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| Newsletter #25 (2012 Spring) « Previous | Next » Books or no books? |
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Spring has definitely arrived in pretty much every part of the world (except those of you who are based in Australia and New Zealand, where the winter clothes are getting ready to come out!), and what a wonderful season it is to pick up your Chinese study; the weather temperature is just right, the air seemed to be full of joy and possibilities. We know some of you are waiting for the return of your courage to tackle Chinese again, maybe you've reached the bottleneck and those old methods just don't seem to be working for you anymore, not to mention the CDs/textbooks you were following can lose their appeal after so many hits on replay or page flipping, well, keep your faith, there are a whole range of options outside your books and other methods you were using before, take a different approach, try some different teachers, pick a different study routine, hey, we know your courage wants to return, let's help its trip home a bit easier, shall we?  Which book?One of the most common questions we get asked is: Which book do you recommend? Well, if you are one of those students who asked us that before, you already know that we don't give a straight answer, and the simple reason is: books are not for everyone! Some students like to study with books to give their learning a solid structure to follow. Even if those books lack the relevant content or interesting topics for you personally, books are good as reference points and offer the study content in an organized manner and allow students to track their progress. We will never put down the importance of a good textbook, nor would we advise you against using them if it's your preferred study tool, however if you find yourself losing interest with a particular book or textbook series, then mix it up with new elements to make your interaction with your books working for you again. Here are some tips: 1. Find a new teacher - A good teacher can make those boring grammar points interesting by applying them in scenarios that could interest you. They can make those tedious vocabulary list easier to memorize by creating fun stories and sample sentences that you can relate. If you think you are stuck in a routine conversation with your current teacher, try a new one, hey, try a few new ones by all means, there are now 224 teachers on ChineseTeachers.com. We bet there are a few new joiners' profile you haven't checked and maybe would be interested to try a lesson with. 2. Find a new book - Maybe your time with the old book has run its course, and as with any relationships, when it's time, you've got to let it go and move on. It's maybe better for you to start with certain text book at volume 1, and part ways before finishing volume 3, even though there are still 6 volumes from the same series remain, why? Because your level of Chinese has changed, therefore your study preference could have evolved, too. A series maybe good at beginner/basic level, but not relevant for you after that. As you progress, you might prefer to have a mix of different books to study with, rather than sticking to one. Consciously check in with yourself from time to time: Am I still enjoying the book? Is it still allowing me to make progress? Do I get bored as soon as certain chapter comes up? If you answered "yes" to any of those questions, then it's time to look around! 3. Find a new routine - Most students have a study routine, some like to study in the evening, some likes to squeeze in a session before going to work, some only have time during the weekend, and some optimize their lunch breaks with 30 minutes of Chinese study. It's good to have a routine, it helps telling your brain to tune-in to the "study mode" quicker and forming a habit helps you to commit for a longer period of time. But if you find yourself dreading the routine, it's time for new stimuli. Maybe it's the introduction of daylight, maybe it's the absence of stress from your working day, maybe it's the freedom to move about in the open air space while studying; whatever it is, don't fear the change, just give it a try, you might find the new routine is just what your brain is asking for!  Alternative options outside books!Over 80% of our students do not learn with books during their lessons. We are constantly surprised at ways our teachers and students have come up with when choosing not to learn with books. There is no single way which we will say is better than others, but here is a list of some common alternatives we spotted, and what we think made them work. 1. Just Talk: This is probably the most popular method because it puts the least pressure on students and allows the lesson to be both dynamic and fun while maintaining the purpose of learning. You might think "conversation" is a given in any lessons, but "productive conversation" goes beyond general chit-chat. Teachers usually employ methods such as repeat, relations, variations, etc. So while the lesson may not appear to be structured, the lesson progress is very much controlled. The key ingredient to make this method a success is the teacher. Only when the teacher can facilitate such seamless learning environment that you get so much more progress than with a "language buddy". 2. News & Other Articles: Want to keep your learning up-to-date and always relevant? This is how some of our students do it. They pick a topic with the teacher, and the teacher will find an article from recent news article or other articles online that is appropriate to the student's current level, or next level up to push the zone of comfort, and use it as the base of the lesson. As your level improves, the article the teacher chooses will get more complex. There are almost infinite numbers of sources, topics, events we come across each day, with your interests varying from day to day, keeping an open mind is what allows this method to be effective. This method forces students to go beyond their comfort zone as they are constantly exposed to new vocabularies, as well as learning new expressions. 3. Sing a song: OK, so you might not be as good a singer as some other students we've heard, but that should not stop you combining a little music while studying. Chinese music is vibrant with numerous albums being released each week, and YouTube now offers easy viewing of music videos with lyric, sometimes you will also find pinyin and translations. Why does it work? Probably because it feels least like studying. After studying the lyric with a teacher, you can listen to the music while driving, on the train/bus, in the shower or when you are cooking. The point is that the absorption of those lyrics won't seem to take any effort, you can sing-along to the songs even without memorizing the whole lyric to the song, a few la-la, oh-oh here and there to fill the gap won't damp your progress, we promise. 4. Write an Essay: For more advanced level, writing becomes an area one struggles to master. It's not easy to just put words on paper and write about anything on your own, but with a dedicated routine, you can choose the topic to write about, send the essay to your teacher before a lesson for correction, and use the lesson to go through those corrections and get more clarifications. We have seen this method being used by students from intermediate level up. The essay length varies from a short paragraph sent using our "Messaging" function to a proper 2-page essay shared through an uploaded Word/PDF document (via MediaFire or other document sharing portal). This methods works because you are the original author, you know exactly what you are trying to express on paper, and therefore, when going through the correction with your teacher, the new information and learning will stay with you much more easily and longer. 5. Make up your own story: Ok, we admit this might work better with the younger learner. We've seen how some students worked with the teachers to create fictional characters, develop the stories together gradually and really enjoyed their lessons while making impressive progress in a short period of time, sometimes they even create a little theme song to go with the story; role-play with multiple voices are also tricks used by teachers in those lessons. Finding it tough to stay engaged in your lessons? Well, why not add a little drama to it by changing the story line! 6. Stick to our study template: Did you know you can ask teachers to prepare study materials for you on ChineseTeachers.com? You can choose any topics from your area of interest and the teacher can use a study-template we provide to create an online lesson document for you. The template is made up of 6 sections: Vocabulary, Sample Sentences, Dialogue, Reading Exercises, Grammar Points and Homework. Basically it's the template for a rounded mini-syllabus on any topics that you pick. Of course, the teacher doesn't have to follow the whole template, but if you think it's the structure you want, then ask the teacher to prepare the study material following exactly what the template, and in no time, you will have your own collection of study materials made just for you. Why put it as the last option? Well, because we don't like to brag ;-) But seriously, it works. Happy Learning! The ChineseTeachers.com Team ChineseTeachers.com - Bringing native Mandarin teachers to everyone in the world  Want to receive free study materials? Subscribe to Practice-Chinese.com.  Want to know more about us? 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