This course develops basic skills in understanding, speaking, reading, and writing Mandarin Chinese. It concentrates on pronunciation, vocabulary, sentence structure and idiomatic expressions. The course also introduces geo-graphical, historical, cultural and social features of Chinese speakers relevant to language learning. Students are expected to learn 250 written Chinese characters. This course increases speed and fluency of Mandarin Chinese with expanding vocabularies and idioms in conversation, reading comprehension and written expression. Topics cover daily activities, relationships, college life, employment, Chinese customs, traveling, geography, social issues, current events and comparisons between Chinese and American cultures.