Showing posts with label Chinese Mandarin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chinese Mandarin. Show all posts

13 July 2012

Classical Chinese Story in which each syllable is pronounced "shi"

A story in which each syllable is pronounced "shi"

施氏食狮史


石室诗士施氏,嗜狮,誓食十狮。
氏时时适市视狮。
十时,适十狮适市。
是时,适施氏适市。
氏视是十狮,恃矢势,使是十狮逝世。
氏拾是十狮尸,适石室。
石室湿,氏使侍拭石室。
石室拭,氏始试食是十狮。
食时,始识是十狮,实十石狮尸。
试释是事。

« Shī Shì shí shī shǐ »

Shíshì shīshì Shī Shì, shì shī, shì shí shí shī.
Shì shíshí shì shì shì shī.
Shí shí, shì shí shī shì shì.
Shì shí, shì Shī Shì shì shì.
Shì shì shì shí shī, shì shǐ shì, shǐ shì shí shī shìshì.
Shì shí shì shí shī shī, shì shíshì.
Shíshì shī, Shì shǐ shì shì shíshì.
Shíshì shì, Shì shǐ shì shí shì shí shī.
Shí shí, shǐ shí shì shí shī, shí shí shí shī shī.
Shì shì shì shì.


« Lion-Eating Poet in the Stone Den »

In a stone den was a poet Shi, who was a lion addict, and had resolved to eat ten.
He often went to the market to look for lions.
At ten o'clock, ten lions had just arrived at the market.
At that time, Shi had just arrived at the market.
He saw those ten lions, and using his trusty arrows, caused the ten lions to die.
He brought the corpses of the ten lions to the stone den.
The stone den was damp. He asked his servants to wipe it.
After the stone den was wiped, he tried to eat those ten lions.
When he ate, he realized that these ten lions were in fact ten stone lion corpses.
Try to explain this matter.

Listen to the story

29 June 2012

Would you take your child to China?

A recent fashion of some wealthy American families is to take their children to China to learn Mandarin. Curious to see the lengths some parents will go to for their offspring. American interest in Chinese language and culture has increased rapidly during the past years. There is an increase in Chinese language in schools and universities, after school classes, tutoring, hiring Mandarin speaking nannies, even enrolling their children in schools with partial Chinese immersion classes. Some parents seem to be doing all they can to encourage their children to learn Mandarin.



Watch this "Moving to China to Learn Mandarin"

In some ways it reminds me of Sushi on a Stick that I read for two years. An Australian family lived and worked for two years in Japan. The objectives were not exclusively for the children to learn Japanese. It seems that the parent’s had wanderlust (an affliction I suffer from too). I really enjoyed reading this adventure.
So Americans pack up and take their families to China. I would be interested to read or know of their experiences. I did find one example And Then We Slipped Away Into the Night… ends a family’s two months stay in Beijing. And Then We Found An Apartment is the beginning of the saga if you want to read more. A move like this has to be carefully planned it could all end in disappointment.

A close reading of the WSJ and BI article reveals that the American families heading to China are professional career people. These parents are very committed to letting their children become Mandarin speakers. Selling their house and taking a year off work. I wonder if Australian parents would do the same for their children.



To Improve Kids' Chinese, Parents Head to Asia

American Families Are Now Packing Up And Moving To China So Their Kids Can Learn To Speak Mandarin

26 June 2012

10000 Chinese Language Teachers


Meanwhile in Thailand...
Thailand and China
This is an amazing project. What an initiative by the Thai and Chinese education authorities. This is a great opportunity for two different cultures to understand each other and strengthen ties (no pun intended). Through language and culture education strong bonds and relationships can be made.

It would be good if the Australian Government took some initiative and forged a similar plan with China. Alas Australian education does not put much value in language and culture education. Australia education often lacks initiative and foresight, as we continue to do almost nothing to improve language education. In 2011 there was a slightly similar project called Australia-China BRIDGE Project which sponsored relation ships between 48 schools and 48 teachers. Unfortunately the funding for such projects has ended.

To reciprocate Thailand will send 500 - 1000 Thai language teachers to China as part of the Sino-Thai educational and cultural exchange plan. Currently, China supports Chinese language education in Thailand by sending 1200 Chinese language teachers to Thailand annually.

"Thailand asked Chinese educational institutes to send 10,000 Chinese language instructors for Thai learners as parts of a Sino-Thai educational and cultural exchange plan."
Thailand Chinese New Year 2011
Thailand requests 10,000 Chinese language teachers from China

10,000 Chinese teachers on the way

China, Thailand To Exchange Teachers

25 June 2012

Multimedia Chinese Teaching System

Found another Chinese language learning resource. The Rutgers Multimedia Chinese Teaching System has four levels of lessons for first year to fourth year students. It has plenty of content in simplified hanzi, pinyin, audio and English. There is also content in traditional characters.The scripts for learning are quite detailed. Accompanying these pages of scripts are grammar explanations.  There is plenty of content in this site.


However, despite the content navigation for the site is very poor. It is difficult to navigate around the site as menus are not consistent. Sometimes links at the bottom and sometimes the left side navigation changes from English to Chinese Hanzi.   I do not know if this is intentional (perhaps it is an attempt at partial immersion in Chinese). Definitely makes moving around the site challenging. Some of the pages are not set out well. It is difficult to find related content quickly. 


 If the site were redesigned with a consistent navigation it would be better. This site may be useful to supplement your main study. It is a pity that it is difficult to find specific information as the materials and grammar are detailed.


"The Rutgers Multimedia Chinese Teaching System (RMCTS). This is a computer based multimedia curriculum to supplement First year, Second year, and Advanced Chinese (Third and Fourth year) language instruction at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey."



23 June 2012

Should our tourist operators learn Chinese dialects and customs?

I just heard a brief  radio interview about the tourism business in Oz.

Background information is that tourism in some parts of QLD has been suffering because of;
  • the global financial downturn
  • the rising Ozzie dollar
  • the summer of natural disasters 
"Should our tourist operators learn Chinese dialects and customs?"  

Questions asked were;
Q:  "How many local businesses, Australian owned businesses are adjusting and preparing for the Chinese market?...learning Mandarin, learning Cantonese....even common 'Thank you', 'Good morning' phrases, basic courtesies? "  
 A:  I would say a majority of business are looking at it at the moment...
Q: "Should we be learning Mandarin?"
A: "Well I probably should....It wouldn't hurt...we should make the effort to have more Mandarin speakers..."
One would think that in an effort improve tourism the operators would be doing everything they can to attract Chinese tourist.  The writing is on the wall people.

For example:

More Chinese Visitors Turn to Australia "Every year around 40 million Chinese head overseas, and Australia is one of the favourite destinations for these tourists."

Queensland urged to lure Chinese tourists with its shiny skyscrapers...give Chinese tourist what they want.


Figures show value of Chinese tourists Visitor Information  and Chinese tourists flock to Gold Coast seems they are getting it right on the Gold Coast, QLD, but this is only one area of QLD.

It seems that Queensland tourism operators are unprepared for Chinese visitors.  Most schools and colleges are still teaching Japanese or no language at all in the Sunshine State. How can future workers in the tourism industry learn Chinese?  If they don't learn it at school and they don't get training when in the industry, there is no way tourism workers can successfully cater to the needs of Chinese tourists. Language skills vital in an Asia-led world

Tourism in QLD seems slow to react to change. In comparison Sydney, New South Wales tourism is going to great efforts to prepare for Chinese tourists. Is Sydney doing enough to attract Chinese tourists?
Tourism Australia is this enough incentive?
Tourism Australia is this enough incentive?
Full interview can be viewed here Should our tourist operators learn Chinese dialects and customs?

18 June 2012

Will Studying Mandarin Get Me A Job At The Goldman Sachs?

Will Studying Mandarin Get Me A Job At The Goldman Sachs?

Found this blog post from Wall Street Oasis offering advice for the serious Chinese language learner.  Definitely a study plan for the ambitious serious Mandarin learner.

"Opinions will vary on how to get this experience, but my advice is this:


Year 1: Home university


Summer: intensive language program at a well-known Chinese university


Year 2: Home university, take a “business in China” class/short study trip, if you university has one 


Summer: intern ship with a random mainland firm (likely a small one)


Year 3: Study at a well-known Chinese university, and ideally a part-time internship with a less random mainland firm


Summer: even less random full-time intern ship


Year 4: Home university


???


PROFIT"  from Olafenzer  at Wall Street Oasis

One would have to be very committed, dedicated and ambitious to be studying between your home country and a Chinese university for four years. 



17 June 2012

Chinese language and culture learning more controversial than you thought!

Chinese language and culture learning more controversial than you thought!

It seems that the Confucius Institutes are a subject of controversy in Britain. Have no fear though the British press is alerting the public of the danger.  One might just as well attack the Alliance Française , Goethe-Institut or Dante Alighieri all three institutes have been around for a long time imposing their beliefs and culture on the unwary. All institutes forcing this through the innocent medium of language and culture.  Are these  also clear examples of 'ideological infiltration'?  Which is the accusation agains the Confuscious Institute.

How dare the Chinese invest money, resources and teachers and who knows what else to help foreigners learn Chinese language and culture. Be careful Ozzies we have a few Confucius Institutes of our own in Oz. They also go under the name of Hanban.  We also have Confucius classrooms. So Aussie bogans you need to be aware of the dangers of learning another language and culture. Mothers lock up your children they might learn something.

Read more of the details of the British controversy. Chinese ambassador attacks 'cold war' fears over Confucius Institutes

"Some people are not comfortable to see the rapid growth of Confucius Institutes. They cling to the outdated 'cold war' mentality," Liu Xiaoming Chinese Ambassador to the United Kingdom of the Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

"They criticise Confucius Institutes for being a tool of China's 'national propaganda'. They label teaching Mandarin as 'ideological infiltration.' So they have from time to time made irresponsible remarks in western media." Liu Xiaoming

America too has some issues with Confucius Institutes;

What are the Confucius Institutes and why are there so many of them?

US clampdown on visas for teachers upsets China

08 June 2012

Learning Chinese Will Never Be the Same: Discovering Chinese on the iPad - Houston Chronicle

Learning Chinese Will Never Be the Same: Discovering Chinese on the iPad 

 "Better Chinese, LLC launches Discovering Chinese – iPad Edition to help students conquer the challenges of learning Chinese. Targeted at middle school and high school students, Discovering Chinese combines a popular, state-adopted curriculum with the advantages of the iPad platform to create a revolutionary language-learning environment."


Chinese course to be offered at JWCC

Chinese course to be offered at JWCC

Meanwhile in Illinois...

A community college in Quincy, Illinois, USA is to begin offering Mandarin Chinese classes. Sounds like a very serious course of study.

"By the end of the course, students are expected to have the elementary ability to converse, read and write on selected topics of daily life, know the differences between the two Chinese writing systems, recognize 200 simplified Chinese characters, master Chinese phonics and tones of the language and build knowledge of traditional and modern Chinese culture, including proper Chinese business etiquette."

"The benefits of learning Mandarin Chinese are significant, especially in the increasingly competitive business world," JWCC instructor Cindy Wu Williams said.  "At this time, there is perhaps no other more important or complex relationship in the world than that between the United States and China. A second language can open up additional career options in a variety of industries."

07 June 2012

Mandarin language centre opens at Wellington College

News articles about Chinese Mandarin in the UK

Mandarin language centre opens at Wellington College

A centre dedicated to teaching Mandarin has opened at a Berkshire independent school. China's ambassador to the UK Liu Xiaoming opened the two classrooms in the pagoda-inspired building.

York visitor centre recruits Mandarin speaker

Growing numbers of visitors to York from the Far East have led the city's tourism body to take on a Mandarin-speaking volunteer.

Confucius Sought By Bankers Seeking Gold In China
Interest in learning Chinese has surged among U.K. companies and professionals as firms cut costs at home and expand in China 

Mandarin learning soars outside China (retro article from 2007)

In just five years, the number of non-Chinese people learning Mandarin Chinese has soared to 30 million. What is fuelling this expansion, and will it change the status of English as a global language?

28 May 2012

MP Urges Schools To Teach Chinese

Meanwhile in New Zealand 


MP Urges Schools To Teach Chinese.


Quotes from the article.

"...schools need to "look to the future" and offer courses in Chinese as a way of boosting trade with China..."

"It is out of step that Nelson, with such a strong exporting and visitor industry, is not looking to the future and investing in Chinese language skills,"

"The economic benefit is that it [promotes] creativity and problem-solving. All those brain features are massively advantaged if you've learnt a second language."

"We have tried to promote the language and the culture through initiatives with the Confucius Society. The benefits and potential opportunities seem obvious, but parents and students seem reluctant to embrace the language."

"If we could encourage 20 students, even across a range of year levels, we would run the programme tomorrow."

Read more -->  MP Urges Schools To Teach Chinese

25 May 2012

Free Chinese Lessons, Learn to Speak Chinese

Found this excellent resource for learning. Topic based practical lessons. Definitely worth a look.

Chinese Learner 

Learn Mandarin Chinese 

Online Free



Basic Chinese Expressions 36 lessons with audio

LEARN CHINESE: SPEAKING CHINESE 20 Lessons with audio files

Everyday Chinese 144 Lessons

LEARN CHINESE: CHINESE GRAMMAR

20 May 2012

新实用汉语课本 New Practical Chinese Reader 3

I have just started a new text book 新实用汉语课本 New Practical Chinese Reader 3. This is a sort of milestone in my learning. I think this is the last in the series that my University uses. Having started learning the first lesson there doesn't seem to be the sudden rise in difficulty that I found between the first and second text. Perhaps I have just become used to the methodology in the texts.

新实用汉语课本 New Practical Chinese Reader 3

New Practical Chinese Reader: Textbook Vol.3

I really have only one crtiticism of these series of text books. I think that sometimes the books are not very practical. Vocabulary and conversations in the set text about Beijing opera, Shaoxing opera and classical novels I personally do not find very practical. I suppose that last sentence makes me sound like a Philistine, however I do not think I will have many opportunities to use 红楼梦 Dream of the Red Chamber (first completed edition 1791) by Cao Xueqin, one of the four great novels. Despite this the text is mostly practical and challenging enough to make learning Chinese interesting.

School pupils could be taught a second language from primary one in Scotland

Meanwhile in Scotland

The Scottish Government will now explore opportunities for all young people to start learning a second language from primary one.

Flag of Scotland

BBC News - Call to teach second language in Scots schools

Four-year-olds to start learning two foreign languages


School pupils could be taught a second language from primary


09 May 2012

Difficult Chinese

Difficult Chinese

Three sites discussing the difficulty of learning Chinese. This is probably something I should not be reading right now. In one month I will have my CHIN201 exam.  My Uni. has switched to trimesters. One of the changes is that there is no 'study week', the semester ends and exams begin. So the pressure is on to 天天学中文。(study Chinese daily).

For the time being I shall not concern myself with how difficult learning Chinese is or is not.

07 May 2012

Why Languages Can Make Us Smarter, Safer, and Better Looking - Global Learning - Education Week


Some important issues are discussed in the Why Languages Can Make Us Smarter, Safer, and Better Looking  from Global Learning blog.

There are two basic arguments for second language learning;


One; learning a language is good for national security and economic competitiveness (this argument is a good one for politicians and business leaders)

"this can make our nation stronger"

Two; learning a language  is good for cognitive and cultural benefits (good for those in the arts and education business and parents)

"this can make my kid smarter"

Both arguments have received media attention in the USA. There seems to be much recent research about learning the language in the early years of school (the earlier the better). It is believed that starting language learning in middle school and high school is too late and not so beneficial. 

06 May 2012

Chinese Songs for Learning Mandarin

Chinese Songs for Learning Mandarin

For learning Chinese vocabulary singing songs is an excellent method. It is not really my prefered method for learning language. However, some of my fellow students really enjoy doing this. These sites will have a variety of popular and traditional songs.




Sing Chinese Songs - Listen to Chinese music and learn Chinese with famous Chinese songs

Chinese Songs - Chinese Tools.com

03 May 2012

Chinese language learning in Ireland and Indonesia

Meanwhile in Ireland

"A growing number of Irish school students are expected to learn about Chinese culture and language as a result of a new programme that has been developed for Transition Year students."

New Transition Year course in Chinese culture and language 

Chinese culture and language course for Transition Year students

Chinese class will spread to 50 schools
Meanwhile in Indonesia

"Indonesians are going mad for Mandarin in record numbers as they look to give their careers a boost by taking advantage of China’s growing economic influence and its improved ties..."

Chinese language is playing a significant role in building business relations not only between the two nations (China and Indonesia), but also among business around Asia.











'via Blog this'

30 April 2012

Chinese most popular foreign language for Thai students - The Nation

Chinese most popular foreign language for Thai students 

"Chinese has become the most popular foreign language among Thai students, according to a top education official.

Almost 300,000 students at 700 schools administered by the Office of the Basic Education Commission (Obec) study Chinese, said Usanee Watanapan, deputy director of the Bureau of Academic Affairs and Educational Standards at Obec."
Meanwhile in Thailand
'via Blog this'
Blogger Widgets