Dear new students,
Welcome to Penn! I am glad to learn that you want to take Chinese. It’s a smart choice and I guarantee you won’t regret it.
Taking the placement test is the best way to figure out the proper Chinese course for you. However, here is a quick self-assessment you can use, which is pretty accurate.
Please translate the following three English passages into Chinese characters.
1) During Chinese New Year many Chinese would go home to visit their family. On New Year’s Day the whole family would eat dumplings together while watching TV. After dinner, parents would give the children red envelopes so the children can go buy the things they like.
(2) In recent years, the most common means for domestic long-distance transportation in China is high-speed railways. This is because, on one hand, airports are usually far from the downtown areas; and on the other hand, flights are often delayed. Therefore, more and more people choose to take the high-speed railways when they travel.
(3) When the word “tradition” is brought up, many people would treat it as if it were a fixed thing, incapable of changing. In fact, when the U.S. was powerful, Americans were never worried that absorbing foreign cultures would influence their “traditions.” Instead, these foreign cultures made the local American culture richer.
1. If you can’t translate the first paragraph, you probably should take CHIN 0100 (or CHIN 0210 if you want to take an intensive course).
2. If you can translate the first paragraph but can’t translate the second paragraph, you probably should take CHIN 0300 (or 0410 if you want to take an intensive course, or CHIN 0320 if you speak some Mandarin at home)
3. If you can translate the second paragraph but can’t translate the third paragraph, you probably should take CHIN 0500 (or CHIN 0520 if you speak some Mandarin at home).
4. If you can translate the third paragraph, you probably should take CHIN 0700 or other Chinese courses at 0700+ level.
Again, taking the placement test is the most accurate way to figure out the proper Chinese course for you. Hope to see you soon in August.