The Faculty of Cultural Studies’s Chinese Literature Study Program of Universitas Brawijaya, in cooperation with the New Sinology Program of the Language Cooperation Center of the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China, has successfully completed the online credit course “Sociology of Literature and Culture” last week (December 18th – December 22nd), which was conducted by Yang Shaofang Laoshi from the School of International Education of the Tianjin Foreign Studies University, China, with the support of the Sinological Research Division of the Language Cooperation Center, and completed the semester of lectures.
Sociology of Literature and Culture is a compulsory course for undergraduate majors in the Chinese Literature students, and it is a core subject in the syllabus of the Chinese Department. The course puts forward a relatively high demand on students’ Chinese language proficiency and knowledge of Chinese literature and contemporary Chinese social situations, and it is also a difficult teaching point for Chinese students. This is because the sociology of literature and culture not only requires students to have a basic understanding of the history of Chinese literature, but also to have a grasp of the richness of Chinese culture embedded in literature, but also requires students to find the connection points with culture and literature in the development of contemporary Chinese society, and to interpret the various aspects of the characteristics of the current situation of Chinese social development through the core elements of Chinese culture and literature.
Yang Shaofang Laoshi has more than ten years of experience in teaching Chinese as a foreign language and is deeply engaged in the field of international Chinese language education. She has a PhD in Overseas Sinology Studies from Beijing Foreign Studies University, and has rich experience in the overseas dissemination of Chinese culture and the teaching of Chinese language and culture. In the course “Sociology of Literature and Culture”, Yang Laoshi not only takes into account the key points of the integration of Chinese literature and contemporary Chinese society, finding the similarities and differences between the two, but also selects the representative cultural elements of the contemporary Chinese society, paying special attention to the general trend of the contemporary development of China and Indonesia, and the mutual understanding of the mutual culture of the two countries. Due to the difficulty of the course, Ms. Yang’s explanation is concise and clear, and she combines diversified teaching materials with text, images, video and audio to make the course, which is quite theoretical and full of concepts and terms, lively.
From Yuan Longping’s “Chinese Dream”, in which food is the most important thing for the people, to China’s poverty reduction and rural revitalization; from China’s economic development and scientific and technological innovation to educational reform and cultural heritage, in this semester’s course, Ms. Yang has unfolded a panoramic view of contemporary Chinese society for Chinese language majors, which not only gives students both perceptual and rational knowledge of the inheritance and presentation of Chinese literature and traditional culture in contemporary Chinese society, but also improves their language skills such as listening, speaking, reading and writing. In this semester’s course, Yang Laoshi has developed a panoramic view of contemporary Chinese society, which not only enables students to have both perceptual and rational perceptions of Chinese literature and traditional culture in contemporary Chinese society, but also improves their Chinese language skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing, etc. Yang Laoshi has also made a special effort to introduce Chinese undergraduates to China if it continues to continue the intercommunication and exchange of the Ancient Silk Road to provide experience for the construction of the Belt and Road of the present day, and to solidify the strategic cooperative partnership with Indonesia in the continuous win-win cooperation, for example, the opening of the KCIC, For example, the completion of the Javan High Speed Railway, the participation of Indonesian business organizations in the China Import and Export Fair and Canton Fair, and the support and opportunities for Sino-Indonesian educational exchanges brought about by cultural communication institutions and projects, such as the Confucius Institute in Indonesia and the Hainan ASEAN International Education Program in China, are useful references for undergraduates of Chinese language majors at the University of Brawijaya in their choice of future careers and postgraduate studies.
Through this semester’s “Sociology of Literature and Culture” course of the “New Sinology Program”, Chinese undergraduates have gained a comprehensive understanding of classical Chinese literature, and their Chinese language proficiency has been significantly improved under the guidance of professional and experienced Chinese teachers.
(Written by: Ms. Yang Shaofang, Ms. Wei Jiali)