Topic : Health and Wellness

Prescribed Learning Outcomes:

Communicating

It is expected that students will:

• use appropriate vocabulary to communicate needs, desires, and emotions
• describe events, experiences, and procedures sequentially

Acquiring Information

It is expected that students will:

• process and adapt information from age-appropriate Chinese-language resources to complete authentic tasks
• convey acquired information with an increasing level of competency in oral and written language

Overview

• prepared role plays or dialogues
• written notes excusing absence due to illness
• listening comprehension (written summaries of audiotape information)

Planning for Assessment and Evaluation

• The teacher reviewed previously learned vocabulary and patterns related to parts of the body, health, and illness. The teacher and student volunteers then role-played conversations about illness while others tried to identify the problems and noted new vocabulary.

• Students practised names of illnesses by playing an interview game. To initiate the game, the teacher prepared cards with names of common illnesses. Each student took a turn choosing a card at random, then used information from the card to respond to health-related questions posed by classmates. Students used English-Chinese/Hanyu Pinyin dictionaries to find vocabulary they needed.

• Each student was asked to learn about traditional Chinese medicine and to research one traditional belief or treatment. Students used a variety of materials and resources in their research (e.g., the library, the Internet, people in the community, health care workers). Then they discussed what they had learned. The teacher collected and summarized the information on charts, presenting some of it in Chinese characters and Pinyin.

• Working with partners, students prepared and presented two- to three-minute role plays that involved going to the doctor. The teacher assigned a different illness or set of symptoms to each pair (e.g., fever, stomachache, rash, cold, sore throat, broken limb). The role plays included discussion of symptoms and instructions recommended by the doctors.

• Students wrote "excuse notes," using information from their role plays to explain to the teacher why they had been absent from school. Each note (five or six sentences) included a description of some of the symptoms of the student's illness. They used Chinese characters wherever possible, but Pinyin was permitted for less familiar words. Students also used English-Chinese/Hanyu Pinyin dictionaries to find unfamiliar words.

• To check on students' listening comprehension, the teacher prepared a short audiotaped conversation in which three students fluent in Chinese talked about a recent flu epidemic in the school. The tape included information such as L“li b“ng le sĝan tiĝan, tĝa h‡i juŽde h˙en b shĝufu. Students listened to the tape twice, making note of key information and language. Then they summarized the information in written form using Chinese characters and Pinyin as much as possible. To help students, the teacher provided some guiding questions.

Defining the Criteria

Role Play

To what extent does the student:

• provide relevant and accurate details, including symptoms and doctor's instructions
• interact clearly and co-operatively with partner
• speak in phrases and sentences rather than word by word
• use correct vocabulary for body parts, ailments, and remedies
• apply appropriate patterns (e.g., seeking information from health professional, asking about symptoms, giving directions or advice)
• follow conventions appropriate for situation and relationship (e.g., greetings)

Excuse Note

Meaning/Content

• information is clear, relevant, and accurate (outlines nature of illness, symptoms)
• details are included to enhance explanation
• clear and logical organization of details enhances message and meaning

Language

• appropriate vocabulary and patterns are used to support message
• Pinyin spelling and tone markers are correct
• Chinese characters are written correctly

Listening Comprehension (Written Summary of Audiotape Information)

To what extent does the student:

• accurately identify the situation, topic, and main ideas of the conversation
• provide accurate and relevant details to support main ideas
• show understanding of relationships among ideas and individuals involved in the conversation

Assessing and Evaluating Student Performance

Although students presented their role plays in pairs, they were each given individual scores based on the specific competencies they demonstrated.

Role Play

Criteria	Rating		Comments
	Student 1	Student 2
provides relevent and accurate details (including symptoms and doctor's instructions)
clear interaction and cooperation between partners
fluid-speaks in phrases and sentences rather than word by word
uses correct vocabulary for body parts, ailments, and remedies
applies appropriate patterns (e.g., seeking advice, asking about symptoms, giving directions or advice)
follows conventions appropriate for situation and relationship (e.g., greetings)

Key: 

4-String: criteria fully demonstrated with ease.
3-Competent: criteria demonstrateds; may need occasional support.
2-Developing: criteria partially demonstrated.
1-Limited: some evidence of criteria.
0-Not evident.

Excuse Notes

Rating	Criteria
A	Goes beyond the requirements of the task to demonstrate extended learning or new applications. Takes risk with language, sometimes making errors when attempting to express complex ideas or new patterns. Information is clear, relevant, accurate, and logically organized. Includes credible explanations and uses a range of vocabulary and structures to enrich expression. Uses Chinese characters, formed correctly, for many words and expression. Pinyin is spelled correctly and includes tone markers. May include minor errors, but these do not impede meaning.
B	Information is clear, relevant, accurate, and detailed. Includes credible explanations and supporting details. Uses a range of useful vocabulary and structures, but may be repetitive. Includes Chinese characters for familiar words. Pinyin is spelled correctly and includes tone markers. May include errors, but these do not hinder meaning.
C	Information is relevant and accurate but is unclear in some places and may lack detail. Links between ideas are often weak. Vocabulary and patterns are basic and somewhat repetitive. Errors are more common but do not seriously affect meaning. May include few Chinese characters or form some of these incorrectly. Pinyin is generally spelled correctly but may include occasional errors in tone markers.
IP/F	Information or message is unclear, incomplete, or inappropriate. May fail to meet required length or contain numerous errors that make it difficult to understand.

Listening Comprehension
(Written Summary of Audiotape Information)

Rating	Criteria
A	Summary shows thorough understanding of the information in the conversation. Includes substantial accurate detail and explains relationships among ideas.
B	Summary shows understanding of key points and includes some supporting details.
C	Summary shows basic understanding of the context, topic, and one or two key points. May include some misinformation.
IP/F	Summary is incomplete or largely inaccurate.

Note: Summary may include English without penalty tro the student.

  BC Ministry of Education Home Page