Articles tagged with ‘Q&A’
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Student Q&A: May, 2025: Learning Chinese characters and words with flashcard apps
Should you focus on many words superficially or few words well? How do you stay motivated when flashcards get boring? And how can you tell if you really know a word?
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Student Q&A: April, 2025: Reading with Pinyin, Chinese texts on your phone, and deciphering handwriting
Should you read Chinese with or without Pinyin? What are the pros and cons of reading on your phone? And how do you learn to read Chinese people’s handwriting?
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Student Q&A: March, 2025: Chinese slang, leaving expat bubbles, and competing with other learners
Is learning Chinese slang worth your time? What do you do when someone with less study time speaks better than you? And how can you escape the expat bubble and start learning Mandarin?
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Student Q&A: February, 2025: Improving listening ability quickly, using transcripts, and understanding rapid Mandarin
How do you improve listening ability as quickly as possible? Are there any strategies to deal with rapid speech? And how many times should you listen before using a transcript?
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Student Q&A, January 2025: Text that reads like English with Chinese words, how to get good feedback from AI, and how to learn to write formal Chinese
What do you do if your teacher says that your text reads like English written with Chinese words? How can you get good feedback on your Chinese writing from ChatGPT? And how can you learn to write in a professional or academic setting?
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Student Q&A, December 2024: Learning similar Chinese characters, polyphonic characters, and flashcards vs. reading for building vocabulary
How can you remember the difference between similar Chinese characters? Are flashcards better than reading for building vocabulary? And how do you learn polyphonic characters?
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Student Q&A, October 2024: Pronouncing the final -i after sh-, the initial z- and if Pinyin is a good transcription system
How is the Pinyin final -i pronounced after sh? How is the initial z- pronounced compared to z in English? And is Pinyin a good transcription system for learning pronunciation?
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Student Q&A, September 2024: Slowly spoken Chinese, passing listening exams and understanding numbers
Should you slow down the Mandarin you listen to? How can you prepare for difficult listening exams? And how can you understand Chinese numbers in context?
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Student Q&A, August 2024: Avoiding mental translation, untranslatable words and why practising translation is good
How can you stop translating in your head? What are some Chinese words that can’t be translated? And why is translation a worthwhile learning activity?
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Student Q&A, July 2024: Reading speed, children’s books and Chinese literature
How can you read Chinese faster? Which children’s books are best for second-language learners? And what’s the ideal entry point into Chinese literature?
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