Chinese as a Second Language. The journal of the Chinese Language Teachers Association, USA - Volume 60, Issue 3, 2025

Abstract

The first part of this article provides a historical background on how Chinese language entered the American academic curriculum, from its fringe status in the first half of the 20th century to its inclusion starting around 1960. Focus is placed on the in-situ component, which has always been deemed essential for true mastery of the language.

With the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, Chinese language learning in-situ was impacted by geopolitics for the first time. From that point onward until the re-opening of China around 1980, mainland China was closed to American students. The options available for in-situ language programs were limited to Taiwan and Hong Kong. This article will cover the history of the Inter-University Program for Chinese Language Studies (IUP) (aka “Stanford Center”), including its precursors the Cornell Program and the Stanford Program, its 34 years at National Taiwan University, and its successors in Taiwan and Beijing.

The theme of the article is how IUP weathered the geopolitical storms and maintained academic integrity within a highly politicized environment. The article will touch on the circumstances that enabled the founding of IUP in Taiwan in 1963 as well as provide some details about how major shifts in U.S. relations with the PRC and Republic of China (ROC) led to IUP’s most significant transition in 1997. This article will also cover the internal operations of the Center, including its pedagogical methodology which has endured 60+ years to the present day.

抽象的

普林斯顿北京暑期中文培训班，简称普北班，是1993年在北京师范大学成立的，至今已31年了。普北班在国际中文教学界所代表的是务实认真的教学作风，我们不追随洋理论，不赶时髦，不趋极端。我们相信字正腔圆是文化得体的先决条件，先准后快，是教授汉语的基本原则。

Abstract

The Johns Hopkins University-Nanjing University Center for Chinese and American Studies, founded in 1986 in Nanjing, was the first educational collaboration between a university in the United States and China since the 1940s. The Center is not a language program per se but is content-based, offering one- and two-year graduate curricula in Chinese History; International Politics; International Economics; International and Comparative Law; and Energy, Resources, and the Environment. Its student body consists of 45–70 international students, whose courses are mostly taught by Chinese faculty in Chinese as well as up to 120 Chinese graduate students, whose courses are mostly taught by international faculty in English. The Center includes outstanding library facilities with an uncensored, open-stack research library and freedom of expression within the building. This article discusses several issues related to the study of Chinese language and area studies in situ, including strategies used by instructors to facilitate comprehension and coping strategies that students have developed. Despite many challenges, the two partnering universities and their respective governments have long believed that both sides benefit in continuing to support and develop the Center. Having weathered the vicissitudes of ever-changing U.S.-Chinese relations for well over three decades, the Center is looking forward to the 40th anniversary of its founding in September 2026.

抽象的

本文以香港中文大学雅礼中国语文研习所 (Yale-China Chinese Language Center, 简称CLC) 的成立和发展为例，探讨中美两国之间的关系对汉语二语教学和学习者的影响。在研习所成立至今六十几年的汉语二语教学实践中，我们可以看到两国关系除了直接影响来自美国的汉语二语学习者，在生源、教学资源、课程设置等方面也对整个领域有着很大的影响，包括沉浸项目，特别是与中国关系密切的交流项目。在二语教学领域，沉浸项目的出现与这一领域教学理念和关注点在过去几十年中发生的变化有着明显的因果关系，这些变化也是本文讨论的重点之一，因为两国关系对侧重“语用为纲”语言项目的影响远大于对“结构为纲”项目的影响。研习所立足香港，从前殖民地到共和国特区，香港这个中西文化交汇点在不同时期都有着自身独特的地位和功能，不管是中美关系处于“冰河期”还是“蜜月期”，香港的汉语二语教学“借势”和“避坑”的经验教训，在我们认真思考国际中文教育的过去、现在和将来的时候，或许能带来一些启示。

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