Learning Chinese for ESL Teachers
I am a Footprints Alumni and I have been teaching English in China for some five years now. Most of the foreign teachers that I have met come to China not only to teach, but to try to learn the language as well. And it turns out, studying Chinese can have surprising benefits for foreign teachers.
Learning Chinese will not only gain you admiration among your Chinese friends and colleagues, but it can be an encouragement for your students as well. Study of this ancient language can also help you better understand why your students make certain mistakes. As one of my colleagues recently put it “learning Chinese has made me a better English teacher”.
In the eyes of busy foreign teachers though, Chinese can be a somewhat formidable language to approach. It is considered by many experts to be one of the most difficult languages to learn. And yet, I can say from experience, the challenges the language presents are certainly not impossible to overcome.. In fact, the grammar is much simpler than that of English and many other European languages. The real trick is mastering the “tones”. Chinese is a tonal language, meaning that a single word can convey different meanings depending on the tone used when spoken. There are four of these tones –high, rising, falling-rising, and falling plus a fifth neutral tone, and misuse of any of them can present difficulties in communication. In a restaurant for example, asking for tang using the high first tone, you will get a bowl of soup, but if you were to ask for tang using the rising second tone you would be given sugar. Training listening skills early on can help with this though, because it can aid with proper pronunciation and with developing a sense for the language. However despite some tonal problems, most people will be able to understand you and sometimes a good laugh is had by all.
In 1958 the Chinese adopted a system of writing their language using the Roman alphabet called pinyin. Most Chinese cannot use it very well and some even argue that it is just for foreigners. I made the mistake of resisting learning characters and trying to learn solely with pinyin against the good advice of my Chinese teacher. In the beginning pinyin is indeed an important tool to master pronunciation of the sounds and tones but beyond that it is a dead end highway. Really though, learning characters is not as formidable as it first seems (for example, over 2200 characters have been simplified meaning fewer strokes) and it assists one to better understand the history and culture of the language. To read a Chinese newspaper you will need to know about 2500 characters but you can get the drift with around 1500.
The official language of the PRC is referred to in the West as Mandarin but the Chinese call it Putonghua, which means common speech .This is the language that you will want to learn, although you may also wish to pick up some of the local dialect of the city you’re teaching in. Chinese people wishing to work in any official capacity or become a teacher must pass a Putonghua proficiency exam. Foreigners can also test their level of Chinese by taking the Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi (Chinese Proficiency Test).
Some schools will offer their foreign teachers Chinese lessons, so by all means take advantage of this opportunity. However, I would strongly suggest getting a private tutor who can provide one on one instruction and be a speaking partner as well. This person could be a Chinese colleagues or a senior student, as they often are more than glad to help for free. You may wish to help that person improve their English skills in return for Chinese lessons. If you decide to hire a teacher you can expect to pay around 30-50 RMB per hour.
The wonderful thing for foreigners now is the vast array of learning resources available both in the bookstores and online, a far cry from the situation just a few years ago. Even CCTV 9 (China’s English Television Network) has regular programs teaching Chinese. This station is normally available in the apartments provided to ESL teachers. The textbook that I would strongly suggest is New Practical Chinese Reader published by Beijing Language and Culture University Press. There are four books in the series and each textbook comes with a workbook and CD. On top of that, the cost is very reasonable. You can ask one of your Chinese colleagues to order it for you online. Below are some other resources and online teaching sites suggested by my foreign colleagues which should prove very useful:
1. www.english.cntv.cn
2. www.remembr.it
3. www.nciku.com
4. www.popupchinese.com
5. www.chinesepod.com
6. www.sharedtalk.com
7. www.livemocha.com
8. www.interpals.com
Once sufficient vocabulary and familiarity with the language is reached, Chinese movies and TV series also are very valuable for advanced beginners and beyond. My colleague recommends watching them once with English subtitles and then a few times with Chinese subtitles. Here are some of her favorites:
Movies:
Crouching Tiger; Hidden Dragon
House of the Flying Daggers
Farewell my Concubine
The Foliage
Infernal Affairs
Peacock
The Banquet
TV Shows to get on DVD and watch with subtitles:
My Own Swordsman
Double Sided Adhesive Tape
Tian mi mi
Struggle
Soldiers Sortie
One of the most important and perhaps most rewarding ways to learn and improve your Chinese however is to get involved in the Chinese community in which you live. After all you are now more than just a waiguoren (foreigner) but a resident and this place is where you work and live. There are several ways you can do this such as joining clubs (pin pong, badminton, and chess, dancing, etc) or volunteering your time to a community organization. Often the relationships you develop through the community will be cherished long beyond your stay in China. Some of my former colleagues have even developed permanent relationships by tying the knot here. So come with an open mind and open heart.
Stephen Chappell
Footprints Alumni
With contributions by Anna Pierce and Dave Eby
P.S. Before you come to China you may wish to check out the books below:
Dreaming in Chinese: Mandarin Lessons In Life, Love, and Language by Deborah Fallows. Walker & Company 2010
Rivertown by Peter Hessler. Harper Perennial 2001 (My colleague says “How I wish I could have read this book before coming. My whole experience would have been different).