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The Lion’s Eye
February 19, 2010
on: Campus
Chinese Language Course Now Offered
By Martina Delgado - Lions Eye Staff Writer - mdd5136@psu.edu
On Saturdays from twelve to three-
thirty in the afternoon Penn State Brandy-
wine offers a Chinese language course. The
course is CHNS 001 (Elementary Chinese)
and is taught by Professor Meilin Shief.
China is known for having numerous lan-
guages spoken throughout the country.
Imagine if speaking to someone in New
York was like speaking to someone in Italy.
That is how easy it is to come across anoth-
er dialect in China. However, CHNS 001 is
only teaching the Mandarin dialect. China,
being such a large and populous country,
has many languages and dialects. There-
fore, an official language had to be decided
in order for the government to work effi-
ciently.
Mandarin, meaning “common lan-
guage,” was selected as a standard. It is
“taught in many schools in China as well
for communication purposes. According to
About.com, Chinese languages are tonal,
which means it is not so much what you
say, but the way you say it that determines
its meaning. This can sometimes be hard
for people of the Western culture, but can
be interesting seeing the vast differences in
languages and meaning.
When asking senior Teron Meyers
(Corporate Communications Major) about
his experience in CHNS 001, he confirmed
that he enjoyed the class despite the rumors
that Chinese is a difficult language to learn.
When asked if he learned any other dialects
in the class, Teron answered “no” but added
“we are learning how to write Chinese. We
are learning both traditional and simplified
styles.” Teron took this class not because it
was a requirement for his degree, but be-
cause he is fascinated with Asian cultures,
and felt it would be a challenge. “I like to
challenge myself, especially with languag-
es” he noted. “I have many Mandarin Chi-
nese-speaking friends. I practice with one
of my close friends when I get the chance”
he added. Even though this did fulfill a
degree requirement, Teron feels taking this
class will benefit him in the future. “Be-
cause communications is my major, it will
probably aid me in some shape or form.
Specifically I am interested in marketing.
Perhaps I could one day work for a compa-
ny overseas. There are endless possibilities
with using the language for a career.”
Learning different languages and
mastering them has proven successful in
acquiring a job and maintaining a career
after college. Penn State Brandywine plans
in the future to bring more languages to the
campus for students who are interested in
expanding their knowledge on languages
and cultures.
From The Desk of...
--The Student Government Association --
Hello Everyone ! Brittney Walker, your
Student Government President here, giving you a
brief update on what SGA’s been doing. As many
of you know SGA and SOCA (Society of Carib-
bean Americans) are collecting donated items ; je
as well as accepting monetary donations for the hy 4 na
victims of the Haiti Quake. We will be accepting =~ :
donations from now until April 30, 2010 (the last
day of classes). ALL donations will be sent to
Haiti via UNICEF ! We’re asking that the campus
community help us with our efforts. Though Haiti
isn’t getting much attention from the press, they
still need our help ! If you have any questions,
feel free to email me at bvw5024@psu.edu. I
want to personally thank all students, faculty, and
} ‘staff who have already donated to this cause. We
appreciate you very much !
We are also in the works of planning a
Spring Week ! We’re looking for student input.
What fun events would you like to see happen?
A Field Day? Powderpuff Football? Karaoke?
Video Game Competition? Let us know !
Please remember to visit our Learning,
Math and Writing Centers if you need help with
assignments. We have amazing tutors ! Also, we
have a Career Fair coming up soon in March.
This is a great opportunity for every student, es-
pecially if you are looking for an internship/job !
Please keep your eyes open for flyers with infor-
mation regarding this event.
Lastly, congratulations to our 2 THON
Dancers Martina Gill and Sean O’Connor !!
We're so proud of you for dancing for 46 hours
/ straight FTK !
Cy HH
ol . 44
ul Food Fest. Photo by Evan Kroboth.
ie
Buffet big hit with students and staff at So
Cheyney University Choir performing in the Tomezsko Lounge.
Photo by Evan Kroboth.
ths