Century-long evolution of Chinese oral communication teaching and research

Abstract

In linguistics, Chinese oral communication is important for maintaining and enhancing the utilization and innovation of Chinese language in China. However, traditional Chinese language teaching focuses more on writing and reading than on oral skills. Based on China’s historical milestone, Chinese oral communication is taught according to its characteristics. This century-old historical progression of Chinese oral communication teachings can be divided into five stages: the foundational period dedicated to unifying both spoken and written language, the awakening period focusing on the emergence of the spoken language education, the exploratory period focusing on unidirectional pragmatics, the transitional period inclining towards multi-interactive pragmatics, and the transformational period expanding the context of pragmatics. Therefore, it proposes new requirements Chinese oral communication education should practice in order to cultivate positive communicators with “expressive power” in this new era.