Chinese 1

Course information

Learning outcomes

Upon completing the course, you will:

- be able to introduce yourself briefly and say something about your family, language(s) and nationality
- understand some Chinese culture
- know the basics of pronunciation and intonation as well as some basic grammar and structures of Chinese
- distinguish about 170 characters

Content

- Sounds and the pinyin system
- Basic vocabulary for everyday life and work
- Talking about yourself and your family
- Languages and nationalities
- Receiving guests
- Numbers and measurement words
- Customs related to different communicative situations

Teacher

Sari Annala

Study material

Will be announced before the course starts

Workload

Required attendance, completion of assignments both in class and independently, oral examination, written examination.

Prerequisites

0 (no prior studies required)

Evaluation

The final grade is based on:

• Class participation 
• Assignments submitted 
• Oral examination  
• Written examination 

Teaching time and location

The teaching time and the location of the course can be found in the Sisu information system.

1. The link leads to Completion methods tab of the course page
2. From the top of the page (Version drop-down menu), check that the academic year 2026-2027 is selected
3. From the blue bar, choose the right teaching and open the Groups and study events tab to see the teaching time and location of the course. To see exam times, click Exam.

Exam instructions at the Open University

The teacher has four (4) weeks to grade the exam submissions starting from the exam date.

Further information

Equivalences to other courses:
LC-9410 Basic Chinese for Professional Needs 1
LC-9111 Basic Chinese for Professional Needs 1

Online learning environment for the course  

The MyCourses online learning environment is a tool for both students and teachers for communication and managing everyday course work. You need an Aalto User ID to log in to the course's MyCourses workspace and participate in teaching.

Digital workspace of the course:
MyCourses

More details on completing the course will be available at MyCourses closer to the start of the course.

Registration and course fee

Registration for Open University courses is done via the link below: 
Course registration

Registration for this course starts on 10.8.2026 at 9.00
Registration for this course ends on 27.8.2026 at 23.59

It is not possible to register before the registration period has started or after it has ended.

The number of participants is limited to 6.

Please note: The course is organised if a minimum of 13 students register for it.

This course is organized by the Aalto University School of xx or Language Centre.

The course fee is paid upon registration for each course at a time and it is binding. Familiarize yourself with registration and payment rules as well as other guidelines for students:
Registration, payments and rules