To get the most out of tuition - preferably one on one - get the course/lesson content in advance - put hours of effort into previewing this in advance and hours into reviewing the lesson content afterwards. This way your time in class is taken up with focusing on the things that can help you advance rather that having a confused brain because you are not connecting with vocabulary and sentence patterns.

We’re pretty much in agreement except we disagree. ;p

Why can’t adults take the easy approach too, as you said the most “success is with children. They are very open, they really want to learn, and we always have a lot of fun.” That doesn’t sound to me like flashcards, drill-and-repeat, and boring lectures.

It takes kids 3-5 years to gain some fluency, natural language generation. And then 10 plus to speak, think, understand like adults.

I figure if I take their approach, 3-5, I’m good to go. Sure plus a little ’studying’ and pushups. The tricky part is being an adult and creating an alt-Chinese childhood cocoon and not being thought of as a little too Michael Jackson.

Boot camp works for some very select skill sets for those who need to deploy in 12-weeks, but let us not forget that there is an attrition rate, some already got weeded out for flat feet, others self-selected to go to Canada, and several became officers so they didn’t have to do the grunt work. Plus most of us aren’t the few, the brave, the….

I think we are pretty much in agreement. No matter what method you end up using…persistence, determination, regular study habits, measurable goals, and feedback are all key. I wish you the best of luck on your climb. I’ll see you at the top…and sooner rather than later!

Bob

P.S. You too, Lantian

Couldn’t agree more. It’s hard work and there’s no getting around that.

My point is that if I’m going to work hard I want to direct my energies in a way that will benefit me. For instance I can learn to read Hanzi all day long but if my focus is on comprehension and speaking, are characters what I want to focus on? I don’t think so.

I am going for the “total package” so to speak. I do want to learn to read and write Hanzi, I want to comprehend others AND I want to converse in Chinese. So I divide my time. Characters I typically work on in spare time. Comprehension and speaking I spend more time on.

And finally, everything I’ve tried has benefited in some way. I don’t discount any of it in the long run. I never know when some word, character, or phrase will come up that was covered in some really boring material. But, as I stated initially, I want to focus my time and energy on what works best for me.

And 20 push ups…it might work!

I’ve been to the old school. No hocus pocus there, just good old fashioned buckle down and do it hard work. I say go for the gold medal. Why not?

Jeremy,
Chinese boot camp…now you’re talking. If you don’t know the vocabulary get down and give me 20 push-ups. You will be chattering like magpie in no time.

The whole point of my post was a reality check for people who think they are going to learn Chinese in the short term…especially if they follow some of the current “just let your mind breathe it in” ideas. I have been involved in teaching English for a number of years. I have found that only the serious ever really learn be it either out of necessity or desire. The majority of people seem to just want to pay their money, have a nice time, impress their non English speaking friends by the fact they they are “learning English” and they expect you to put the language in their heads for them. My greatest success is with children. They are very open, they really want to learn, and we always have a lot of fun. In short, you may learn a language by picking up five new words a day but it is going to take you a looooong, looooong time

As for the classroom, we don’t cover material the way any of the classes I’ve heard discussed here do. The class itself is very open, there are no tests, and we are free to change direction at any point, as long as the class agrees.

The instructor is native Chinese and does not have an agenda other than to help us learn Chinese. He is always open to new ideas.

At this point in my learning I take the class because it keeps me connected to other learners and the teacher, who is not just my teacher but a friend.

We also are able to tie the language to Chinese culture from a man who was born before the cultural revolution, lived through it, and was part of the first groups of college grads once it was over. That part of class (though not language related) is invaluable.

Back to the book, yes that part is tedious and I believe the only reason we use it is for commonality. We know where we are and we are all on the same page (content wise). As I stated in my blog my dream would be to drop the book and incorporate ChinesePod material into the class but I can’t control that. I can take private lessons which I have considered for some time. Private lessons are directed by the learner with the instructor. And if I want Chinese language bootcampt there’s the Octagon!

I couldn’t agree more! In that sense, I was lucky enough to find such a capable native tutor, who taught me Chinese for one year very patiently. I think that once you have not-so-bad pronunciation you can learn foreign languages by yourself to a great extent.