A Study On Hidden Curriculum In Teaching Materials Of Chinese As A Foreign Language

For a long time,the research on materials in teaching Chinese as a foreign language(TCFL)is mostly related to language elements and language skills,with the hidden curriculum which includes some implicit factors like language knowledge,culture,thinking patterns,values totally ignored.Therefore,this study introduces the theory of hidden curriculum into the study of TCFL materials,with the aim of sorting out the concrete manifestation of hidden curriculum in such materials and understanding the influence of hidden curriculum on students.By adopting both qualitative and quantitative research methods and taking the comprehensive series of teaching materials Developing Chinese as research subjects,this study is conducted to sort out and summarize the hidden curriculum in this set of teaching materials and explore its possible positive or negative effects on Chinese learners,based on which some suggestions are put forward.It is found that there are a large number of hidden curriculum contents in the textbook Developing Chinese,mainly focusing on four aspects: physical form,spiritual influence,professional knowledge,and quality cultivation.These four aspects can be further divided into nine directions: appearance,content,language knowledge,cross-cultural knowledge,values,social awareness,emotion,thinking mode and interdisciplinary knowledge.These four aspects and nine directions can be used to explore the hidden curriculum in TCFL materials,and it is also the theoretical framework for the analysis of the hidden curriculum in TCFL materials.The hidden curriculum in TCFL materials will have both negative and positive influences on learners’ affective attitude and learning motive,with positive hidden curriculum beneficial to both students’ learning motivation and attitude;negative hidden curriculum detrimental to students learning motive and making learners lose their interest and confidence in learning.Finally,from the perspective of textbook compilers and textbook educators,this study puts forward some suggestions for further developing the hidden curriculum of TCFL materials.As compilers,when developing TCFL materials,they should bear in mind the concept of hidden curriculum,selecting positive teaching material,enriching the hidden curriculum in physical form and corpus.As teachers,in teaching Chinese as a foreign language,they should improve their own quality,correctly handle the negative hidden curriculum content that appears in TCFL materials,focus on emotional education,stimulate students’ interest in learning Chinese,and enhance students’ understanding and recognition of Chinese language and culture.