Your Newbie Experience

I am the first! And of course, my experience is not typical, because I started my Chinese studies in China. I was headed for a course in a minority language, but needed some survival Chinese nevertheless. I had a traveller's phrasebook and a two committed Chinese friends, (actually one was Tibetan with very good Chinese) who met with me daily to teach me in exchange for English. I remember those first week when I was unable to pick out sounds. When all they said would run together and I had no clue where words started and where they ended. After one month of doing that I was able to produce a few simple sentences, however the language was still a blur. Only after a bit over two months did I start to get a feel for the language. There was not just that string of sounds, but some parts I was able to distinguish. That was my first sense of success. I was getting somewhere. Then I stopped learning Chinese. But I was still exposed to a lot of it. And when I started to get back into actually acquiring the language and not just being surrounded by it (about four years later), my progress was quite fast, because I was fairly familiar with the sound and rythm of the language and had some basic knowledge. However, and I wonder, if that is because of the way I learnt (or did not learn) in the beginning: I am really good at "switching off", at letting Chinese run over me without even trying to understand what is being said. It's a real bad habit I am trying to break now. Since I am working desperately hard to get to the advanced level...

Great story, wildyaks! Thanks for sharing. I find myself doing much the same thing when I listen to Chinese pop songs. I don't really try to understand it, but little by little I'm able to pick out little sentences and fragments. It's exciting! And hey... could someone from CPod add in an extra line break between my paragraphs in this post? I thought it did that automatically. :-( Thanks!

Here's something I posted to our family's blog a couple of months back: Newbie No More? Almost a year ago, I took this listening test that ChinesePod offers on their home page. The test is a series of ten phrases that you listen to and indicate whether or not you understand. The phrases get easier or harder depending on how well or poorly you are doing. Now, on that first try, and on every try since, I was classified as a "newbie," ChinesePod's entry level designation. This kept on happening, even though my vocabulary, grammar patterns, and listening comprehension were undeniably getting better and better. Now, I don't want to make too big a deal out of this, as I am aware that the test is just a rough gauge, not a pinpoint measurement. But it was starting to get "in my head." Why am I still being called a newbie when I don't feel like one? Then, last night, I decided to have another go at it, as it had been a while since I tried. Right off the bat, things were different. I got over the hump and fully understood the first couple of sentences. Rather than getting easier and easier, the questions were getting harder and harder. Then here's where things took an unexpected turn. At the end of the sequence, ChinesePod told me I was a low level intermediate. What? This can't be possible! Intermediate, I have to stress, is the third level, and for sure over my head. I guess I just happened to get a series of phrases that I know particularly well. Ever the empiricist, I decided to try again. This time, a way, way different story. The first couple of phrases were ones I didn't completely know. And my lack of knowledge was rewarded with a simple set of follow up sentences, and ultimately a return to the dreaded newbie classification. I guess my time an an intermediate learner was short lived! Satisfied with neither outcome, I went ahead and took the test for a third time. And wouldn't you know it, I received a third different rating, this time scoring as an elementary, the second in ChinesePod's levels, the level sandwiched between newbie and intermediate. This one, based on my learning and experiences, felt "right." After a fourth pass through produced an identical score, I decided to go ahead and update my ChinesePod profile, announcing to the world (yeah, right!) that I am no longer a newbie, but an elementary! The real good news in all of this? I can stop obsessing about how I am classified and get back to some actual learning... ~Steve

Steve, I can't tell you how many times I've hovered the cursor over that listening test, but I've only succumbed a few times. I didn't want to, as you say, get too much in my head about where I was. It was more important for me to enjoy the journey than worry about where I was on the map. Of course, I've been horribly remiss in my studies as of late and I'd expect the results of that listening test to just downright kick me back out to the 7-Day Trial. LOL "Clearly you've never even heard OF Chinese. Out with you!" :-)

Hi Frank : ) Good to see you back on the boards. Your absence did not go unnoticed...and, yes, we know... you have a life outside of CPod. Life sometimes gets in the way of our CPod addiction...haha.