Speak the language, understand the culture

China’s growing importance in the increasingly global community gives many foreigners an impetus to learn Chinese language. In Australia, Chinese is recognised as one of the fastest growing languages and has one of the largest groups of non-English background speakers. A considerable number of universities, colleges and schools with different backgrounds and settings are strengthening or establishing their own Chinese language programs. How do we create a better language environment to facilitate students’ development of all four macro skills in their Chinese study? What are the principles and practical teaching methods to cater for the differing needs of students?

This article begins with a description of the current trends, issues and challenges of Chinese language education in the multicultural society of Australia; the second part of the article is a brief overview of language policies in Australia and the development of Chinese language learning; the third part of the article deals with the findings of a case study; the article concludes with some concrete suggestions for the design and implementation of teaching methods that facilitate effective Chinese teaching and learning.