Qualified Online Instructors
The Confucius Institute at Michigan State University brings Chinese language learning to a level that resonates with the fact that the global economy, cross cultural interaction and experiences, and distributed knowledge of technology shape what learning a new language encompasses and how people learn. The CI-MSU Mandarin Chinese teaching and development team centers talented experts in the field of second language acquisition, educational psychology, educational technology, and multimedia software development. CI-MSU director Dr Yong Zhao and professors Dr. Chun Lai and Dr. Dongping Zheng are national leaders in design and research of technology-based foreign language learning and teaching and are dedicated to advancing theoretically grounded and culturally relevant pedagogies. Professors Fujia Li and Xiaoyan Cao from China Central Radio and TV University have Master's Degrees in Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language, and have been lead authors of several highly-ranked Mandarin Chinese learning text books in China and the United States. Hua Wan and Minggui Shi, who have developed several best-selling multimedia Mandarin Chinese products, lead the course design and learning material technical production.
A multi-talented team, working towards synergy, acts as an impetus in the design and production of high quality and pedagogically sound educational products. CI-MSU faculty study how people learn a second language, as well as investigate innovative second language learning pedagogies and test them out in experimental and real-classroom settings. Our research findings and evidence-based decisions are integrated in Mandarin course design and development. The use of multimedia and web-based technologies distinguishes CI-MSU. Our CI-MSU team believes that technology should be used in the service of pedagogy and support learning in the development of innovative course wares and online learning materials. For example, to meet the needs and goals of high school students, the Online High School Mandarin course is designed in the format of travelogues, in which high school students travel in China experiencing locally rich cultures, historical sites, geography, folk lore and arts. Equally important students are embodied in modern Chinese life.
CI-MSU instructors are educated and trained in both China and the United States and have degrees in teaching Chinese or English as a foreign language. They also understand how awareness of culture has affected their education and personal growth. Therefore, the staff is well qualified in teaching K-12 students in the United States through understanding of cross-cultural educational issues, psychological needs and challenges. The staff is also experienced with web-based instruction and understands the pros and cons of learning and teaching a foreign language online. For example, the instructors make extra efforts to create a community of learners in which students share their exciting learning moments, struggles and reflections.
