How to study Chinese
How to study Chinese? This could be replied to with dozens of answers, but we list a few of our top tips here on how to study Chinese.
This article focuses mostly on learning Chinese online. Obviously, if you can make it to Shanghai or the rest of China, then that’s a great way to immerse yourself and learn Chinese as well. Learning Chinese online is convenient and can be even better than learning offline. Online Mandarin courses are now very developed. For instance, at GoEast Mandarin we’ve been teaching Chinese online since 2016. But what are ways to learn Chinese online efficiently? Here are a few tips.
1. Take an online Chinese course
Taking an online Chinese course is a great way to study Chinese. You can choose the course based on your goals and current HSK level. You can also find a Chinese course that’s tailored to this specific goal, such as Business Chinese or Spoken language.
Even if you’re not in China, that doesn’t mean you have to miss the opportunity to learn with qualified teachers! With GoEast’s online Chinese courses, you can create a virtual classroom at home. Taking a formal online Chinese course is one of the best ways to keep your learning progress and quickly reach Chinese language fluency. GoEast has a wealth of online courses, such as one-to-one courses, HSK classes, Chinese Hanzi characters course, etc.
Using Zoom for online one-on-one Chinese courses, plus self-learning courses, you can learn at your own pace according to your own personal schedule.
2. Immerse yourself in the language
It’s undeniable that there’s no better way to learn Chinese than to spend time or live in China. If traveling to China isn’t in the cards at the moment, you can still immerse yourself in the language by absorbing all that you can in Chinese.
The act of hearing a language can help strengthen your comprehension. While it might take a few months of learning before you can understand Chinese podcasts with native Chinese speakers, there are plenty of podcasts available just for language learners. You can also use podcasts by speakers whose primary language is Chinese simply for practice. Listen to it casually first, then play the episode a second time and see what new words you recognize. You can also read the episode’s transcript as you listen if there’s one available, repeating sentences and words out loud. This can help you pick up new vocabulary and grammar more quickly, and you can set it to play at a slower speed.
YouTube is a great platform with access to thousands of Chinese videos. Type Learn Chinese into YouTube’s search box and you will have access to a seemingly never-ending list of videos. There are also various types of Chinese music, so everyone can find music that suits them. Learning through music is a fun and attractive way to train your ears, not to mention that you will prepare a list of songs in the next KTV class.
Find TV series, songs, books, films, videos, audiobooks, podcasts, recipes, apps—anything that is in Chinese will do. Vary up the ways you practice Chinese to truly immerse yourself in the language without traveling abroad. When you eventually visit China, you’ll be amazed at how much background knowledge you have about not just the language, but the culture too!
3. Download a Chinese learning APP
Language-learning APPs have been helping people learn the Mandarin Chinese language for years. There are many different types of APPs that you can choose based on how you learn best. For example, Duolingo is an app you can use on your smartphone for daily, on-the-go practice, while Quizlet is a popular app that can help you review the words. Pleco is a good dictionary to learn Chinese. you can find the pronounciation, meanings, sentences, stroke orders on Pleco. It helps you to learn by yourself.
4. Find an online language partner
Getting as much speaking practice as possible is essential to quicker learning. If you’re just swiping through a few levels on a language-learning app at night, you’ll be shocked when you finally come face-to-face with a native speaker. Without conversing in Chinese, you won’t be able to identify your weak spots. Finding a language partner, or even a study partner, who can augment your learning with real, live, face-to-face practice will allow you to put your fledgling skills to the test.
There are plenty of ways to find a language partner online. You can either find on some forums, also there are some APPs or language learning websites, for example, HelloTalk, WeChat, Weibo, Hello Talk, HiNative, and Tandem. Many people say that speaking Chinese regularly helps it stick in your head far better than reading or writing. After all, what’s the point of learning a new language if not to use it to communicate?
Thanks to the internet, it is now more convenient than ever before to learn Chinese online. Frequent practice helps you improve more quickly. So, don’t hesitate, do it right now. Start learning Chinese today. Keep on learning every day, you’ll find your Chinese improving fast and soon. Hope that answers the question of ‘How to study Chinese?’
