Study Tips for Learning Chinese

Even if you have a great teacher, much of your learning potential depends on you and your dedication to learning Chinese efficiently and successfully. There’s only so much that can be taught in the classroom during relatively short time periods. This means that it’s up to you to keep your study habits consistent and effective outside of the classroom, which will enable you to internalize material from class with increased speed and accuracy. To learn how you can facilitate better learning for yourself, try reading through the following tips on studying Chinese.

Understand Your Advantages

If your background is in English, romance, or other Western languages, you’re probably concerned about learning Chinese because of the many differences between it and your native tongue. But despite these differences, there are some aspects of Chinese that might come easily to students who speak romance languages. For example, Chinese grammar is fairly basic: subject + verb + object. What makes this even better for students who are used to romance language verbs is that there are no conjugations in Chinese. There are also no gendered or plural nouns, so the main factors that can make Spanish or French so frustrating to learn are absent from the Chinese language. Sure, there will be other difficult things to focus on, but you won’t have to worry about many of the problems you’re used to encountering with language study.

Understand Your Challenges

In addition to its difficult written characters, Chinese is a tonal language, so simply changing the shape of your vowels in a syllable can generate several different words and meanings. If your first language is a Western or romantic tongue, you’ll probably have difficulty with the idea that tones can change meaning. To help prevent this potential problem, make sure that you’re well grounded in the four tones and can reproduce them with accuracy and versatility. If this seems overwhelming, don’t give up yet – the rising and falling tones of English correspond roughly to the second and fourth tones of Mandarin Chinese, so that leaves you only two unfamiliar tones to contend with. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you can just ignore the second and fourth tones in your studies, but it should give you a boost in confidence to help you through your practice.

Know Your Learning Style

As you’re probably aware, there are three main types of learning styles: visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. You can take a short online quiz to find out which type of learner you are, then use these tips to help you study in the way that’s best for you.

·       Visual: Textbooks, flashcards, notes, lists, diagrams, colored highlighters to identify language functions, and videos in Mandarin can help you learn efficiently. Writing characters repetitively until you remember them correctly is a great way for you to drill written Chinese.

·       Auditory: Listening to MP3 files, CDs, recordings of classroom lectures, Mandarin radio, and Mandarin video will be helpful for you. You can also do yourself a favor by reading your notes aloud, recording them, and then listening to them as a review activity.

·       Kinesthetic: Find a partner and drill with flashcards, use interactive software or online games, play role-playing games with a partner, engage in dialogue, and study with others consistently. These study methods will allow you to get the interactive practice you need to complement your learning style.

Participate in Immersion and Interaction

No matter what type of learner you are, it’s important to keep the Chinese language in your mind all day – especially outside of the classroom. To give yourself reminders to practice Chinese and to keep it prominent in your environment, try some of the following ideas.

·        Actively watch TV or movies in Chinese. If you need subtitles, use them until you can understand what’s being said without looking at them. Leaving the radio on a Chinese station or playing Chinese songs on your MP3 player can also help you keep the language in your ears and mind.

·        Make labels for everything in your house or apartment. Include traditional and simplified characters, pinyin as a pronunciation guide, and tones to help you practice every aspect of the vocabulary words you’re learning.

·        Teach what you learn, and you’ll be able to remember and implement it more efficiently. Try finding a friend who’s interested in learning Chinese or even someone who will just listen to you for a while. The main concern is that you’re able to communicate what you’ve learned in class in simple, practical steps. If you can do this, you’ll be surprised at how well you’ll be able to think on your feet when you speak Chinese.

Bio: Maria Rainier is a freelance writer and blog junkie. She is currently a resident blogger at First in Education, researching various online degree programs and blogging about student life. In her spare time, she enjoys square-foot gardening, swimming, and avoiding her laptop.