Image source: sxc.hu/profile/cobrasoft
Contrary to most hip language learning bloggers out there, I don’t think that learning languages in class sucks. Sure, if that’s the only thing you’re doing, you won’t learn very much (depending on the institution, of course), but with the right attitude, formal education still has a lot to offer.
To start with, classes offer you structure and guidance. This is a double-edged sword. If you think that this means that you can relax and enjoy the ride, you’re wrong, but if you see the teacher and lessons as a resource among other resources, then they are truly useful. If you’re enrolled in a language program, there are three things you need to ask yourself:
- What do I want to learn which is not tested by this school?
- What do I want to learn that is not emphasised in this school?
- What does this school teach that I don’t want to learn?
If you want to learn native-like pronunciation, you can’t take a conversation class with 25 foreigners, you need individual tutoring. Attending class might still give you useful theory and other insights, but it won’t be enough. If you don’t care about writing Chinese by hand, but your teacher gives you tests with handwriting twice a week, you need to figure out what do about this, otherwise you’ll end up wasting hours learning something which doesn’t bring you closer to your goals. You need to understand the importance of counting what counts
This all boils down to comparing your own goals for learning Chinese with the goals (curriculum, examination) of the school you’re attending. They will never match perfectly, sometimes there are huge differences. In general, if you’re enrolled in a language program, you need to be clear about what you want to learn, what the program will teach you and how you will handle the difference between the two.
Here are all articles in this category:
- How to learn Zhuyin (Bopomofo) in two hours
- Three things I wish I had known as an intermediate student of Chinese: The time machine, part 2
- Three things I wish I had known as a beginner student of Chinese: The time machine, part 1
- Why you should preview before every Chinese lesson
- How I used a notebook to learn more Chinese, and why you should too
- Chinese character learning for all students
- Student Q&A, April 2024: Learning chengyu, listening to yourself and using role-playing games to learn Chinese
- Real communication: What it is, why you want it and how to get it
- How to learn Chinese in the long term with intrinsic motivation
- Student Q&A, March 2024: Reading aloud, finding word boundaries, and working actively with reading materials
- Student Q&A, January 2024: Chinese music, too much Mandarin in the classroom, and listening in noisy environments
- Student Q&A, December 2023: How many words to learn, if it’s good to learn radicals, and whether to learn simplified or traditional characters
- Why flashcards are great for learning Chinese
- Student Q&A, October 2023: Expanding vocabulary quickly, learning by watching videos and nailing dictation tests
- Should you throw away your Chinese textbook?
- Seeing through the illusion of advanced Chinese learning
- Vocabulary lists that help you learn Chinese and how to use them
- Should you use an efficient method for learning Chinese even if you hate it?
- Using the HSK as a roadmap to learning Chinese
- Kickstart your learning with the Skritter Character Course
- Take responsibility for your Chinese learning now
- 7 ways to write Mandarin tones
- Chinese language question triage: When to ask whom about what
- How to become fluent in Chinese
- How to learn from your mistakes and errors when learning Chinese
- Do you have to learn to write Chinese characters by hand?
- Why you should use more than one Chinese textbook
- Analyse and balance your Chinese learning with Paul Nation’s four strands
- On accuracy, communication and comprehensibility when learning Chinese
- How to learn Chinese pronunciation as a beginner
- 500 resources for learning and teaching Chinese, tagged by level, topic and type
- How to survive and thrive in a difficult Chinese course
- Is taking a Chinese course that’s too hard good for your learning?
- How to improve fluency in Chinese by playing word games
- Should you enrol in a Chinese course or are you better off learning on your own?
- Why your Chinese isn’t as good as you think it ought to be
- Chinese language logging, part 1: Why and how to track your progress
- What’s the difference between Chinese pronunciation and Pinyin? Does it matter?
- My best advice on how to learn Chinese characters
- 20 tips and tricks to improve your Chinese writing ability
- Should you learn the names of the strokes in Chinese characters?
- How to not teach Chinese characters to beginners: A 12-step approach
- Why not going to China now could actually be good for your Chinese
- The key to unlocking your first semester of Chinese
- Review: The Outlier Dictionary of Chinese Characters
- All the resources you need to learn and teach Chinese stroke order
- Training your Chinese teacher, part 4: Writing ability
- Should you learn to speak Chinese before you learn Chinese characters?
- How to get honest feedback to boost your Chinese speaking and writing
- Text adventure games and how to use them in the Chinese language classroom
- Can too much guidance make you learn less Chinese?
- Training your Chinese teacher, part 3: Listening ability
- Two types of pronunciation problems and what to do about them
- New course: Unlocking Chinese – The Ultimate Guide for Beginners
- Review: Mandarin Companion: Easy to read novels in Chinese
- 101 questions and answers about how to learn Chinese
- 7 things you were taught in Chinese class that are actually wrong
- Training your Chinese teacher, part 2: Speaking ability
- The beginner’s guide to Chinese translation
- Free and easy audio flashcards for Chinese dictation practice with Anki
- Training your Chinese teacher, part 1: Introduction
- How and why to learn and teach Chinese through games
- Can you learn Chinese faster by making it harder?
- Task-based Chinese learning and teaching
- A student’s guide to comprehension-based learning
- The benefits of a comprehension-based approach for teaching and learning Chinese
- An introduction to comprehension-based Chinese teaching and learning
- Learn Chinese implicitly through exposure with a seasoning of explicit instruction
- Which Chinese language course should you take?
- What your Chinese course will not teach you
- Why you should learn Chinese in Chinese
- Will a Chinese-only rule improve your learning?
- Launching Hacking Chinese Resources
- Why good feedback matters and how to get it
- Asking the experts: How to learn Chinese grammar
- Learning how to fish: Or, why it’s essential to know how to learn
- Focusing on tone pairs to improve your Mandarin pronunciation
- Role-playing to learn more Chinese and avoid frustration
- Drills and exercises aren’t only for beginners
- About fossilisation and improving your Chinese pronunciation
- Reading aloud in Chinese is really hard
- 5 insights from the first year of a master’s program in Taiwan
- How to get good grades when studying Chinese
- The question you have to ask about your Chinese teacher or course
- Have fun learning Chinese or else…
- Learning styles: Use with caution!
- Don’t just read about language learning methods, try them!
- Language is communication, not only an abstract subject to study
- The importance of counting what counts when learning Chinese
- Learn by exaggerating: Slow, then fast; big, then small
- If you want to master Chinese, make long-term investments
- Triggering quantum leaps in Chinese listening ability
- Achieving the impossible by being inspired
- What native speakers know about Chinese (and what they don’t)
- Making mistakes in Chinese is necessary to adjust your mental models