3j Chinese School, one of the representatives of in-world language instruction institution, merges in Second Life in 2007, and provides Chinese Courses for all the non-native speakers of the Chinese language (Chinese Mandarin) in the world.

It is practical

It is systematic

It is flexible

Distinguished Features of 3jSchool

It is practical

3j Chinese School provides the most practical training courses of Chinese Mandarin. Our school creates an authentic environment as if you were in China when you go to the location of our school in Second Life. This environment includes most of the situations where most common daily conversations will happen. The Chinese we teach in a communicative way is the Chinese you can use right after you arrive in China. The class will be taught in English and Chinese by a live teacher who is experienced in teaching Chinese as a foreign language and is competent and friendly in cross-culture communication.

When designing the course, we take not only practicability but also the laws of the language itself and the rules of the progress in learning this language as a foreign language into consideration. We try to lead you step by step into this language system so that you won’t feel overwhelmed. Basing on the general and fundamental lesson plans, we tailor the class according to your progress and your needs. In addition to the synchronous class meeting, you can also find the asynchronous learning sources in 3j Chinese School. They will be on-line learning games, visual and aural supports and “take-home” textures for reviewing, etc.

You will learn better in this “learning by doing” system.

It is systematic

It is flexible You can come to 3j Chinese School anywhere and anytime as

long as you can access Second Life no matter where you are in the real life. The time schedule of our class is flexible because we offer the same class in different time so that we can maximize your opportunities to come to every class. In addition, we offer the notes of the classes; therefore, even if you happen to miss a class, you can still keep the consistency of your learning and can catch up quickly and easily. In addition, we will create a learning forum. If you have any questions, you are very welcome to post them and everybody can help. We always expect good communication between the instructor and the students, and among the students.

Courses of 3j School

• Beginning Level Course

• Intermediate Level Course

• Advanced Level Course

1. Learning materials are designed by professional teachers who teach Chinese as foreign language to non-Chinese native speakers in the real life, and are tailored to be practical for authentic communication.2. Lessons will be taught by the teachers who design the course. The same lessons in different time slots are offered to maximize the possibility for people from different time zone to attend the class.3. The registered students will have the privilege to download and use all the study materials provided by 3 Immersions Chinese School for free.4. Well-designed and purposeful after-class exercises will be assigned to reinforce the learning, and they will be checked and the feedback will be provided.

Beginning Level Course

Target Students:

• 1. "True beginners" --- no experience of learning Chinese before.

• 2. "False beginners" --- have some experience of Learning Chinese before, but forget most of them.

Beginning Level Course

The goal of intermediate level course:

This is an intermediate language class presuming basic fluency in speaking and listening and focusing on reading and writing abilities. By the end of the class students are expected to have mastered 250-350 most commonly used characters and to have the ability to read basic Chinese texts. Students will be prepared for Advanced Modern Chinese or the commercial track.

Intermediate Level Course

• The Content of the intermediate course

• 1. Enlarge the Chinese vocabulary.2. Be farmiliar with the Chinese sentence structure and grammar.3. Be competent to communicate in Chinese in different situation.4. Analysis the writing techniques.5. Appreciation of Chinese poetry.

Intermediate Level Course

The advanced level of Mandarin course requires students who

• 1. Have briefly mastered the Pinyin system and the tones, can use Pinyin and mark tones correctly

• 2. Are capable of adapting the teaching in 50% Mandarin

• 3. Have made use of 500 characters and understand their common meaning

• 4. Have understood the basic grammar to make simple sentences and everyday expressions

• 5. Have the fundamental knowledge of Chinese culture and language background

Advanced Level Course

The target of the advanced course:

• 1. Have mastered the perfect pronunciation of Mandarin, and have some knowledge of dialect pronunciation

• 2. Are able to read various kinds of Mandarin magazines, modern novels as well as some simple ancient language, with the help of dictionaries

• 3. Expand the vocabulary into 1000-2000. Master 500 common characters with the well understanding of every common meaning

• 4. To be flexible to make sentences in writing and speaking with the guide of the correct grammar

• 5. Take a deep look of Chinese culture, in terms of China nature, history, geography, politics, etc.

Advanced Level Course

Basic language courses include:

• 1. Advanced Mandarin Pronunciation and Tones

• 2. Advanced Mandarin Listening

• 3. Advanced Mandarin Reading (Magazines)

• 4. Advanced Mandarin Speaking

• 5. Advanced Mandarin Writing

Advanced Level Course

Applied Language Courses include:

• 1. Ancient Chinese Poetry

• 2. Modern Chinese Literature (novels, operas, films)

• 3. China History and Politics

• 4. China Geography and Custom

• 5. Business Mandarin

Advanced Level Course

Benefits for Students• 1). People can learn native Chinese language at home without coming

out

• 2). Learn Native Chinese Mandarin with professional instructors at low cost

• 3). Supplementary learning material available

• 4). Traditional Chinese-style environment for immersive learning

• 5). Flexible course selection system

• 6).Take advantage of numerous in-world resource, such residents form Chinese community, Chinese events, Chinese group, etc..

• 7). Creative teaching methods inspire the interest of students to learn Chinese language

Feedback from one student of intermediate class

• “First of all, thank you both for the great class. I have learned a lot!

• - I learned a lot of ancient/exotic vocabulary and the usage of Chinese in ancient times. I didn't know that there was so a huge difference between old and modern Chinese.

• - I got an overview about Chinese grammar and was very happy that it is quite non-existant. Nearly everything is done with signal words, cool.

• - I learned a lot of nifty details about the Chinese language. I'm sure Vivian was annoyed about all the questions that I asked and confused her ;-) .

• - I liked the old stories and tales that we used. They gave a good impression of the Chinese culture and history.

• - Great vocabulary list with useful words. ”

Experience Sharing• To maximize the opportunities of Chinese lovers to learn and

practice the Chinese

• 2). To get feedback from the instructors and students so as to improve the course instruction.

• 3). To find a balance between Chinese basic skills training and applied knowledge instruction

• 4).Supplementary activities are well-designed to facilitate the application of the language, including task-based activities, 3D learning games and Chinese salon where learners can communicate with Chinese native speakers. Activities also provide chances for the learners to share their learning experience with each other.

• 5).We offer a platform to all Chinese lovers with a wealth of Chinese cultural knowledge about history, art, sport, geography.The staff at 3jschool is dedicated to serving its readers by building a bridge for people around the world to get acquainted with China.

3jSchool Website:

http://www.3jlife.com/cnSchool/

In-world Location:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/lenovo/211/48/41

Contact Us:

SL name: Mayia Seesaw

Email: maya@3immersions.com

Courses of 3j School

• Beginning Level Course

• Intermediate Level Course

• Advanced Level Course

slanguages.net

SLanguages 2009

This presentation was given at

SLanguages 2009

The Conference for Language Education in Virtual Worlds