Students in Appalachian’s summer 2018 STARTALK Program learn a Chinese fan dance with Rachel Zhao, a teacher at Eastway Elementary School in Durham, far left in foreground, who participated as an instructor in the program. Photo by Ellen Gwin Burnette
BOONE, N.C. — For the second consecutive year, high school students of the High Country will have the opportunity to embark on a virtual journey to Beijing and learn about Chinese language and culture through Appalachian State University’s STARTALK Program.
Dr. Xiaofei Tu, assistant professor in Appalachian’s Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, received $89,815 from STARTALK — a project funded by the National Security Agency and administered by the National Foreign Language Center — to host the Chinese immersion program on Appalachian’s campus from July 8–26.
Tu collaborated with Dr. Wendy Xie, associate professor in the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, for the project.
Students in the program will receive six hours of formal classroom instruction each day and participate in several Chinese cultural activities, such as martial arts/Taiji, calligraphy, painting, Chinese chess games, Chinese singing and dancing, cooking, film viewing and paper cutting/crafts.
Rising ninth through 12th grade students with limited or no previous exposure to Chinese are eligible for participation in the program.
The STARTALK grant covers all program costs — room and board, tuition, textbooks and other learning materials — for the selected students.
To learn more about the program and how to apply, visit https://dllc.appstate.edu/undergraduate/startalk. For questions about the program, contact Tu at 828-262-6649 or tux@appstate.edu.
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Appalachian’s STARTALK Program immerses students in Chinese language, culture
About the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures
The Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures offers courses that enhance students’ understanding of other cultures and languages as well as their own, making them prepared for lifelong learning in a multicultural world. Learn more at https://dllc.appstate.edu.
About the College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) at Appalachian State University is home to 17 academic departments, two centers and one residential college. These units span the humanities and the social, mathematical and natural sciences. CAS aims to develop a distinctive identity built upon our university's strengths, traditions and locations. The college’s values lie not only in service to the university and local community, but through inspiring, training, educating and sustaining the development of its students as global citizens. More than 6,800 student majors are enrolled in the college. As the college is also largely responsible for implementing App State’s general education curriculum, it is heavily involved in the education of all students at the university, including those pursuing majors in other colleges. Learn more at https://cas.appstate.edu.
About Appalachian State University
As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, affordable education for all. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.
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