Action! China - A Field Guide to Using Chinese in the Community

See this link for a video of a  Field Performance and a Performance Watch with evaluation samples

Action! China - A Field Guide to Using Chinese in the Community  is a guide for teachers to help them enhance their intermediate students' communication skills.  There are two types of activities: Field Performance and Watch Performance.

In a Field Performance, students must carry out a series of tasks in a specific field of action, such as getting on the bus in China, reading the information at the bus stop, enquiring about the bus fares, and having a conversation with a friend about the advantages of taking one bus or another, prices etc. Once finished, students will talk about their experience and the teacher will assess their oral expression. 

Watch Performance is about carefully observing a situation in which two or more Chinese people are communicating. The aim here is for the students to understand the situation and explain it to their teacher. 

Thanks to these scenarios of everyday life in China, students will not only acquire vocabulary and fluency, but also a more profound knowledge of Chinese culture. 

The link at the beginning of this book description contains a video of a student talking about a Field performance and a Performance Watch, as well as a sample assessment by a teacher. 

At the end of the book, Chinese teachers will find the activities in Chinese and also two annexes with ideas for and questions about Performance Watch.

Action! China - A Field Guide to Using Chinese in the Community  has been awarded the“Cengage Learning Excellence and Innovation” prize by the Chinese Language Teachers Association. 

Description by the publisher:

Winner of the Chinese Language Teachers Association’s 2014 Cengage Learning Excellence and Innovation in Teaching Chinese Award.

Action! China is a practical guide for intermediate to advanced students of Chinese wanting to maximize their study abroad experience and enhance their language skills.

This handy guide contains over 90 Field Performance tasks which prompt real-life interactions with native speakers. By carrying out these real-life tasks students refine and solidify existing communication skills and gain a fuller understanding of and participation in the target culture.

The guide also provides over 60 Performance Watch tasks which help students understand how native speakers accomplish communicative goals through guided observation and analysis of naturally occurring interactions.

Action! China helps students understand and participate socially in Chinese, guiding them through skill-getting and skill-using processes and enabling them to form meaningful connections with Chinese people in the community.

Book contents:

Topic 1 Getting Settled

Task 1.1 Getting Acquainted with a Language Partner

Task 1.2 Establishing Cell Phone Service

Task 1.3 Exploring the Local Neighborhood

Performance Watch 1

Topic 2 Eating

Task 2.1 Exploring the Campus Cafeteria

Task 2.2 Learning about Chinese Food

Task 2.3 Exploring Local Restaurants

Performance Watch 2

Topic 3 Taking Transportation

Task 3.1 Taking a Bus

Task 3.2 Taking the Subway

Task 3.3 Taking a Taxi

Performance Watch 3

Topic 4 Shopping

Task 4.1 Exploring Retail Stores

Task 4.2 Shopping for Clothes

Task 4.3 Interacting with Street Vendors

Performance Watch 4

Topic 5 Exploring Campus Culture

Task 5.1 Understanding Teacher-Student Relations

Task 5.2 Apologizing and Repairing Relationships

Task 5.3 Exploring Student Organizations

Performance Watch 5

Topic 6 Socializing

Task 6.1 Getting Together with Friends

Task 6.2 Being a Good Guest

Task 6.3 Being a Good Host

Performance Watch 6

Topic 7 Solving Problems

Task 7.1 Reporting and Recovering Lost Items

Task 7.2 Communicating by Phone

Task 7.3 Discussing Problems

Performance Watch 7

Topic 8 Protecting Health

Task 8.1 Exercising

Task 8.2 Taking Medicine

Task 8.3 Going to the Hospital

Performance Watch 8

Topic 9 Volunteering in the Community

Task 9.1 Introducing Yourself Formally

Task 9.2 Comparing Volunteer Experience

Task 9.3 Organizing Volunteer Activities

Performance Watch 9

Topic 10 Participating in Formal Events

Task 10.1 Understanding Dress Codes

Task 10.2 Learning Banquet Etiquette

Task 10.3 Making a Toast

Performance Watch 10

Topic 11 Planning a Trip

Task 11 Planning a Trip (Group Project)

Performance Watch 11

Topic 12 Talking about the City

Task 12.1 What People Love about a City (Group Project)

Task 12.2 Creating Promotional Materials (Group Project)

Performance Watch 12

Topic 13 Preparing Presentations

Task 13.1 Conducting an Interview

Task 13.2 Giving an Oral Presentation

Task 13.3 Improving Q&A Skills

Performance Watch 13

Topic 14 Taking Leave

Task 14.1 Preparing a Farewell Gift

Task 14.2 Preparing a Farewell Speech

Task 14.3 Saying Farewell upon Departure

Performance Watch 14