Comments on: Qing Wen http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/ Learning on Your terms Fri, 09 Jan 2009 22:48:25 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 By: Ken Carroll http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/comment-page-1/#comment-9813 Ken Carroll Sun, 10 Jun 2007 09:08:08 +0000 http://blog.praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/#comment-9813 It's nice to wsee such a positive response to Qing Wen. I'm really big on audio at the moment. I think we haven't exploited anything near its full potential. With this kind of feedback from the Big Brain we can really go places. The idea here is to develop extra materials for premium users. Audio can free the learning more and more from the computer - many of you have told us you want to do that. I'm looking at how it might be used to teach grammar, though it's still early days. In the meantime, we're going to try some more experiments. One of these is quite ambitious. I think you'll see that in a few days. Ken Carroll It’s nice to wsee such a positive response to Qing Wen. I’m really big on audio at the moment. I think we haven’t exploited anything near its full potential. With this kind of feedback from the Big Brain we can really go places.

The idea here is to develop extra materials for premium users. Audio can free the learning more and more from the computer - many of you have told us you want to do that. I’m looking at how it might be used to teach grammar, though it’s still early days.

In the meantime, we’re going to try some more experiments. One of these is quite ambitious. I think you’ll see that in a few days.

Ken Carroll

]]> By: Henning http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/comment-page-1/#comment-9812 Henning Sat, 09 Jun 2007 19:46:27 +0000 http://blog.praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/#comment-9812 Finally back and listened to this one. I agree with all the positive posts above. It is John's old Grammar tags springing to life. Maybe you can actually use it that way (in addition and linked to the upcoming grammar guide)? Finally back and listened to this one.

I agree with all the positive posts above. It is John’s old Grammar tags springing to life.

Maybe you can actually use it that way (in addition and linked to the upcoming grammar guide)?

]]> By: AuntySue http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/comment-page-1/#comment-9811 AuntySue Sat, 09 Jun 2007 10:32:31 +0000 http://blog.praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/#comment-9811 It's great to hear easy material spoken at a nice bouncy pace at last! Very well done, appealing to listen to, and economical use of the listener's time. I can pick up an important piece of knowledge with a single quick listen during smoko, instead of setting aside 10-15 minutes to get it in a context and have a whole experience. Very useful, straight to the point, and easy to repeat it if I needed to check something later. If you listen carefully, it's running at three speeds simultaneously. There's the full pace in Mandarin, the bouncy but easy enough learning pace in English with Mandarin examples, and Ken bringing it all together for anyone who couldn't quite keep up. Clever, effective. Everyone can approach it on a different level. The music is definitely a problem. I didn't mind it in those old podcasts when a few people found it distracting, but here it's a very strong distraction. It's a shame because the music does a lot to create and sustain the mood, however this format needs complete concentration all the way through, and unfortunately having music in the background doesn't allow that to happen. It’s great to hear easy material spoken at a nice bouncy pace at last! Very well done, appealing to listen to, and economical use of the listener’s time. I can pick up an important piece of knowledge with a single quick listen during smoko, instead of setting aside 10-15 minutes to get it in a context and have a whole experience. Very useful, straight to the point, and easy to repeat it if I needed to check something later.

If you listen carefully, it’s running at three speeds simultaneously. There’s the full pace in Mandarin, the bouncy but easy enough learning pace in English with Mandarin examples, and Ken bringing it all together for anyone who couldn’t quite keep up. Clever, effective. Everyone can approach it on a different level.

The music is definitely a problem. I didn’t mind it in those old podcasts when a few people found it distracting, but here it’s a very strong distraction. It’s a shame because the music does a lot to create and sustain the mood, however this format needs complete concentration all the way through, and unfortunately having music in the background doesn’t allow that to happen.

]]> By: Steven (江启辉) http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/comment-page-1/#comment-9810 Steven (江启辉) Sat, 09 Jun 2007 03:47:06 +0000 http://blog.praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/#comment-9810 Hmmm...I was wondering about the use of 耶 (as a particle). I got hooked watching Hana Kimi, and it seems like every other sentence has 耶 tacked on at the end. What exactly does this mean? Or does it have a real meaning at all? Or, is this just a Taiwan thing? I asked about this in another Chinese language forum, and two people replied saying that 1) mostly girls say this, and 2) that it expresses a happy feeling, but in the show it didn't seem that this was the case necessarily. Hmmm…I was wondering about the use of 耶 (as a particle). I got hooked watching Hana Kimi, and it seems like every other sentence has 耶 tacked on at the end. What exactly does this mean? Or does it have a real meaning at all? Or, is this just a Taiwan thing? I asked about this in another Chinese language forum, and two people replied saying that 1) mostly girls say this, and 2) that it expresses a happy feeling, but in the show it didn’t seem that this was the case necessarily.

]]> By: Matt in Chongqing http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/comment-page-1/#comment-9809 Matt in Chongqing Sat, 09 Jun 2007 00:46:10 +0000 http://blog.praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/#comment-9809 GREAT feature. First rate development, and keep it up! And to echo FuDaWei, I always enjoy one speaker strictly using Mandarin, and a little bit of English thrown in hear and there. Ken, I'm wondering your thoughts, and maybe this warrants a whole blog entry and feedback from "the big brain" on "The Pinyin Wall" that many learners hit when studying Chinese. They study spoken Chinese for so long that it just gets to a point where you know SOO many uses for shi4th tone that you can't keep it straight. Many learners I know turned to characters at this point to help their brain organize the information better. Is there any worry with this in ChinesePod, since the lessons are only spoken? Or is there an assumption that Upper Intermediate/Advanced learners will have encountered this and seen the need to study characters on their own to progress further? I guess the main question is, can somebody become an "Advanced" Mandarin speaker, and not know any characters??? If you have covered this before, please feel free to post a link to the blog entry and I will dutifully read. -Matt in Chongqing 8 straight days of rain! Those parents waiting outside the gaokao gates are throughly soaked! GREAT feature. First rate development, and keep it up! And to echo FuDaWei, I always enjoy one speaker strictly using Mandarin, and a little bit of English thrown in hear and there.

Ken,
I’m wondering your thoughts, and maybe this warrants a whole blog entry and feedback from “the big brain” on “The Pinyin Wall” that many learners hit when studying Chinese. They study spoken Chinese for so long that it just gets to a point where you know SOO many uses for shi4th tone that you can’t keep it straight. Many learners I know turned to characters at this point to help their brain organize the information better. Is there any worry with this in ChinesePod, since the lessons are only spoken? Or is there an assumption that Upper Intermediate/Advanced learners will have encountered this and seen the need to study characters on their own to progress further? I guess the main question is, can somebody become an “Advanced” Mandarin speaker, and not know any characters???

If you have covered this before, please feel free to post a link to the blog entry and I will dutifully read.

-Matt in Chongqing
8 straight days of rain! Those parents waiting outside the gaokao gates are throughly soaked!

]]> By: ScottyB http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/comment-page-1/#comment-9808 ScottyB Fri, 08 Jun 2007 16:11:04 +0000 http://blog.praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/#comment-9808 I love this feature, but would like to echo the sentiments of several other posters. Please make this easier to find. I love this feature, but would like to echo the sentiments of several other posters. Please make this easier to find.

]]> By: Rash http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/comment-page-1/#comment-9807 Rash Fri, 08 Jun 2007 12:24:04 +0000 http://blog.praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/#comment-9807 Great show! A good substitute for the "Word On the Street" perhaps? Not sure if we'll see those again seeing that Aric is gone and CPOD seems to be revamping. I'd love to have this landing in my iTunes once a week. Great show! A good substitute for the “Word On the Street” perhaps? Not sure if we’ll see those again seeing that Aric is gone and CPOD seems to be revamping. I’d love to have this landing in my iTunes once a week.

]]> By: Jazz http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/comment-page-1/#comment-9806 Jazz Fri, 08 Jun 2007 10:02:45 +0000 http://blog.praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/#comment-9806 I really enjoyed this - I've been listening to the newbie podcasts since January (just finished the back catalogue this morning!) and it was such a pleasure to be able to keep up with the gist of the explanations. On the subject of Ken's english OR chinese - a lot of people talk about how they love Jenny's voice, and I'm no exception, but it's listening to Ken's weird mid-Atlantic-hua that keeps me hooked (a gender thing I guess :) I really enjoyed this - I’ve been listening to the newbie podcasts since January (just finished the back catalogue this morning!) and it was such a pleasure to be able to keep up with the gist of the explanations.

On the subject of Ken’s english OR chinese - a lot of people talk about how they love Jenny’s voice, and I’m no exception, but it’s listening to Ken’s weird mid-Atlantic-hua that keeps me hooked (a gender thing I guess :)

]]> By: Foleadu http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/comment-page-1/#comment-9805 Foleadu Fri, 08 Jun 2007 09:52:45 +0000 http://blog.praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/#comment-9805 This is a really nice feature. I hope you'll do this for different levels. You could explain confusing vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation difficulties, or give advice about to improve fluency and other skills. I imagine that you could link these explanations to relevant lessons or to relevant sections of the grammar guide. Great idea! This is a really nice feature. I hope you’ll do this for different levels. You could explain confusing vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation difficulties, or give advice about to improve fluency and other skills. I imagine that you could link these explanations to relevant lessons or to relevant sections of the grammar guide.

Great idea!

]]> By: Frank http://praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/comment-page-1/#comment-9804 Frank Fri, 08 Jun 2007 04:32:16 +0000 http://blog.praxislanguage.com/2007/06/07/qing-wen/#comment-9804 This is fantastic. I can't wait until it's a regular feature. You folks are amazing. This is fantastic. I can’t wait until it’s a regular feature. You folks are amazing.

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