April 25, 2026 - CLTA-SC Recognizes 11 Educators in Inaugural Chinese Language and Culture Lesson Plan Competition

The Chinese Language Teachers Association of Southern California (CLTA-SC) has announced the recipients of its inaugural Chinese Language + Culture Outstanding Lesson Plan Competition, presented in partnership with China Institute of America. Eleven educators from K–12 schools and universities were recognized for lessons that brought together language learning, cultural understanding, student inquiry, and creative classroom practice.

Innovation Awards

• Shiang-Yun Song, Whitney High School, 雄狮心，未来梦
• Muriel Mengyu Zhang, Mayfield Senior School, Integrating Language and Cultural Learning through QFT and AI-Enhanced Instruction: An Inquiry-Based Lesson on Chinese and Western Medicine
• Pei-Ying Lin Gosselin, Archor School, The Actor and Movie Opinions
• Jingshuang Liu, Sierra Madre Middle School, 卧游山水间——艺术体验活动流程方案

Excellence Awards

• Wei Yang, Campbell Hall, 什么颜色？
• Dan Li, The Story of Chinese Americans – Huang Qiyao – 250 Years of American Independence
• Hsiao-Yun Liao, USC, Savoring Yancheng: A Sensory Chinese Language Walking Tour Plan
• Ruijie Anita Ying, Philistine Rondo School of Discovery, The Silk Road: A Journey from Xi’an

Achievement Awards

• Eddie Liu, Florence Nightingale Middle School, Success Comes Swiftly
• Yang Du, La Salle College Preparatory, Creative Handicraft Lesson: Chinese Zodiac & Lunar New Year Decorations
• Tin-Yu Tseng, USC, 健康与养生

The award-winning lessons reflected the breadth of Chinese language education today. Their subjects ranged from Chinese art, film, and Lunar New Year traditions to Chinese American history, the Silk Road, health and wellness, traditional Chinese and Western medicine, and AI-supported learning.

What distinguished these projects was the way they used culture as a context for learning rather than as supplementary content. Students were invited to investigate questions, interpret cultural perspectives, make connections across disciplines, and use Chinese to communicate ideas with purpose. The lessons incorporated artistic exploration, historical inquiry, sensory experiences, discussion, creative production, and technology while maintaining clear language-learning goals.

The projects also demonstrated that innovation does not need to be separated from practical classroom teaching. The strongest submissions combined creativity with thoughtful sequencing, active student participation, and materials that could be adapted for different learners and teaching contexts. Collectively, they offered a strong picture of the expertise and experimentation taking place in Chinese classrooms across Southern California.

Participants submitted a complete lesson plan, supporting instructional materials, and a teaching demonstration or presentation video. Entries were reviewed for instructional design, integration of language and culture, student engagement, innovation, feasibility, and potential for use beyond a single classroom.

The competition continued beyond the selection of award recipients. Winning educators presented their work at the 2026 CLTA-SC Spring Pedagogical Conference, giving colleagues an opportunity to examine the lessons, hear the thinking behind them, and consider how the approaches might transfer to their own classrooms. Participants responded enthusiastically to the practical, classroom-tested examples and expressed interest in additional opportunities for teachers to share exemplary work in greater depth.

In this way, the competition connected recognition with professional learning. It made strong teaching visible, gave educators a forum for learning from one another, and created a growing collection of practices that can inform future curriculum development, teacher training, and cross-school collaboration.

Fei Li of Marlborough School served as Chair of the Competition Committee and coordinated the project from outreach and submission collection through the review process and conference presentation. Na Wang of La Salle College Preparatory also contributed to the project’s coordination and implementation.

The review committee included Professor Hongyin Tao of UCLA, Professor Miaofen Tseng of the University of Virginia, Fei Li of Marlborough School, Bin He of Harvard-Westlake School, and Na Wang of La Salle College Preparatory. Their combined experience in language pedagogy, curriculum development, teacher education, and classroom practice supported a careful and substantive review of the submissions.

Through this initiative, CLTA-SC recognized individual educators while also creating a wider space for excellent teaching to be shared, discussed, and carried forward. The association plans to continue expanding opportunities that connect teacher recognition, professional learning, and collaboration across the Chinese language education community.

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CLTA-SC携手华美协进社举办“中文+文化”优秀教案比赛，推动南加州中文教育专业发展

南加州中文教师学会（Chinese Language Teachers Association of Southern California，CLTA-SC）与 华美协进社（China Institute of America） 联合举办的“中文+文化”优秀教案比赛圆满完成。此次比赛是CLTA-SC推动教师专业发展、提升中文教学质量、促进优秀教学成果交流的重要项目之一。

华美协进社于1926年在纽约成立，是美国历史最悠久、专注于中国文化、艺术、教育及社区项目的非营利机构之一。此次合作旨在发掘和展示南加州中文教师的优秀教学实践，鼓励教师在语言与文化融合、跨学科学习、学生探究、真实情境教学及新技术应用等方面不断创新，并为优秀教师搭建更广泛的专业交流与成果展示平台。

本次比赛坚持 高标准评选与积极发现教师成果并重 的原则。参赛教师需提交完整教案、相关教学材料以及教学展示或说课视频，以全面呈现课程目标、教学理念、课堂设计和学生学习过程。评审委员会由 UCLA陶红印教授、University of Virginia曾妙芬教授、Marlborough School李菲、Harvard-Westlake School何斌和La Salle College Preparatory王娜 组成，从教学设计、语言与文化融合、学生参与、创新性、可实施性和推广价值等多个维度进行认真、严谨的综合评审。

此次项目的顺利推进充分体现了 CLTA-SC团队协作和跨校合作的力量。从项目设计、作品征集、教师沟通，到评审衔接、结果整理及后续成果展示，各环节均由多位教师和合作伙伴共同参与完成。李菲承担了其中较多的组织与协调工作，王娜也积极参与了项目推进、评审及相关协调工作；陶红印教授、曾妙芬教授、何斌老师以及其他参与者，则从专业评审、经验支持和资源协作等不同层面共同推动了项目的高质量实施。正是这种分工协作，使比赛不仅完成了评选任务，也逐步形成了一个连接教师、展示成果、促进学习的专业发展平台。

经过严格评审，最终共有 11位教师获奖：

• 创新奖：
  Shiang-Yun Song（Whitney High School），《雄狮心，未来梦》；
  Muriel Mengyu Zhang（Mayfield Senior School），《QFT与AI赋能下的语言文化融合教学——以〈中医与西医〉为例的探究式课堂实践》；
  Pei-Ying Lin Gosselin（Archor School），The Actor and Movie Opinions；
  Jingshuang Liu（Sierra Madre Middle School），《卧游山水间——艺术体验活动流程方案》。
• 优秀奖：
  Wei Yang（Campbell Hall），《什么颜色？》；
  Dan Li，The Story of Chinese Americans – Huang Qiyao – 250 Years of American Independence；
  Hsiao-Yun Liao（USC），Savoring Yancheng: A Sensory Chinese Language Walking Tour Plan；
  Ruijie Anita Ying（Philistine Rondo School of Discovery），《丝绸之路——从西安出发 / The Silk Road: A Journey from Xi’an》。
• 成果奖：
  Eddie Liu（Florence Nightingale Middle School），《马到成功 / Success Comes Swiftly》；
  Yang Du（La Salle College Preparatory），Creative Handicraft Lesson: Chinese Zodiac & Lunar New Year Decorations；
  Tin-Yu Tseng（USC），《健康与养生》。

获奖作品涵盖语言教学、中国文化、华裔美国人历史、中西医、中国艺术、丝绸之路、春节文化、健康养生、体验式学习及AI辅助教学等丰富主题，体现了南加州中文教师在课程设计、文化融合、跨学科教学和课堂创新方面的专业水平与活力。

比赛的价值并未止步于评奖。获奖教师的优秀成果随后在 2026年CLTA-SC春季教学研讨会 上进行了集中分享和展示。参会教师反响热烈，纷纷表示从真实而富有创意的课堂案例中获得了新的教学思路，并希望未来能够组织更多、时间更充裕的优秀教学成果分享活动，以进一步学习同行的设计理念和实践经验。

从优秀案例征集、严格评审，到成果展示和同行学习，本次项目形成了较为完整的教师专业成长链条。它不仅表彰了一批优秀教师，更进一步 提升了南加州中文教育对于高质量课程设计和课堂实践的专业标准与整体期待，同时加强了不同学校、不同学段教师之间的联系，为未来开展教师培训、跨校合作、教学研究和优秀案例持续分享奠定了更加坚实的基础。

作为南加州中文教师的重要专业组织，CLTA-SC将继续通过此类高质量项目，为教师搭建专业成长、成果展示和同行交流的平台，并与华美协进社及更多大学、学校和教育机构深化合作，共同推动南加州乃至美国中文教育向更专业、更开放、更具创新力的方向持续发展。

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