Mandarin level 3 plus

Revised August 2025

Prerequisite for entry

Successful completion of Mandarin syllabus level 3 at UCL CLIE or equivalent.

Term duration

10 x 2-hour classes.

Aims and objectives

This course is designed to enhance your conversational Mandarin skills and cultural understanding. By the end of the course, you will be able to:

• Engage in fluent discussions with native speakers on personal, social, and current issues.
• Use appropriate linguistic structures to express yourself effectively.
• Explore Chinese culture further using authentic materials.

Functions

• Talking about places of natural beauty through comparisons.
• Describing people’s appearances.
• Understanding and discussing medical instructions.
• Talking about personality traits and characteristics.

Course content

Main topics/themes to be covered:

• Sightseeing and natural beauty spots.
• People’s appearances, sportswear, and sizes.
• Visiting the doctor, illnesses, and healthy lifestyles.
• Friendships and personal characteristics.

Linguistic structures/ Phonetics

• Pronunciation:
  • Differences between “j” and “z”.
  • The neutral tone.
  • Tone sandhi: 不 and 一.
  • Differences between “s” and “sh”.

Grammar

• 除了……以外，还…… (Apart from...also...).
• Expressing percentages with 百分之…….
• Describing immediate actions using 就……了.
• Using auxiliary words 的/得/地.
• Forming Wh-questions.
• Differences between 有一点 and 一点儿.

Learning resources

Books

Discover China: Student's Book Two, edited by Chen Xin, Jing Lili , Macmillan, Chapters 9-12
ISBN: 9780230406391

Discover China: Workbook Two, Chapters 9-12
ISBN: 9780230406407

Bilingual Dictionaries

• Oxford Concise English Chinese/Chinese English Dictionary

Websites

Dictionary

In addition there are supplementary materials for self-study in the Self-Access Centre.