User Comments - anonymous988875

Posted on: Emojis 脑洞大开—表情包

哦，原来如此。谢谢你澄清。

Posted on: Emojis 脑洞大开—表情包

又做出一门挺有意思、又有挑战性的课程。十分感谢！

请帮我在以下几句话中填空。

1:30 外国人呢，经常在常用的一个表情包，可能同学们更加熟悉的，它叫做“yi huo de ni ke yang" (?)。翻译成中文之后，大家都不是很清楚它叫什么了。但是在中国呢，这个表情包叫做"hei ren e hao lian" (?)。

Posted on: O2O bookstores 书香四溢──实体书店

这门课程跟以往的一样好。（今时却同往日）

依我看，这是最近以来最好的高级课程。很好理解，同时也学很多新词和用法。感谢你们的工夫。

Posted on: Are reserved seats REALLY reserved? 坐立不安──高铁霸坐

这门课不错，谢谢两位老师给我们有耐心地解释。

什么时候将开始作出像以前那样更高级的课程呢？

Posted on: Jack Ma’s retirement 功成身退──接任马云：创造者张勇和他所改变的阿里巴巴

请帮我翻译下一段话：“更因为他的战略格局和组织文化传承上的担当”。More because of his strategic setup and organizational culture...

这里的“传承上的担当”怎么理解？他担当了什么？又传承了什么？

Posted on: Job Hopping 另谋高就──闪辞

1. I thought Media was supposed to be more advanced than Advanced. Why are we getting an Upper Intermediate lesson here? (The grammar explanations were especially basic. Advanced learners should be familiar with 一方面 另一方面 and 既 又 by now.)

2. Why is there not a greater, more in-depth analysis of the article instead of merely exposition on vocabulary and basic grammar structures?

3. Why is there no conclusion? After the audio plays a second time, there really should be an "outro" (as Fiona called it).

4. Why is the format the same as Advanced lessons? If Media is going to use the same format as other lessons, then there is really no need for it to be a separate category. The original conception of the Media category was that users would first read a challenging article, watch an online video, or listen to a podcast, so that they are transitioning into authentic materials. There are a few problems with this and the previous Media lesson: (1) there is no convenient way to look at the authentic material first, since it is only provided within the audio itself and as a PDF; (2) the selected material is rather too easy compared to previous lessons and does not contain sufficient commentary. It reads too much like a news report where a phenomenon is discussed succinctly and in plain terms, whereas it should represent a final challenge for students transitioning off of teacher-prepared lessons. In this sense, these recent "Media" lessons miss the mark.

I appreciate the improvements in quality we have seen thus far and hope the trend continues. However, I have yet to see indications of really deep and thought-provoking comprehensive analysis of obliquely-expressed opinionated articles.

Posted on: 虎妈教育方式的的利与弊-Tiger Mom（2/3）

Solid lesson.  Hope to see more lessons of this caliber.

When can we expect Part 3?

Posted on: Greater Bay Area 大湾区

I think this is a solid Upper Intermediate lesson and the best one I've heard so farsince the transition (although I'm still not caught up).

Just a few comments (aside from what has been already mentioned about the use of English):

1. I really like the presenters in this audio, Anna and Tamia. They have personality and speak clearly. I like that ChinesePod seems to be diversifying its instructors so that learners are exposed to more accents (one of thefew shortcomings of the last team was an absence of this diversity).

2. I do not mind listening to the audio three times but think it would be more beneficial to have the third time at the end.

3. As I suggested in my opening comment, this really is not an Advanced lesson. First, thecontent is a straightforward description without much cultural or linguistic subtlety. Second, the speakers still speak unnaturally slowly at certain points. Third, the selected vocabulary is all fairly common and basic. (Why was 生动注脚 not explained? That would be more advanced vocabulary.) Fourth, theentire lesson consisted only of an audio segment (repeated thrice); vocabulary definitions, examples, and usage; and some side commentary. Absent were higher-order thinking skills and cultural context. This is really where the new team has consistently been weakest in contrast with the previous teams. I think Fiona and Constance were perhaps the strongest in this respect, and I think this is also the most important aspect of Advanced lessons.

In summary, this is not a bad lesson and it is a significant improvement since the transition. Both Anna and Tamia are engaging and competent in explaining terminology. However, it does not meet the standards of an Advanced lesson. Nor does it quite reach the quality to which we have become accustomed from the previous teaching teams, due to a complete absence of critical thinking and cultural exposition. Nevertheless, I am hopeful that in the future we might see more of this incorporated into Advanced lessons.

Posted on: 人机合一（三）Android Part 3

Why are basic words and phrases such as 话说回来、类似、前台、办事、群众、态度、挑剔、资料、递、熟练、过程、享受、合作 defined and explained in an advanced lesson? How can a conversation that defines 合作 and 享受, to which any Chinese learner should have been exposed early and often, truly be considered "advanced"? It's hard not to find this level of condescension and underestimation (or lack of preparation) embarrassing. I understand that the new team has "growing pains" and that these are natural, but there ought to at least be some fundamental understanding of foreign language instruction. I am not a teacher and I have no formal background in education, but even I understand the concept that basic terminology need not be explained to advanced learners, that there ought to be more discussion than translation of vocabulary, etc. Why is it that the new team has to learn these fundamental, and I would think obvious, lessons as if they had never considered foreign language teaching standards? Has no one from the new team listened to the older material? Have they not considered why ChinesePod has been so successful? It's amazing the apparent inexperience and sloppiness we have seen so far from what used to be the premier and most reputable Chinese-language podcast. I only hope that this state of affairs is indeed temporary, and that we eventually have something to look forward to worthy of the ChinesePod brand.

Posted on: 人机合一（一）Android Part 1

Victor, thank you for expressing the disappointment many of us feel with these new lessons during the new team's "growing pains."  You expressed my feelings accurately, articulately, comprehensively, and respectfully.  That's how feedback should be given.

I'm still going through the Advanced lessons, so I hope that some of these changes have already begun to be implemented in some of the later lessons.

One point I would like to emphasize that Victor mentioned is that Advanced lessons really ought to be more focused on the cultural subtext and critical thinking, explaining vocabulary and concepts in the target language, rather than merely reading a passage and translating vocabulary words.  Both previous teams (first with Jenny as team lead and then with Fiona/Constance) mastered this approach remarkably well, and that's why I have been willing to support ChinesePod for as long as I have.

Let me also remark that while it is true that longer lessons are not necessarily better, it is frankly hard (if not impossible) to accomplish what Jenny's and Fiona's teams did without sufficient material and coverage--which does require time.  Seeing as there are still these growing pains, however, I prefer shorter lessons until such time as the quality of the teaching improves to what it once was; after which, I do expect longer lessons that take a subject and delve into it from different angles, exploring it in context and elaborating on its relevance to Chinese culture and society as a whole.

The teaching approach I have always preferred for learning foreign languages is one composed of three parts: an introduction (where the context of a subject is given, perhaps its history or perhaps some fundamental knowledge that sheds light on the following material), a body (the actual material), and finally a conclusion (explaining its relevance, wider implications, etc.).  This is the approach both Jenny and Fiona eventually (if not at first) adopted, and I highly recommend it to the new Jenny with her new team.

Lastly, please no English.  It's really not necessary, under any circumstances, for advanced learners.  If learners need English translations, they should listen to Intermediate or Upper Intermediate lessons.

Thank you for your attention and consideration.  I wish the new team success in this challenging endeavor.