Elementary Chinese Vocabulary Teaching In Australia: Situation Analysis And Study Of Teaching Strategies

Australia has a long tradition of Chinese language teaching. Over the last decade, with the Australian Government emphasizing and promoting the implementation of National Asian Languages and Studies in Schools Program (NALSSP), the Australian education sector has laid more and more emphasis on Chinese teaching. However, most students' Chinese proficiency is generally at an elementary level.Vocabulary teaching plays a decisive role in Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language (TCFL). Vocabulary teaching strategies are directly related to the effectiveness of vocabulary teaching, and ultimately have a significant impact on learners' language competencies. As such, the present study aims to investigate the current situation of elementary Chinese vocabulary teaching in Australia. This study focuses on how vocabulary teaching strategies are applied in the language classrooms. Using some theories of cognitive linguistics and TCFL principles as a guide this thesis presents a detailed analysis of the current situation. In order to solve the problems, especially the deficiencies in vocabulary teaching strategies, this thesis ponders on efficient strategies and makes recommendations.This thesis focuses on a second-year elementary Chinese language class at a key university in Australia with qualitative - quantitative hybrid research methods. Both qualitative and quantitative data have demonstrated that the current situation of elementary Chinese vocabulary teaching in Australia is generally positive, but some problems still exist in the following areas:1. In terms of the implementation of the principles of TCFL, more emphasis is put on linguistic knowledge than linguistic skills, which is one of the reasons that most students think constructing sentences is very difficult.2. In terms of teaching content, insufficient emphasis has been laid on the teaching of basic vocabulary, which is the main reason for students being unable to use new words fluently.3. Regarding the effectiveness of vocabulary teaching strategies, using translation method too often leads to students having the misconception that "Chinese and English words always have same meanings". As a result, many students have developed a habit of learning Chinese with the help of English. The strategy of teaching polysemes by "explaining the sole contextual meaning" cannot help students master the basic meaning and usage, resulting in a relatively low ability to put vocabulary into practical use.In response to these problems, this thesis has provided the following recommendations:1. to structure classroom activities in tutorials so as to emphasize linguistic skills.2. to place more emphasis on the introduction of basic vocabulary; 3. to adjust vocabulary teaching strategies in a targeted, scientific way, i.e. employing flexible and effective vocabulary teaching strategies; employing comparative strategy when necessary; employing semantic-level teaching strategy.The research results have provided a broad view of the current situation of elementary Chinese vocabulary teaching in Australia. The analysis, discussion and recommendations of vocabulary teaching strategies can help other colleagues reflect on their classroom teaching methods in Australia. Because the Chinese language learners in Britain, America and some other countries have much in common, the research results have great reference value to the elementary Chinese vocabulary teaching in other English-speaking countries.