A First Look at Using the Flipped Classroom Method for Chinese Teaching in Irish Secondary Schools

Abstract

Chinese officially became one of the Irish Leaving Certificate subjects in 2022, but the current Chinese language curriculum in Irish secondary schools shows shortcomings such as short class periods and few lessons, which do not meet the needs of students and examinations. This article aims to develop a flipped Chinese teaching and learning model suitable for Irish secondary schools and apply it to practical teaching. The researchers used this model and methodology to teach 20– hour Chinese course to 20 transition year students of an Irish secondary school. Students' satisfaction and acceptance of the flipped classroom approach to Chinese language teaching was investigated through a questionnaire, and the approach's effectiveness was assessed through a test. The results showed that this flipped Chinese course helped the students achieve the intended objectives, met their learning needs, improved their self-learning ability, and was well received. Meanwhile, the researchers also identified some difficulties and problems encountered in their teaching practice and made recommendations. The researchers hope that this study will facilitate the development of Chinese language programmes in Irish secondary schools, create a suitable Chinese teaching method for Irish secondary schools and promote the localisation of Chinese language programmes in Ireland.