Massey opens language research centre with China

Massey opens language research centre with China

The teaching of Chinese language in New Zealand is about to get a major boost with the establishment of a Joint Research Centre in Applied Linguistics run by Massey University and Beijing Languages and Culture University, to be based at Massey’s Auckland campus.

The centre will connect New Zealand-based language and linguistics researchers with their counterparts in Beijing to exchange new ideas, and explore the best ways to teach Chinese (Mandarin) and train and resource teachers.

The two universities will sign an agreement next week to open the centre early next year. Scholars from the Beijing Languages and Culture University will be in New Zealand for a two-day conference this weekend at Massey’s campus in Albany, on the topic of distance teaching, and the spread and globalisation of the Chinese language.

Conference organiser Dr Michael Li, a lecturer in Massey’s Chinese Language programme, says the centre is an exciting development that bodes well for the future of Chinese language teaching around the Asia-Pacific region. “It will be a platform for teacher training and innovative online learning methods and will provide plenty of opportunities for postgrad and staff exchanges,” he says.

The centre’s inaugural co-director Massey’s Professor Cynthia White – an internationally recognised linguistics expert on the interplay between emotion and cognition in language learning, and research director in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences – says that with growing trade between China and New Zealand, more and more people realise the importance of learning Mandarin.

It is the most widely spoken language on the planet with over one billion speakers, followed by Arabic, then English and Spanish.

“In recent years, the number of secondary schools offering Chinese language courses has increased significantly, so there will be a greater demand for Chinese language teacher training in the near future,” Professor White says.

Part of the centre’s work will be to host teaching and research seminars for the Chinese language teaching community in New Zealand, as well as to develop high quality distance and online courses. Professor White will share the directorship of the centre with a counterpart – yet to be confirmed – from Beijing Languages and Culture University.

Beijing Languages and Culture University (BLCU) was opened in 1962 and defines itself on its English language website as “the only university of its kind in China that offers Chinese language and culture courses to foreign students.”

Since opening, it has educated some 160,000 foreign students in Chinese language and culture from 176 countries and regions, including prime ministers and Nobel Laureates. It has cooperative relations with over 300 educational institutions and universities worldwide, including Harvard University, and is widely recognised for its work in advancing curriculum and teaching materials development, language testing research, information processing and more.

Smartphones and sitcoms for learning Chinese

This weekend’s International Conference on the Teaching of Chinese: Current Trends and the Globalisation of the Chinese Language, will focus on distance education and globalisation, and promoting the disciplinary development of teaching Chinese as a foreign language in the internet era, says Dr Li.

Keynote speaker Dr Jennifer Liu, director of Harvard University’s Chinese Language Program, will share the latest insights on the impact of technology on foreign language learning and teaching.

The use of smartphone apps and American sitcoms to learn a language are also among hot topics. Massey lecturer Dr Sally Liangni will present on language learning in multigenerational Chinese families in New Zealand and Dr Li will discuss how to create more engaging and interactive online learning environments.

Other topics include: distance language teaching methodologies; content and/or curriculum research on language learners and teachers; language acquisition; language testing; standards for language teaching and learning; digital resources and online language teaching; language identity and cultural identity; and cultural factors in language teaching and globalisation.

Massey’s Chinese language programme is growing and now offers a range of undergraduate papers in language, culture, business and literature, internally and by distance.

Conference date: Saturday and Sunday: August 27 and 28.
Venue: Atrium Building, Massey University East Precinct, Dairy Flat Highway (SH17), Albany, Auckland

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