CTCSOL flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Tone sandhi

The change of a tone in connected speech. In Mandarin, two third tones become second plus third (nǐ hǎo → ní hǎo), and 不 changes to bú before a fourth tone.

Measure word

A classifier required between a numeral or demonstrative and a noun. Chinese uses different measure words for people (位), animals (只), long objects (条), and flat objects (张).

Phono-semantic character

A character composed of a semantic radical indicating meaning and a phonetic component indicating pronunciation. Over 80% of Chinese characters belong to this category, such as 妈 (女 + 马).

Aspect particle 了

The particle 了 marks perfective aspect, viewing an action as completed. It is not a past tense marker and can occur with future time if completion is asserted.

Topic-comment structure

A sentence pattern where the topic is stated first, followed by a comment about it. Example: 那本书我读过了 (That book, I have read). Chinese often uses this instead of subject-predicate order.

Erhua

The addition of the retroflex suffix 儿 to a syllable, changing the final. Common in northern Mandarin, as in 玩儿 (wánr) and 一点儿 (yīdiǎnr). Not all nouns accept it.

Krashen input hypothesis

Acquisition occurs when learners receive comprehensible input slightly beyond their current level (i+1). Meaning is negotiated from context, not from explicit grammar instruction.

Affective filter

A mental block raised by anxiety, low motivation, or low self-confidence. A high filter reduces the amount of input learners can process; a low filter supports acquisition.

Interlanguage

The learner's developing language system that lies between the first language and the target language. It has its own rules and is reshaped as learners receive input and feedback.

Fossilization

The stabilization of incorrect or non-native features in a learner's interlanguage. It can persist despite continued exposure and instruction, often due to insufficient corrective feedback.

Output hypothesis

Swain's claim that producing language promotes acquisition by forcing learners to process syntax and notice gaps between what they want to say and what they can say.

Negotiation of meaning

Interactional work such as clarification requests, confirmation checks, and comprehension checks that helps learners make input understandable and modify their output.

Communicative language teaching

An approach that treats language as a tool for communication. Lessons use authentic tasks, information gaps, role play, and pair or group work to develop fluency and accuracy.

Task-based language teaching

A methodology organized around meaningful tasks with a real outcome. Lessons follow pre-task, task cycle, and language focus stages, with attention to form after meaning.

Audiolingual method

A behaviorist approach using repetition, substitution drills, and pattern practice. It assumes language learning is habit formation and emphasizes accuracy and oral production.

Total Physical Response

A comprehension-based method in which learners respond physically to teacher commands. It reduces anxiety and is often used with beginners and young learners.

Presentation-Practice-Production

A lesson framework with three stages: the teacher presents new language, learners practice it in controlled activities, and then use it in freer production tasks.

Backward design

A planning approach that starts with desired learning outcomes, then determines acceptable evidence of learning, and finally designs instruction and activities to achieve those outcomes.

Scaffolding

Temporary support such as models, prompts, sentence frames, and graphic organizers that helps learners complete tasks they cannot yet do independently. Support is gradually removed.

SMART objectives

Learning objectives that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. They describe observable learner behavior rather than teacher activity.

Formative assessment

Ongoing checks during instruction, such as exit tickets, quizzes, and observation, used to adjust teaching and provide feedback rather than to assign a final grade.

Washback

The effect of testing on teaching and learning. Positive washback occurs when assessment encourages good classroom practice; negative washback narrows instruction to test preparation.

Reliability and validity

Reliability is the consistency of a test across occasions and raters. Validity is the extent to which a test measures what it is intended to measure.

Recast

An implicit corrective move in which the teacher reformulates a learner's incorrect utterance correctly without explicitly pointing out the error.

Student talking time

The proportion of lesson time learners spend speaking the target language. Effective lessons maximize STT and reduce unnecessary teacher talking time.

Face (mianzi)

A Chinese cultural concept referring to social dignity and reputation. It shapes indirect communication, avoidance of public criticism, and the importance of respectful feedback.

Guanxi

A Chinese concept of relational networks built on reciprocity and trust. It influences communication style, obligation, and the importance of relationship building before tasks.

Spring Festival

The most important Chinese festival, marking the lunar new year. Customs include family reunions, red envelopes, dumplings, and the Spring Festival Gala.

High-context communication

A communication style in which meaning is carried largely by context, relationships, and non-verbal cues rather than explicit words. Chinese culture is often described as high-context.

Reflective practice

The process of examining one's own teaching to improve it. Models include Gibbs' cycle (description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion, action plan) and Schön's reflection-in-action.

Action research

A cyclical inquiry by teachers into a classroom problem: plan, act, observe, reflect, then revise. It connects professional development directly to local teaching context.

Lesson study

A collaborative professional development process in which teachers jointly plan a research lesson, observe it, and debrief to refine teaching and learning.