London study event reinforces Mandarin GCSE themes and explores questions of culture

Learners from Carisbrooke College found themselves immersed in Chinese culture on Wednesday when they attended a Mandarin Study Day at the BFI Southbank in London - the home of film and cinema academia in the UK. 

Forty-three language students from Years 9, 10 and 11 made the journey up to the banks of the Thames for a full day of learning which began with a morning session exploring the GCSE themes of culture and family. They participated in an engaging programme of activities that utilised key vocabulary from the AQA Mandarin specification. The tasks used clips from Chinese filmmakers such as Zhang Yimou to challenge students to think about both grammar and translation and also invited them to make their own spoken contributions in an auditorium full of hundreds of Mandarin students from across the country.

The magnificent facilities of the British Film Institute were then used to their full extent during the afternoon session when a full screening of Lulu Wang’s award winning film ‘The Farewell’ took place on the big screen. The movie, which revisited the importance of family, left students with a lot of questions regarding the differences in culture and the ethical implications of the story ignited many discussions on the coach journey back home. 

Year 10 GCSE Mandarin student Casey said: “I liked the questions we were given as it was fun recognising all the Chinese characters. I found the movie very interesting as it clearly showed the differences between Western and Eastern culture.”

Layla, also in year 10, said: “I think the day at the BFI was a great experience and very helpful for the GCSE because the work packs really helped a lot with remembering the pronunciation - which can sometimes be difficult.” 

Mandarin teacher Joe Briscoe said: “As always, our students excelled - they were focused, fully engaged in the activities and behaved impeccably throughout the entire day. The learning culture on display within the BFI auditorium was impressive to see. I’m a very proud teacher.”