Calligraphy Education in Teaching Chinese as a Second Language

Abstract

This chapter focuses on Chinese calligraphy education offered by Chinese or (East) Asian language and culture programs in US universities at the undergraduate level. Addressing the why, what, and how of calligraphy teaching in this particular context, the chapter begins with a discussion on the broad significance of calligraphy instruction, including its artistic value, intellectual import, and cultural meaning as well as the contribution of calligraphy courses to student growth and overall curriculum development. Then, to address the question of what to teach, the chapter examines the current student learning outcomes and proposes to further the goals of calligraphy education in alignment with those of the broader liberal education. Finally, focusing on the pedagogical aspect, that is, the “how” of calligraphy instruction, the chapter discusses the methodology that may be used to support such efforts. It argues that calligraphy education at the undergraduate level should be restructured to focus on cultivating student dispositions by teaching cultural perspectives first and foremost. The chapter proposes a cultural-perspective-led approach to calligraphy instruction and offers specific examples to illustrate this approach.