A Survey On The "Teacher,Teaching Materials And Teaching Methods" Of Chinese Teaching In The Confucius Institute Of University Of Graz,Austria

This study is based on the project of the Centre for Sino-foreign Language Exchange and Cooperation of the Ministry of Education,"A Study of the Basic Situation of Chinese Language Education in Austria",and uses constructivist teaching theory as the theoretical basis,and employs questionnaires and in-depth interviews to conduct an empirical study of the "three teachings" of the Confucius Institute at the University of Graz.The study found the following advantages of teaching Chinese at the Confucius Institute at the University of Graz:(1)A diverse team of teachers.The diversity of nationalities and languages of the teachers ensures that the students can learn Chinese in a feasible and convenient way;(2)The up-to-date Chinese language syllabus.The Confucius Institute regularly conducts special surveys and seminars to constantly update and adjust the syllabus;(3)The world’s first online teaching platform-"Digital Confucius Institute".2019,by Moodle course management system and The "Digital Confucius Institute" was created with the Bigbluebutton video tool,which not only ensures the smooth running of Chinese language teaching at the Confucius Institute at the University of Graz during the global COVID-19 epidemic,but also puts it at the leading edge of online Chinese language teaching.The study found that the Confucius Institute at the University of Graz had a number of problems with Chinese language teaching,particularly in the area of the "teachers,teaching materials and teaching methods".The following problems exist in the teaching force: firstly,there is a shortage of professional Chinese language teachers and their teaching standards vary.The shortage of professional teachers and the heavy teaching load of teachers have a negative impact on the development of Chinese language teaching at the Confucius Institute;secondly,the high mobility of the teaching staff and the frequent changes of teachers make the development of teaching at the Confucius Institute unsustainable;thirdly,the professional competence of local teachers is insufficient.The local teachers are not qualified to teach Chinese and their professionalism is not high;some of the non-Chinese teachers have not yet reached the Chinese standard.There is no Chinese language teacher training programme in Austrian universities,so there are few ways to upgrade Chinese teachers and the localisation of training is weak.The main problems with teaching materials are: firstly,there is a single type of Chinese textbook,which lacks relevance.The Confucius Institute widely uses the New Practical Chinese Textbook,which is too homogeneous and not very country-specific.The New Practical Chinese Textbook,which is widely used by the Confucius Institute,is published in China,and the German textbook Liaoliao-Chat is used sporadically,and there are no local Austrian textbooks.Thirdly,there are not many teaching and learning materials other than the exercises that accompany the textbooks,and the Chinese reading materials in the library are limited.The following shortcomings exist in terms of teaching methods:firstly,teachers do not use the medium of instruction properly,and teachers and students at the Confucius Institute are more dependent on the medium of instruction;secondly,the teaching mode is old and single,and teaching methods are hardly new,ignoring students’ motivation and learning objectives;thirdly,the classroom tasks are not designed properly,and teachers do not have a clear understanding of students’ Chinese language level,which makes the classroom tasks too difficult to design.In response to the above problems,this study combined the results of the questionnaire and interviews to make the following recommendations.In terms of teacher development:(1)Establish a scientific teacher teaching evaluation mechanism.Encourage trainees and peers to conduct comprehensive and systematic evaluations of classroom teaching by the teachers in charge,so as to help teachers improve their teaching ability;(2)Establish a language mutual aid alliance between public teachers and local teachers to achieve dual improvement of Sino-German language ability;(3)Stabilise the teaching staff.The number and scale of teachers should be expanded in a planned manner,and their salaries should be increased to encourage them to stay in their posts,and preferential policies should be introduced to encourage undergraduates and masters in relevant fields to teach there.(4)Strengthen local teacher training.We will work with universities in the host countries to set up a long-term training platform for Chinese teachers,send some of them to further study in relevant disciplines and promote the development of Chinese teacher training programmes.In terms of teaching materials,the core of constructivist teaching theory is "learner-centred",and the following areas have been improved:(1)Enrich the variety of teaching materials and improve their relevance.(2)Increase the number of Chinese teaching and learning materials and develop online resources.(3)The development of teaching materials should take the form of Sino-Austrian cooperation,with local sinologists and Chinese language workers as the main team,and Chinese experts as the supporting team,to develop local teaching materials that are truly suitable for Austrian students.In terms of teaching methods:(1)The correct understanding of the medium of instruction and the principle of appropriate use;(2)The flexible adjustment of teaching methods under the guidance of constructivist teaching theory,with a learner-centred approach and emphasis on learners’ motivation and interest in learning;(3)The reasonable design of classroom tasks according to learners’ Chinese language level.The classroom tasks are designed according to the learners’ Chinese language level,in line with the communicative reality,and to ensure the authenticity of the topic context.It is expected that this study will provide useful reference for the high-quality and sustainable development of international Chinese language education in the new era.