MENGRU XIE MENGRU XIE, TEACHER OF MANDARIN
The world is becoming more interconnected, increasing the importance of languages beyond English. However, the interest in modern foreign language learning is declining globally. In the US and UK, the number of foreign language students has plummeted, leading to many language programmes and departments closing. Those enrolled in UK language degrees numbered 160,000 in 2019; by 2003 that figure was down to 75,000. Despite this declining trend, some language programmes are, in fact, thriving. The Modern Language Association’s (MLA) report in the US attributes this success to the cultural component of language learning and an emphasis on practical language application. Similarly, Jen William, Head of the School of Languages and Cultures at Purdue University, has emphasised the need to focus on the intercultural aspects of language learning more than ever before. She suggests that language lessons should move beyond grammar drills to foster cultural competency, particularly in the era of Artificial Intelligence. So, what should we do? In my own teaching experience, pupil motivation in the Mandarin classroom invariably rises after their trips to China and participation in cultural events organised within the school. However, many schemes of work often overlook an understanding of culture. There is an incentive to rush through language acquisition and learning outcomes (especially at GCSE), leaving little or no time to explore cultural aspects. It is also challenging to incorporate cultural education into day-to-day teaching without explicit guidance. This is when I started to look for a methodology that embeds culture in the SOW without delaying the delivery of language content. I found an approach called CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) that addresses this very problem. In one type of CLIL lesson, learners gain subject knowledge through an additional language. This is achieved through the elements of culture, communication, and cognition presented in the lessons. To fully understand the cultural aspect, learners need to develop intercultural competency. This skill involves understanding and respecting practices and perspectives that may differ from one’s own, even if they disagree with them. Based on this approach, I began designing a CLIL project to teach Year 8 Geography in Mandarin. With the help of the former Head of Geography, Cyrus Golding,
we developed a series of lessons that align with the National Curriculum and are comprehensible for students in Mandarin. The lesson activities were sequenced following Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy, progressing from remembering, understanding, and applying to analysing, evaluating, and creating. The Dulwich College Geography Curriculum already examined models of sustainable cities – this prompted us to choose the Chinese city of Xiamen as an opportunity through which to explore Chinese culture. Students identified key terminology related to sustainability and urban planning in Chinese. They also learned specific facts about Xiamen’s geography, climate, and current infrastructure. They developed an understanding of the principles of sustainable urban design, such as energy efficiency, waste reduction, and green spaces, and how these concepts were applied in the context of Xiamen. Finally, they used these principles to evaluate London’s sustainable development as well as that of other cities around the world. As this action research project was part of UCL’s Subject Expert Programme, I had the opportunity to collaborate with four other secondary schools in England and Scotland (one independent girls’ school and three mixed non-selective state-maintained schools). All five schools delivered the same lesson plans and resources, allowing me to assess how students responded to this way of learning. It was pleasing to see that the vast majority of those surveyed across this multi-school cohort expressed these prevailing views: • increased confidence in the target language; • developed understanding of inter-cultural sensitivity; • increased appetite for future Mandarin learning following a similar model. Looking ahead, the Dulwich College Chinese Department is exploring ways to collaborate with other subjects in the College to develop CLIL projects for different year groups. These projects aim to foster students’ intercultural competency as well as their proficiency in Mandarin. Our goal is to extend learning beyond the syllabus, creating well-rounded global citizens with high intercultural competency for the future: if we are to reverse wider trends in language-learning uptake, this appears to be a good place to start.
Beyond Words The Crucial Role of Cultural Understanding in Foreign Language Learning
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