Intensive In-Country Programs
Intensive Chinese in-country programs enable students to study Chinese in a target language environment and are commonly incorporated in university Chinese courses.
It is generally recognised that the best setting for learners to acquire a language in an environment where learners can“live the target language”，listening to，speaking and reading the target language in their daily life.Intensive in-country programs in China or another Mandarin speaking region are thus generally seen as an ideal way for university students to experience the language.These programs provide a target-language environment optimal for acquisition of the second language，in which all ingredients conducive to language learning are present.There is abundant input of the target language，both spoken and written，for learners to have exposure to for inductive acquisition.There are plentiful opportunities for learners to practice their Chinese and internalise newly learned vocabulary and grammatical structures.There is an urgent need created for learners to communicate in the target language in order to accomplish daily tasks.In addition，the social and cultural setting of the target language assists learners acquire and understand the interaction between social and cultural context and language.
Faculty are positive about the learning and motivation effects of these programs and participating students regard them as invaluable learning experiences，for both language and personal development.
Intensive in-country programs usually take place during summer months in Australia but in winter in China，between November and February each year and vary between four to eight weeks.
On successful completion of an in-country Chinese program，participating students are awarded credit points towards their degrees.There are generally two semesters in an academic year in Australia，and a full-time student takes four credit-bearing subjects per semester.A Chinese major typically consists of eight subjects of usual loading over three years.A four-week intensive in-country program is therefore equivalent to one subject of credit loading，and a six-week intensive in-country program might equal to two one-credit subjects，potentially one year’s worth of Chinese studies at university for some students.In other words，by participating in a six-week intensive in-country program，a student may be able to shorten a Chinese major by one academic year in their Chinese major sequence.
Intensive in-country programs at different universities in Australia typically adopt one of three approaches in terms of course content and delivery.Some programs determine their own curriculum designs and assessment regimes，select their own teaching materials，and only have their courses delivered by their host institutions in China.The second approach involves intensive in-country programs designing their own curricula and assessment regimes，but their host institutions in China determine teaching material selection and course delivery.In the third approach，Australian universities contract out every aspect of their in-country programs，including course design，teaching materials，delivery，and assessment，to their host institutions in China.
There are two key considerations in setting up an intensive Chinese incountry program in addition to the financial consideration，i.e.how it is to be funded.The first consideration is compliance to Australian quality and legislative frameworks，the most relevant and important of which is Higher Education Standards Framework(Commonwealth of Australia，2015).This will ensure the confidence that the program will meet all relevant legal requirements.The second consideration is risk management，putting in place a protocol in handling and dealing with all kinds of emergencies，including public health，medical，as well as social and natural disasters.Some universities require staff members on the in-country program to undergo first aid and mental health assistance training before departure.
At universities in Australia，a Chinese subject usually involves three to five hours of face-to-face contact per week，and a semester consists of about 12 teaching weeks，a total of 53-65 contact hours per semester.In comparison，a typical intensive in-country program involves three to four hours of language teaching in the morning on every week day，making the total number of teaching hours90-120 for a six-week intensive in-country program.In addition，cultural seminars and workshops are offered on some afternoons，and tours are organised for students as well.