A lecture entitled “Paedagogical Grammar: Its Status and Formation in the International Education of Chinese” has recently been held at the University of Macau (UM).
Held by the public university’s Faculty of Arts and Humanities (FAH) and delivered by Columbia University’s Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures Professor Liu Lening, the lecture was the third in the “Macao Humanities Forum” for the 2024/2025 academic year, according to a Wednesday statement by the university.
The statement said that Prof. Liu first discussed the background of “how international Chinese education became a discipline in higher education, and presented an ontological perspective on the discipline”. He also noted that the core of international Chinese education research is “the structure and function of Chinese as reflected in paedagogical grammar”.
The statement noted that Liu also noted that grammar “should be guided by the principles of accuracy, conciseness and sufficiency”, and he advocated the incorporation of linguistics’ latest findings into paedagogy.
Prof. Liu illustrated “the need for Chinese language teachers to explain subtle grammatical issues” through three examples involving “來” (lái, a Chinese verb meaning “come” in English), along with the significance of addressing the differences between learners of different linguistic backgrounds and their grammatical errors.
Questions on strategies for applying paedagogical grammar* in teaching scenarios were also raised and discussed during a Q&A session.
A speech by FAH Assistant Dean Joaquim Kuong Io Kei highlighted the importance of learning Chinese, adding that new perspectives and approaches in paedagogical grammar can help address the challenges faced by its learners.
*Paedagogical grammar refers to the branch of grammar that is specifically designed for teaching and learning languages. It focuses on the rules and structures of a language as they are taught to learners, rather than how they are used by native speakers in natural contexts. – Poe
This undated handout photo provided by the University of Macau (UM) shows Columbia University’s Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures Prof. Liu Lening delivering a lecture at UM recently.
