Chinese Language Courses

Basic Mandarin conversational skills for effective communication in familiar, everyday Chinese contexts and better understanding of intercultural communication through content-based language acquisition. Graded CR/NC.

This course is for students with no previous experience in Mandarin. Not available for credit to East Asian Area Studies, East Asian Languages and Cultures, and East Asian Studies majors and minors.

• EALC 101 Syllabus

The first half of EALC 104: Chinese I. The sound system of modern Chinese; aural comprehension, oral expression, basic patterns and writing system. Completion of both 103a and 103b is treated as equivalent as completion of 104.

• EALC 103a Syllabus

The second half of EALC 104: Chinese I. The sound system of modern Chinese; aural comprehension, oral expression, basic patterns and writing system. Completion of both 103a and 103b is treated as equivalent as completion of 104.

• EALC 103b Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 103a at USC or its equivalent.

This course introduces students to the origin of the basic components of Chinese scripts and the basic principles and styles of calligraphy.

• EALC 102 Syllabus

Furthers students’ knowledge in the Chinese writing system and develops students’ skills in a more advanced calligraphy style.

• EALC 202 Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 102 at USC or its equivalent.

The sound system of modern Chinese; aural comprehension, oral expression, basic patterns, and writing system.

• EALC 104 Syllabus

Dialogue practice and conversation; reading of simple stories and essays; comparison of Chinese and English grammar; writing of paragraphs.

• EALC 106 Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 104 or EALC 103B at USC or its equivalent.

Conversational practice: reading of stories and essays; writing of short essays.

• EALC 204 Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 106 at USC or its equivalent.

Continuation of 204, with emphasis on reading and writing, frequent interaction with native speakers.

• EALC 206 Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 204 at USC or its equivalent.

Combined classroom discussion and supervised internship at companies. Practical experience in applying communication and cultural knowledge in a professional, “real world” employment context.

• EALC 366 Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 206 at USC or its equivalent.

Reading selections from different styles of modern Chinese writings, analysis of stylistic techniques and syntactic structure, composition, and translation.

• EALC 304 Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 206 at USC or its equivalent.

Continuation of 304; composition exercises in different styles of writing.

• EALC 306 Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 304 at USC or its equivalent.

Readings in modern Chinese literary, documentary, and epistolary styles; stylistic and syntactic analysis; composition; translation.

• EALC 404 Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 306 at USC or its equivalent.

Continuation of 404.

• EALC 406 Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 404 at USC or its equivalent.

Reading selections from newspaper articles and online reports to further develop proficiency in advanced Chinese and understanding of the society and culture.

• EALC 407 Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 404 at USC or its equivalent.

Practice in the basic vocabulary and idioms of foreign trade and other commercial transactions in Mandarin.

• EALC 412a Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 306 at USC or its equivalent.

Continuation of EALC 412a.

• EALC 412b Syllabus
• Prerequisite: EALC 412a at USC or its equivalent.