The evaluation of a Mandarin Chinese course taught as a foreign language for distance learners

The purpose of this dissertation was to evaluate the Mandarin Chinese course taught as a
foreign language for distance learners
through a review of distance education and how it applied in foreign language teaching, a
learning package based on Unisa's Mandarin Chinese 1, a beginners' course, was fully
discussed and demonstrated. An analysis was made of what had been utilised in the learning
package and how each element helped distance learners to develop their language skills.
Based on the course's learning outcomes, learning material, assessments and learning support,
empirical research was done through focus group interviews and questionnaires to test the
effectiveness of the Mandarin course.
Analysis of the results suggested that:
• Students needed to build up a more realistic expectation about learning Chinese.
• Students' workloads needed to be re-examined and re-measured.
• Certain students lacked learner autonomy.
• Mandarin courses should be produced jointly with distance teaching institutions abroad. / Educational Studies / M.Ed. (Didactics)

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:unisa/oai:uir.unisa.ac.za:10500/747
Date30 June 2002
CreatorsHau-Yoon, Lucia
ContributorsVan Niekerk, Lourens Johannes Rasmus, Li, C. C.
Source SetsSouth African National ETD Portal
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeDissertation
Format1 online resource (xi, 189 leaves : ill.)

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