Eight 1.5-hour lectures on Chinese culture in English, provided free of charge; August 1st - August 8th, 2023, daily
Xi’an China
[Course overview]
This summer school course is designed to help international students acquire cultural knowledge of China through a brief introduction to the history of Chinese civilization and important elements of contemporary Chinese culture. The course originates from Chinese and Western Cultures: A Comparison, a general education core course developed for undergraduate students at Xi’an Jiaotong University, a leading national university in China. For the purpose of this summer school, we modify the teaching focus to elements of Chinese culture, while retaining necessary references to other cultures to support understanding of and reflection on cultural and intercultural topics that the course covers.
[Features of the course]
This course draws upon teaching and research contributions from multiple disciplines. Activities and case study assignments are designed to encourage reflections on stereotypes and generalizations and promote awareness of cultural complexity and dynamics. All lectures incorporate discussions of the significance of intercultural communication, supporting deepened understandings of Chinese culture while increasing students’ capacities for informed engagement in today’s increasingly interconnected and interdependent world.
[Teaching faculty]
Mei Tian
Mei TIAN, PhD from the University of Bath, UK, is a professor in the School of Foreign Studies at Xi’an Jiaotong University. Her recent research focuses on international student experiences in China. She has published 50 book chapters and journal articles. Her recent publications include Academic Experiences of International Students in Chinese Higher Education (London: Routledge). She reviews manuscripts for over 10 SSCI/SCI journals, and serves as an executive member of the learning science research committee, China Association of Higher Education.
Ruiying YANG
Ruiying YANG, Professor, PhD from the National University of Singapore; research interests include: Genre analysis, EAP teaching and corpus linguistics as well cultural studies; published widely, including peer-reviewed journal articles, monographs and textbooks; serving on the Board of Directors of the Association of English for Specific Purposes.
Fengling PENG
Dr. Fengling PENG is a professor in the School of Foreign Studies at Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China. She has rich experience teaching various cultural courses. Upon obtaining her PhD of World History from Shaanxi Normal University, she began her most substantial research to date, which is region and country-specific studies, including cultural studies and cold war studies.
Dongmei GE
Dongmei GE is an associate professor in the School of Foreign Studies of Xi’an Jiaotong University, China. Her main research field falls in applied linguistics and genre analysis. Her interests also include translation and culture study.
Carla BRIFFETT AKTAS
Dr Carla BRIFFETT AKTAS is an associate professor in the School of Foreign Studies at Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China. She has experience teaching in Canada, the UK, and Switzerland at various levels of education. Upon obtaining her PhD from Lancaster University she joined The Education University of Hong Kong where she began her most substantial research to date, which is developing the student voice for social justice (SVSJ) pedagogical method (funded by the FEHD Innovative Teaching (Beyond e-Learning) Grant 2019/20 (The Education University of Hong Kong) and the Anti-Epidemic Fund (AEF) 2.0 (SERIAL NO. FEHD-IE-13) (Government of Hong Kong)). She is now expanding SVSJ implementation across higher education disciplines and regions by embarking on her latest research project titled “Developing the student voice for social justice (SVSJ) pedagogical method: An international comparative study” with colleagues across Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Poland (funded by the Free Exploration and Independent Innovation Basic Research Fund (Xi’an Jiaotong University)). Her research interests include socially just education, pedagogy development, and student voice. She is actively engaged in education conferences worldwide and is a member of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), the British Educational Research Association (BERA), and the Comparative & International Education Society (CIES).
[Course arrangement]
Upon successful completion of all eight lectures, students can apply for a summer course Certificate of Completion issued by Xi’an Jiaotong University.
[Registration information]
Registration is now open globally for college students having interest in Chinese culture. Both domestic Chinese students and international students studying in and outside China are welcome to join the course.
Please register by filling out the application form at https://www.wjx.top/vm/m2iF4Ps.aspx, or sending an email to XJTUCulture2023@163.com with the subject of the email titled “Course Registration”.
You can also scan the QR code below to access the application form:
Registration deadline: July 30th, 2023
When registering for the course, please do provide your university email address for contact. Further information will be sent via email.
