) and a four-year standard program (taught over 2 hours per week in one session for 8 weeks) in Basic Chinese language that gives students a clear long-term perspective and a structure based on the most widely used international teaching material, Integrated Chinese.

Prescribed text

For all courses, students are required to use three course materials:

1. Integrated Chinese (Third Edition) Textbook
2. Integrated Chinese (Third Edition) Workbook
3. Integrated Chinese (Third Edition) Character Workbook

Both simplified and traditional character versions of the textbook and the two workbooks are available, however the simplified versions will be taught in the classroom. Students can also opt for the electronic versions of the Chinese course materials.

In addition to the prescribed materials, the publisher provides supporting materials, such as Audio CDs and Course DVDs.

Additional online resources are also available.

Textbook: Integrated Chinese

Integrated Chinese is the leading introductory Chinese textbook at colleges and universities around the world. It meets the needs of today’s students with a full-colour design, fewer lessons in Level 1 to allow for more flexible pacing, more communicative activities, up-to-date vocabulary, expanded cultural notes, an exciting new storyline linking all the dialogues and readings, and more review sections. It is structured into two levels which have been split into two parts each.

The series provides coordinated practice in the four skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Throughout the series, Integrated Chinese builds on the three modes of communication – interpretive, interpersonal, and presentational – and the “Five Cs”- Communication, Culture, Connections, Comparisons, and Communities-to build proficiency in using the Chinese language in a variety of real-life situations.

The Integrated Chinese series is a two-year intensive or four-year standard program that includes textbooks, workbooks, character workbooks, online workbooks, audio CDs, multimedia resources, and teacher’s handbooks. Materials are available in both simplified character and traditional character versions.

Student Feedback

Enrolled students in Chinese courses are encouraged to provide feedback on the program at any time directly to the Chinese course co-ordinator through our online student feedback form.

Choosing the right language level

If you have studied Chinese previously, count the vocabulary items in your previous text book and convert to the following level:

• Up to 70 items: Chinese 1011 and 1012 (Standard), Business Chinese 1011 or Chinese 101 (Intensive)
• Up to 173 items: Chinese 1021 and 1022 (Standard) or Chinese 102 (Intensive)
• Up to 374 items: Chinese 1031 and 1032 (Standard) or Chinese 103 (Intensive)
• Up to 560 items: Chinese 1041 and 1042 (Standard) or Chinese 104 (Intensive)
• Up to 710 items: Chinese 2011 and 2012 (Standard)
• Up to 869 items: Chinese 2021 and 2022 (Standard)
• Up to 1077 items: Chinese 2031 and2032 (Standard)
• Up to 1323 items: Chinese 2041 and 2042 (Standard)
• Over 1323 items: Chinese 3011 (HSK Level 4 Preparation 1) and 3012 (HSK Level 4 Preparation 2) (Standard)

If you still require assistance, contact our Chinese language coordinator for specific advice.