March 7, 2025
字圆其说 x 上海外国语大学 (SISU)
Workshop
Introduced by Professor Hui He from Shanghai International Studies University, a group of graduate students majoring in Teaching Chinese to Speakers of Other Languages paid a special visit to the exhibition A Cosmos Within Chinese Characters. As part of their visit, Professor Qian Liu (Co-I) led an engaging workshop on reimagining Chinese language teaching with a 21st-century mindset, designed especially for Gen Z learners.
Drawing on vivid, real-life examples ranging from in-class strategies to extracurricular design, Professor Liu highlighted the I Got One project as a powerful case study in learner-driven, culturally responsive pedagogy. The students were deeply impressed by the creative methodologies, cross-cultural lens, and interactive nature of the project.
Many expressed how the experience challenged their assumptions about what Chinese language instruction could look like, inviting them to think beyond rote memorization and toward storytelling, collaboration, and playful experimentation. The visit left them inspired, not only with fresh ideas for their own future classrooms, but also with a renewed sense of purpose in making language learning relevant, joyful, and globally connected.