recommended schools in Qingdao?

[Gavin.uk]

Hi, I will be going to China for a month with my 14 year old son to carry on learning mandarin, Last year we went to Kunming and I have previously been to KCE in Shijiazhuang. I am looking for a different city and would like to avoid BJ and SH, There is very little comment that I can find on schools in Qindao although it seems like a great place for both study and holiday. Ideally we would want a 1-on-1 teacher each - can anyone ofer any pointers? Also I would be open to any other city that anyone thinks is worth invesstigating.

 

Gavin

[James3]

Gavin, I've not been to China yet, and I don't have any information about schools in Qindao. But I have been looking at schools for a while, and have recently picked one.  Just in case this particular school fits your requirements, thought I'd mention it.

 

First, I should say I've been using The Pimsleur Method for about a year, and have almost finished Mandarin I thru IV.  Each volume or level has thirty one-half hour lessons in it, for a total of 120 lessons.  I've been talking with language exchange partners from China for about a year. I can't yet converse with them, free form, but instead...I let them help me practice my current lesson, and ensure I'm getting my pronunciation right. I'm able to interject questions and statements in Chinese, somewhat unrelated to the current lesson I'm practicing, so I know I'm improving.  I guess I'm in the stage of building up my vocabulary, as well as increasing my comfort level with hearing, and speaking Mandarin.

 

Recently, with the help of other members here, I discovered that it would really help if I spent some quality time with the Pinyin Table, in order to nail the pronunciation. (Being a programmer, I am really itching to write some Java to help me do this. But I digress...)  All that said, all my language exchange partners say I speak very standard Mandarin.  But I've just not been progressing as fast as I wanted to. Now that you know some background of why I was looking for a school...

 

I went looking for a language immersion school to speed up my progress. Initially I was looking only in Beijing, but then I began to hear really good things about Kunming. Later, I heard about http://www.1to1mandarinworkshop.com in Harbin. I've read a lot of posts related to various schools, and I've sent off many e-mails to various places inquiring about their program. Yet, several things about Harbin (and this school) really appeal to me. I'm currently in touch with them, getting answers to all my questions, and trying to work out the timing and logistics. I expect to leave in the next few months.

 

Anyway, here's a thread on the school I mentioned, in the hopes it will tell you something more about what they have to offer:

http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/topic/24933-1to1-mandarin-workshop-harbin/

 

At first I wasn't going to say anything, because I've not actually been there yet. But then it occurred to me that I made my decision to go there largely based on what others have already said. So, I figured the least I could do, was mention it to you, in case it turned out to be something you'd be interested in.

 

Whatever you end up doing, or whereever you end up going, have fun. Sounds like a blast that you'll be going with your son! I'm sure he'll treasure these memories for years to come, remembering when he and dad took off to China to study Mandarin. 

[Gavin.uk]

Hi James3,

 

thanks for your reply. I have spent 9 months in schools in China including Keats in Kunming that you mentioned, but mostly in Shijiazhuang. Thanks for the lead but I don't think Harbin would be as much fun for my son - and I want the learning and holiday to be fun as well as academic. as an aside, I use Anki on iphone (not free but conveniant) and on laptop (free) for learning characters. There are lots of libraries to download or you can create your own. I downloaded New Practical Chinese  books 1-5 vocabulary as those are the books I study. Good luck for your China trip!

[Triling]

Did you find any good schools in Qingdao?