Author: Jane Medwell, Katherine Richardson and Li Li
Date of Publication: September 2012
Series Title: Scottish Languages Review
Notes: Issue 25
In the context of Scotland’s strategy for language and curriculum for excellence, the rise of Mandarin Chinese as a language of study seems assured. However, the supply of teachers of Chinese who can teach effectively in primary contexts is uncertain, and the use of native speaking teachers and language assistants continues to present challenges. This paper reports on a project involving the training of primary teachers who are able to teach beginner Chinese in England. The paper focuses on the innovative partnership of a Language Expert Teacher and a Native Speaker Teacher, working together to train teachers in both language and pedagogy. The experience raised questions about pedagogy for both the native speaker and language expert teachers which may have wider implications for the teaching of Chinese in schools.
Keywords: Teacher Language; Language Teacher Education; Chinese Language Teaching; Target Language; Primary Languages; team-teaching; language teaching pedagogy