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A newbie sets out: Braving Mandarin. | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log |  | |
| eggcluck Senior Member China Joined 4699 days ago 168 posts - 278 votes  Speaks: English* Studies: Mandarin, Japanese | Message 17 of 94 20 January 2012 at 1:57pm | IP Logged | ||
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As culture shock starts to set in I have most definatly began to falter. While I would like to blame the city hopping in the end I give up trying to get a taxi after 2 hours so apart from losing some time I never went in the end. Naturally those concerned refered to it as an excuse, they have been here ten years not me, I have no idea how things work.
I had some encouragement from the discovery that there is in fact a ready made vocabulary within Mandarin for English speakers. They have taken much the same approach the Japanese have with katakana words, minus the katakana. Given that these words are in Chinese pronuciation they are far more distorted and much harder to notice, though the pronunciation of choclate I noticed instantly. The pronunciations are sometimes so distorted that it took one of the locals having to point it out to me before I noticed. Though now it has been pointed out, recognition of these words seems much easier. As stated I have faltered, and have not kept to my schedule today, apart from sleeping in too late I have a spout of demotivation and had to force myself to do what I did do. I also find myself coming to find SRS more and more of a drudgery. I only ever intended for it to be a small part of my studies yet it seems intent on trying to enslave me. Perhaps it is just this over due pile that is wearing me down, after it is gone I shall continue a little to give it a chance before I throw it into the rejected list. While I am sure it was one of the factors contributing to my Japanese failure, I have put it down to my poor study skills and lack of knowledge on how to use it properly. I will now have two days left to clear the anki stack, given the 250+ new daily reviews and nearly 800 sill out standing, I think it is going going to require a push that at the moment I just do not feel like doing. I also have some dispondence towards the progress I have made, as this is both my first attempt in earnest at a language and also my first time doing something that remotely resembles study I have no idea how justified those feelings are. I can only just keep trying to go forward in the hope that at least some part of my attempt at study has some posistive effects while discovering more about how to study better. Current status Assimil - Shadowing lessons 44-59 - Scriptorium lessons 41-43 - Assimil method, nothing done. Operation save anki. - 512 reviews done - 777 due/over due remain (no reduction) 2 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| JayR9 Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 4698 days ago 155 posts - 162 votes Speaks: English* | Message 18 of 94 20 January 2012 at 2:44pm | IP Logged | ||
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Have you come up with any good ways to study?
I have printed a few characters out and placed them around my place so even when I'm not at my computor studying, I;m still surrounded by them. I am not sure If it will work but I am always open to try new things. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| eggcluck Senior Member China Joined 4699 days ago 168 posts - 278 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Mandarin, Japanese | Message 19 of 94 20 January 2012 at 8:06pm | IP Logged | ||
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For the most part I do not have to worry about such things, they are everywhere in my place already and even more if I go outside. I find the TV channels quite usefull as everything is subtitled in Chinese as well, occasionaly they have English and Chinese subtitles at the same time. I have picked up a few words that way. While being in China is hopefully an advantage I was able to replicate this in the UK too.
When I was doing Japanese back in the UK I did try posting the Kanji around but after a time they just became " background noise" In the end I bought a giant Kanji poster and put it on the ceiling above my bed. Before I went to sleep I would "randomly" pick some to try and recognise. The method of using stories to remember the symbols by radicals has so far not been bested by anything else I have tried. I am quite visual and doing it allowed me to do up 100 Kanji a day via Hesiegs book. Heseig is all about the writing however, as far as readings go another way needs to be used. My best progress in this area has come from not activly trying to remember readings, but just learning them through new words, they seem to stick better when there is some sort of context involved. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| JayR9 Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 4698 days ago 155 posts - 162 votes Speaks: English* | Message 20 of 94 20 January 2012 at 8:34pm | IP Logged | ||
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Yes I am on the lookout for some books to help me. We cant really get radio or tv In chinese over here so Im always searching the Internet. It would be good living over there.
When you write, do you write in pinyin or characters? Or even both? What do you recommend for writing? 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| eggcluck Senior Member China Joined 4699 days ago 168 posts - 278 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Mandarin, Japanese | Message 21 of 94 21 January 2012 at 3:49pm | IP Logged | ||
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I found many an international stream via the internet when in the UK, they are out there. A program called live station may help. It is unreliable but sometimes comes up gold.
I write in characters, never both. I am probably the last person you should come to for advice though, as I have mentioned in a previous reply I find Hesig's books have not done wrong by me for writing. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| JayR9 Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 4698 days ago 155 posts - 162 votes Speaks: English* | Message 22 of 94 21 January 2012 at 4:05pm | IP Logged | ||
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Yes Thanks, Thats all Im doing when I have time, Searching websites for new programs/streams and things that might help.
Anyway, all the best and thanks again. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| eggcluck Senior Member China Joined 4699 days ago 168 posts - 278 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Mandarin, Japanese | Message 23 of 94 21 January 2012 at 4:07pm | IP Logged | ||
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Well I had hardened my resolve and did make that push to put the squeeze on the unseemly heifer that is the over due pile. Quite pleased with the fact that after 1100 reviews I obliterated the lot before the target date, that being one I thought would eventually require a revision. Though now it is time to steel myself for the cascade of impending review spikes that are coming my way.
I kept to the regular routine quite well, though the brain drain that resulted from the SRS offensive meant I only did one Assimil lesson. Regardless I am quite happy with my progress. While visiting a bar yesterday to drown my then demotivated sorrows I tried to force my ear to the native conversations going on. While I could understand some things it was not enough to quite get the gist of things yet. Though while staring at the TV screen I was able to read a surprising amount of Hanzi at a high enough speed to get to the end before the text chance. However there is still not enough comprehension to get any sort of meaning from them. I endeavoured to try a Pimsleur lesson today. It certainly did not endear itself to me. The accent of the narrator ground on me to the point where I had a physical reaction when I first heard him. This ones ears defiantly did not find this particular accent pleasant listening. While I shall not form an opinion based on one session, for the time being it has earned a firm place in the “try later” pile, until such time as I feel disposed to see if I can build some sort of tolerance to such a cringe worthy accent. For now the plan is to continue with the schedule while facing down the SRS review spike onslaught. After I intended to get a start with Hesieg. Current status -Assimil - Shadowing - lessons 45-60 - Scriptorium lessons 42-44 - Assimil method lesson 25 Pimsleur - lesson 1, * Now shelved Operation Save Anki * Goal achieved! - 1104 Reviews completed - O Due/Overdue remaining 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| liddytime Pentaglot Senior Member United States mainlymagyar.wordpre Joined 6227 days ago 693 posts - 1328 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Galician Studies: Hungarian, Vietnamese, Modern Hebrew, Norwegian, Persian, Arabic (Written) | Message 24 of 94 21 January 2012 at 10:56pm | IP Logged | ||
谢谢！ 你能与人说话，吗？ 1 person has voted this message useful |
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