tests

Purrfecdizzo
 August 19, 2010, 02:26 PM posted in General Discussion

Hello everyone,

I have been using Chinesepod for about a year and a half. I have, from time to time, been taking the placement test to chart my progress, and I find that my scores on these tests do not improve. I know that my Chinese is improving on a daily basis. I know this because I find I am able to communicate with Chinese people more easily, and I am able to read and write some Chinese. This fact about the test concerns me a bit because maybe I am not learning as much as I think I am, or maybe I am learning the wrong content. Anyone else have this type of experience, or any suggestions to offer?

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gaojian
 August 19, 2010, 03:09 PM

Are you taking the placement test or the tests for individual levels? I find that the test use a lot of vocabulary that might not be covered in the lessons you are studying so it can be rather difficult. In reality, I wouldn't let the test scores discourage you. If you are seeing results in other areas (such as speaking a character recognition) than you should be proud of  your accomplishments. Keep it up and eventually the tests will be no problem. Unless you are planning on taking the HSK in the near future (and really need to score high) just keep doing what you are doing and everything will be okay. 

 

加油，加油！ 

 

祝你成功。

高健

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zhenlijiang
 August 19, 2010, 03:18 PM

amesburygeorge, many people I know have the opposite concern; they test pretty well and then go out in the real world and get depressed because they can't seem to hear or speak at their supposed level at all.

I know that my Chinese is improving on a daily basis.

I would consider finding myself able to communicate with the people more easily to be more important than any other indicator--unless your goal is to score better on ChinesePod placement tests.

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gaojian

Well said. I still find that at my "intermediate" level I can listen to a newbie lesson and learn something new.

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Purrfecdizzo

I am currently working with intermediate level, because the lower levels seem too easy for me. Intermediate gives me quite a workout, so between the lessons, and talking to people in the street, I think I will continue to improve.