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The best way to learn Mandarin???

shao1 (15 posts) • 0

What is the best way for a non-Chinese person to learn Mandarin?

I have heard that most classes at local universities around Yunnan are a waste of time. I have also heard that many private language schools are waste of time and money.

For those of you out there that are fluent in Mandarin, how did you learn the language?

pushingeast (16 posts) • 0

Go to a university or school. Find a/a few good teachers, lots of Chinese friends and immerse yourself in the environment when you can. Listen, ask, read, talk and learn. Concentrate and keep on studying (hard) over many many years and you'll probably get fluent, probably. Depends on you.

Danmairen (510 posts) • 0

I think very few classes are a complete waste of time. Even with a mediocre teacher you can do really well if you are motivated and willing to put in the hours.

I'd say start out a language school. There are many basics and pitfalls in Chinese speaking and writing that are good to be aware of from the start. After two years here I still find out about elemental stuff that any decent teacher would have told me during the first month. In my case I can generally speak to Chinese people and convey my meaning though I tend to make many mistakes but an attentive Chinese person would get me. On the other hand when Chinese people speak to me I have a hard time understanding what they are on about. That's basically where you'd end up after 2 years in China without taking any classes and with little effort and it's not good enough imo. Go for organized classes or at the very least a private tutor a couple of hours a week. Also I would recommend either completely disregarding the characters OR working your ass off studying reading and writing. The middle way tend to leave some people baffled. At least it's one of the reasons I sometimes find Chinese to be quite a challenge.

laotou (1714 posts) • 0

and...KTV (with friends of course!)...once you learn to read the characters. Only problem is you're speech pattern will be gush romantic blubbering...which might come in handy if you're single.

putonghua73 (34 posts) • 0

Agree with pushingeast and Danmairen.

There are plenty of options to study (and you *need* to study because a solid foundation is vital with language acquisition), not all of them bad. I've posted a thread here that contains language providers inc. reviews

Language exchange partners are good to practice Chinese (as well as making friends), but there is a world of difference between a language exchange partner and a Chinese teacher / tutor (someone who has formally studied teaching Chinese as a foreign language).

I'm nowhere near fluency (hovering between elementary / intermediate), yet as pushingeast states, the biggest determinant will be yourself. There are no real short-cuts other than study, study, study, then practice, practice, practice i.e. talk Chinese.

To add a comment on reading and writing. I went to SOAS in London and they focus on reading (and writing) hanzi from the get-go. I've found that learning to read (and write - albeit at a much slower pace, because I type as oppose to hand-write) consolidates my learning - especially grammatical structures and usage.

If you can afford it, I'd recommend 1-2-1 route either through a language provider or through a private tutor. If you do go the private tutor route remember to make sure that your tutor has formal teaching Chinese as a foreign language degree / qualification. I'd reiterate again that there is a world of difference between a well-meaning amateur and someone who is qualified to teach.

Cheers!

Candice (6 posts) • 0

Hello, I am a graduate student of Yunnan University, I am happy to help you learn Chinese, I have a very rich experience in Chinese teaching, if you want to make more Chinese friends and learn Chinese better, please contact me, my phone number is 15559710551 .

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