Striving for innovation with the integration of higher education and information technology, we constantly place online courses as an important supplement for in-class teaching to improve their quality and to make them accessible. Now, we have established fully-developed learning mode based on online courses, launching various highly-praised MOOCs.
The‘eTandem’ Online Video Course is set up by both Hubei University and University of Geneva in Switzerland. Hosted by Zhang Ling, the associate professor as well as the dean of French Department, this course is joined by Liang Huan, Mao Zhigui, Lei Wenqiang from Hubei University and Wang Jue from University of Geneva. This course is oriented towards the sophomores in the School of Foreign Languages, Hubei University, the Department of Oriental Languages of Geneva University and the Department of Chinese Language and Literature, with a frequency of once per week and an duration of an hour for each session, spanning 16 to 18 weeks. The schedule of the course is adjusted according to time differences so that both the Chinese and French students can synchronize their online courses. Also, this course is a match to The Basics of Modern Chinese taken by the aforementioned French students. Students of this course practice speaking centring on certain topics on a one-to-one basis, namely, one French student majoring in Chinese and one Chinese student majoring in French form a group and help each other during practices. There are language tasks, enquiries, assessment, homework on Moodle where students need to find partners to practice speaking, post their homework, summaries in native languages and evaluation on their performance.
Available on UOOC and XuetangX, Introducing Chinese Culture to English is hosted by Professor Wang Zhiru and joined by Wu Hong, Wang Ting, Wan Sha, Lu Xiaoli, Wang Gui, Yang Hui, Zhou Yunyun. Given the students’ deficiency in familiarization with traditional Chinese culture, this course is designed to enrich them with knowledge of traditional Chinese culture motivated by the most typical topics. Delivered all in English language, this course aims at helping the students to get exposed to Chinese culture and eventually learn to introduce Chinese culture in English.
Available on UOOC and XuetangX, English Phonetics is lectured by Hua Congchao and her team members Chen Pei and Chang Yan. This course is a comprehensive guide to the basics of English pronunciation, including vowels, consonants, pronunciation variations, stresses and intonations. The exercises to every unit can help to improve students’ pronunciation and to fix their specific mistakes. Since its launch online, this course has been introduced to 46 universities.
Available on UOOC and XuetangX, An Introduction to English Speaking Countries is lectured by Zhou Yiyuan. This course aims to widen the scope of English majors and English-learning amateurs to shape a better understanding towards the history and culture of English speaking countries, and to enhance their cultural awareness. Centring on the geography, languages, history and political systems of those countries, this course attempts to build a historical and cultural framework with utterances, graphs, movies and music. On the platform, students are expected to break conventions in memorization and to improve their learning efficiency in the detailed information. Students can also deepen their understanding towards modern British and American societies through discussions, debates and presentations etc. both online and offline.
Available on UOOC and XuetangX, College Portuguese is hosted by Gou Xiaojiao and joined by Tang Xiao, Sun Yi, Xiong Fanghua. This elementary course targets at undergraduates who are interested in Portuguese-learning and focuses on pronunciation and grammar. As a topic-based course, it adopts typical topics related to both Chinese and Portuguese cultures. During the course of learning Portuguese, students are expected to know more about the differences between the two cultures.
Available on XuetangX, An Introduction to Linguistics is hosted by associate professor Wu Xiyan and joined by Zhang Qingzong, Zhang Rui, Hu Xuefei and Zhong Jiushen. A preliminary course to linguistics, it aims to enhance students’ understanding to language, language learning and its use. Also, it aims to equip the students with fundamental linguistic theories and major research methodology employed in language studies. It is hoped to lay a solid foundation for students to master both Chinese and English and to function as a guide to further studies in language.
Academic English is hosted by associate professor Wu Hong and joined by Pi Chongyang, Wang Ting, Yang Liu and Wang Zhiru. Designed for undergraduates, graduates and high school students who will go abroad for further studies, this course aims to smooth the transition from general English to general academic English and then to academic English. The syllabus covers a variety of sessions on the vocabulary, syntax and passages of academic English, and on the improvements for students’ listening, speaking, reading and writing skills in academic English learning.
The Art of English Speaking is hosted by associate professor Zhou Hongbing, the executive director of the National Committee for Public Speaking and Debate Education in Foreign Languages and the chief lecturer of IELTS Training Courses commissioned by the British Council. Other team members include Yang Xiaobin, Lu Xiaoli, Wang Junjun, Chang Juan and Yin Heng. This course offers students the basic knowledge of English speaking and techniques on English speech composition. Students are expected to learn about the purposes, functions, structures, language styles and rhetoric devices behind speeches by analyzing and evaluating those most famous speeches. In addition, this course helps to enhance the students’ competence in speech writing and delivery of impromptu speeches.
Talking about France in French is hosted by associate professor Zhang Lin and joined by Deng Yuke, Zhou Ying, Mao Zhigui, Yin Qin, Mélanie and Swan. This course is a culture-oriented one featured by authentic daily conversations and supplemented with analysis of basic language points and culture background. Students are expected to learn more idiomatic expressions and more about French culture. All those, coupled with online and offline exercises, are aimed to deepen students’ understanding to French culture.
