Forums > Study > TenWest Language School Opinions?

@The Dudeson's
I hate to say this, but you don't know what you are talking about. You are making assumptions that are simply incorrect. You get what you pay for as I said before, and as I've talked to ex-pats here in town, I've found there are a few schools that are better than others. I'm not saying TenWest is the only good school in town, but I'm very clearly saying it is certainly one of the best. I've studied language acquisition — albeit briefly — and I feel that I'm qualified to make an assessment of how Westerners learn best.

If you don't understand why non-native Chinese speakers want to learn 普通话 as opposed to 昆明话, I don't think I'm going to be able to convince you here. I can tell you are a non-native speaker, but I can't tell if you are Chinese or not. Firstly, if you are not Chinese, you seem to really dislike Chinese culture. If so, why live here? If you are Chinese, you sound very bitter. This is not endearing to foreigners. It's hard enough for us to learn a new language and live in a culture that is not our own (and mind you, most of us really like China), but it doesn't help when we see so much negativity.

Lastly, the owner of TenWest has become a friend because he has treated me with respect and honor and because I am learning a language at his school that I never thought I would have the ability to learn: Chinese. He also asks his students for feedback and if there is anything he can do to make their learning experience better. This is truly exceptional in ANY country. This is why it is offensive to me when people speak about things they are ignorant of. Please don't belittle others when you clearly do not have enough information to make such a judgment.

The reason I would come on GoKunming and defend this school is because I think so highly of it, I have become a fan, someone who is willing to talk about a brand simply because their experience has been so positive. That speaks for itself. This is what Apple has. You can't pay for that. You have to provide a service or product at a price that people believe to be lower than what that product or service is actually worth. I believe TenWest does that in spades.

Forums > Study > TenWest Language School Opinions?

Here's a link to the school's Facebook page: www.facebook.com/tenwestschool/. Address, etc. can be found there. By the way Mahjong went so well last night, the owner is considering doing it once a month, FYI.

Forums > Study > TenWest Language School Opinions?

They use the Chinese Made Easy books, but I would HIGHLY recommend not starting out with them. Ask to use the GPA method to start out. It mimics how children learn language quickly. Basically, you start by just listening so that you can hear the sounds well before you try to say them. This helps later on with pronunciation issues. It will ultimately help you to NOT pickup bad pronunciation habits early. Also, it's completely in Chinese. For instance, your teacher will point to a cup and say 杯子. Then (in Chinese) your teacher will ask you to do something like point to the cup. At first, you won't understand because you don't know any Chinese, but your teacher will gesture until you understand what he/she is asking. This means that you will be exclusively listening in Chinese. You won't be translating in your head. It will also train you to listen for common phrases like "Where is...?" Or "What is this?" TPR (or Total Physical Response) goes along with this. For instance, your teacher may say something like 请你站 ("Please stand.") Again, at first you might feel a bit silly since it is the first time you'll be hearing commands in Chinese, but your teacher will mimic the action for you. Then when you hear the command, you will associate the verb with the action. This is how most of our brains naturally work, and it helps create language connections in your brain much more quickly than if you just try to memorize words. I seriously don't do any homework except for practicing writing Chinese characters, and I have been amazed that I can speak just as well as my friend who studies much harder and takes more hours of class. Also, GPA focuses on words you need to know NOW. So forget learning useless words that you learn in text books like "envelope." I learned how to say "send a text message" within the first two or three weeks of class because it was immediately useful to me. I also learned the Chinese name for WeChat because everyone uses it here. Anyway, hope that's helpful.

Forums > Study > Advice About Learning Chinese

@alexez Right on bro! I've had nothing but kind people and lots of smiles in this city. I'm wondering if some people are feeling too self conscious and reading into things? I mean, it's a different culture. Not everything means exactly what it means in your home culture. Also, Chinese people have fairly thick skin. It comes with living in a country with 1.4 billion people. You get pushed around at the bus stop. Because there are countless dialects around here most people are going to have to strain to understand you and vice versa. I still can't understand half the stuff that cabbies tell me, but I just smile, tell them my Chinese is bad, and ask them to repeat. Humility goes a long way. I've had so many conversations with my Chinese friends about why Westerners are so sensitive and rude. They just can't understand our need for personal space and the freedom to do whatever we wish. To them, that's just selfish. (I think it's just differences in culture and not right or wrong.) Anyway, the more you learn to say "It's not wrong it's just different" to cultural values, the more fun you'll have and the more friends you'll make.

A few nights ago, I was out eating shao kao by myself, and there were a couple of college students sitting next to me who had had a few too many beers. I could tell they were egging each other on to talk to me. One finally said "hello" in English. I smiled, and spoke to them in Chinese. The laughed — which my first inclination was to get defensive — but I have come to learn that Chinese people often laugh when they are nervous or surprised. They simply didn't expect me to talk much in Chinese. Anyway, they wanted to know all the usual things like how long I had been in China and where I was from, if I had a wife, what country I was from. I was doing pretty well by made a couple of mistakes (usually mixing up placement of time and place words), and yes, they laughed. It's okay. They weren't trying to insult me. It was genuinely funny to them. Finally, I said I needed to leave. When I tried to pay, I was told that my money was no good there, and that they would pay for my dinner. They then proceeded to thank me for talking to them and the one guy that could speak a little English said, "Welcome to China."

This has consistently been my experience. Yes, interactions can be awkward, but ultimately, a lot of times if you can push through the awkward, you get to meet some really wonderful people. I regularly get complimented on my Chinese (which I know to be objectively terrible) and I almost never can pay a bill for dinner even if I fight really hard to pay it!

Here are a couple of things I've found to be really great ways to endear yourself to Chinese acquaintances: Talk to their children. We all know family is the most important thing to most Chinese people so interacting with their children is an instant win. I often ask the mother or father to take a picture with their phone of me and their child. This is the clincher. After that, I'm in. I could punt a a puppy across the street, and I'd still be the nicest guy in the world to them. (Also, I've got the vocabulary of a 3 year-old, so talking to kids is a win-win for me.) #2, I often say something extremely unexpected to loosen things up. For instance, when someone says "Hello" to me in English, I often say, "很好！你是澳大利亚人对不对?" ("Great! Are you Australian?") They'll stare at me for a split second and then burst out laughing. I'll then usually say something like, "我是中国人。你知道是真的!" ("I'm Chinese. You know it's true!") We are best mates from here on out.

Forums > Study > TenWest Language School Opinions?

Ummmmm... Not sure you understood what I was saying. The highly trained Chinese teachers (some of whom have taught abroad) are basically VOLUNTEERING their time for this Chinese Corner. This isn't random college kids at the 大学. It seems to me that they charge 10RMB a head to recoup the cost of coffee, tea, and snacks.

Dude, if your first instinct is to criticize all Chinese people as being money hungry, you are in the wrong country.