Phyllis N. Zhang

Professor Phyllis Zhang holds a Doctorate of Education in Applied Linguistics from Columbia University and has been teaching at GW since 2004. She has served as the director of the GW Chinese language program (2004-2014) and the founding director of the MA in Chinese Language and Culture Program (since 2014). She teaches Chinese from beginning to advanced levels, including writing in discipline (WID) courses, and Business Chinese.  Professor Zhang has authored several textbooks, including David & Helen in China (Yale University Press, 1999, 2003), and her Developing Chinese Fluency series (Cengage Learning) with Biaoda (2010), Ni Wo Ta (2015), and Transitions (2018).  She has published a number of articles on Chinese language teaching and learning, including the learner’s reading and writing proficiency development impacted by the digital learning environment. Prof. Zhang has been a certified Chinese proficiency (OPI) tester by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL, since 2006). She was the recipient of a GW 2006 Bender Teaching Award.  She has also served on the board of Chinese Language Teachers Association-U.S. (CLTA-US), and the board of the Journal of Technology and Chinese Language Teaching (JTCLT, since 2010) and a JTCLT editor (2010-2019).