Electronic pop-up dictionaries are all the rage! But are they really helping you improve your Chinese? John and Jared take a research-based look at the impact of pop-up dictionaries and answer the question “Can you really click your way to fluency?”

The guest interview is with Chris Max, a famous YouTuber you’ve likely never heard of because his videos are in Chinese and made for Chinese audiences. This is a rerun interview from January 2020. 

Links from the episode:

Research paper: Reading strategies and reading comprehension retention with and without a pop-up dictionary by beginning learners of Chinese

Research paper: The use of e-dictionary to read e-text by intermediate and advanced learners of Chinese

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.

A dictionary is frequently one of the first things you buy when learning a language. In this episode, John and Jared will give you tips and tricks and do’s and don’ts on Chinese dictionaries, so you can get the most out of them for your learning gain. 

The guest interview is with Matt Coss, a Chinese-language educator and Ph.D. candidate who is helping to craft the future of Chinese education. 

Links from the episode:

Interagency Language Roundtable Language Skill Level Descriptions

Pleco Chinese dictionary 

MDBG Chinese dictionary

YellowBridge Chinese dictionary

“Searching Pleco Dictionary Entries with Wildcards” (Sinosplice blog post)

“Where We Come From,” with Emily Kwong (an episode in the NPR video and audio series)

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.

What does it take to pursue a graduate-level degree in Chinese in China? With our resident expert, John Pasden, we’ll pull back the curtain to show you what it takes for a non-Chinese person to get admitted into an all-Chinese university program and what studying in China at a graduate level is like.

This guest interview is with Tom Connelly, a multilingual worldwide adventurer who is channeling his passion into teaching others the Chinese language. He’s currently working on a master’s degree at Nanjing University.

Links from the episode:

Why China for Grad School? (Sinosplice blog post)

Classes in Brief (Sinosplice blog post)

Chinese Grammar Wiki (Mandarin Companion grammar point reference page)

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.

You’ve got the basics down. Sounds like you’re ready to type Chinese! John and Jared talk about how Chinese input methods work and, for the more advanced learners, teach you tips and tricks to make Chinese input less painful and time-consuming. 

Interview is with Suzy Williams who learned Chinese fully immersed in Taiwan while serving as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 

Links from the episode:

Chinese Input Methods (Hacking Chinese)

Mandarin Companion graded readers are now available as add-ons in Pleco

Zhihu (知乎), Chinese Q&A site (best to find articles via Google searches)

Hack Chinese Flashcard platform

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.

Language is words, so learn enough words and you’ll be fluent, right? As a sophisticated learner, you know it’s not that simple. In this episode, we discuss the subtleties of vocabulary learning, how it is (and isn’t) like Legos, what “high-frequency” means, and how to apply all of this to your studies.

The guest interview is with Mischa Wilmers from England. For all of you who wanted to learn Chinese during lockdown, Mischa did it and shares how he achieved proficiency with little interaction with others. 

Links from the episode:

YCLC Episode #13: The four keys to learning Chinese you need to know

Vocabulary as puzzle pieces (Sinosplice article)

Great Expectations: Part 1 (Chinese graded reader)

SUBTLEX-CH (movie subtitle corpus project)

Scientists find 'missing link' behind first human languages

Why I’m a fan of Chinese graded readers, by Mischa Wilmers

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.

John and Jared discuss what it means to be “learner-centric” and how you can adapt your learning methods to fit your own goals. You’ll get insights into the new HSK and other standardized tests, ACTFL’s “Can-Do” statements, and Mandarin Companion standards. These are all things you can use right away!

The guest interview is with Robin MacPherson, a highly enthusiastic polyglot who speaks eight languages and documents his language learning on YouTube.

Why I’m a Fan of Chinese Graded Readers (Micha’s blog post)

你好 Compilation YouTube Video (omitted from last week’s show notes)

NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do Statements

Novice Can-Do Statements (PDF)

Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Curly-Haired Company (Mandarin Companion Graded Reader)

How To Develop Spoken Fluency Through Reading (four-part YouTube series)

Robin MacPherson YouTube Channel

Journaly (An online journal used to improve language learning)

Subtitle Hero (An interactive subtitle service for Chinese-language shows)

Shanghai Russians (The story behind the Russian diaspora in Shanghai)

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.

Recently, Mandarin Companion participated in the 2021 National Chinese Language Conference (NCLC). The topics discussed provided much insight into what is in store for the future of Chinese learning. Spoiler alert: The future is bright!

The guest interview is with Jonathan Becker, a college student who was placed into his university's intermediate Chinese level after just four months of learning due to, yep, you guessed it, extensive reading. 

Links from the episode:

NCLC: Breakout Sessions

NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do Statements

CC-CEDict (free Chinese dictionary) on MDBG.net

AllSet Learning Chinese Grammar Wiki

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.

Everyone loves Chinese food, but if only there were a way to tie your love for the cuisine into progress learning the language. Well, there is...sort of. Tune in to learn what to do and what not to do so that your stomach stays full as your Mandarin improves.

The guest interview is with James Wong, who, despite a severe hearing disability, worked hard to overcome the odds and made impressive progress toward learning Chinese. Prepare to be inspired by James’s journey.

Links from the episode:

You Can Learn Chinese, episode 43

How to learn to order food in Chinese 

10 vegetables China taught me to love 

Chinese cooking demystified 

The misadventures of Zhou Haisheng 

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.

What if you are still struggling to get to the point where you can read the lowest-level graded readers? What techniques can get you there? John and Jared will discuss steps you can take to bridge the gap to real reading and also begin to experience the snowball effect of reading in Chinese.

The guest interview is with Abigail Washburn, a Grammy Award–winning bluegrass musician, whose plans to attend law school in Beijing were derailed by a record deal. 

Links from the episode:

How to Learn to Read Chinese: Baby Steps to Real Reading (Part 2 of 4)

Xiao Ming, Boy Sherlock (Mandarin Companion Breakthrough Level book)

Mandarin Corner

http://www.wufeimusic.com/abigail-washburn

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.

Will Chinese one day unseat English to become the dominant language around the world? Jared and John discuss a paper by professor Jeffrey Gil, who predicts that one day it will. The guest interview is with Amani Core, who provides a philosophical perspective on how Chinese shapes our view of humanity.

Links from the episode:

“Chinese to rise as a global language,” by Jeffrey Gil

These Violent Delights, by Chloe Gong 

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.