Use of Hand-on Learning Experience
to Enhance Effectiveness of Chinese Teaching and Learning
Meng Liping (孟丽萍)
This paper studies how
the use of hands-on learning experiences can improve the language skills of
students effectively as well as facilitate the teacher in efficient
instructions and assessment of the students.
The author
has designed a variety of lessons that proved to be multi-sensory and hands-on
learning experiences, allowing students authentic and problem-solving assessments.
For example, the author arranged for a cooking class in which the students
learned Chinese vocabulary for cooking ingredients, vegetables and meat as well
as expressions for describing cooking steps. In addition, the students learned
about different Chinese cooking styles and food cultures. The students are
strongly motivated by this teaching approach, and are fully involved in the
hands-on learning activities. Another example is a transaction activity in
which the students played roles of customers and salespeople, buying and
selling stationery such as pencils, books, notebooks, etc. The students used
sentence patterns for a complete transaction process from greeting each other,
asking for and telling prices, bargaining, paying money (Chinese currency) for
items to saying “Welcome back again” and “Goodbye”. Through these activities
the students have experienced both cultural and linguistic elements of a
Chinese class.
The author adopts a
flexible attitude toward the use of textbooks and goes much beyond what the
textbooks have covered. The hands-on learning experiences for the students have
been incorporated into class planning, preparation and instruction.
The author will give
some examples to illustrate how to integrate hands-on learning experiences into
Chinese classes.