Exchanges

[alexshep]

Has anyone here done a language exchange with people that are fluent in Chinese but learning English, or maybe even a person that speaks English natively but is approaching Chinese fluency? Most of the sites out there are pretty shoddy and require money to register, or people just use them as a personals service.

Either way, if you have, have you found that it's a good way to learn, or would you be better off studying by yourself?

[bill]

Language exchange works pretty well if you make sure your partners stick to the rules.

In most cities in the West and everywhere in China there will be many more Chinese learning to speak English than Westerners trying to learn Chinese. Make sure your partners do exactly what you want in the Chinese half of the exchange (how much English (I recommend as little as possible), how much correction, whether you follow a book, etc.) If they can't do this, find a new partner - it shouldn't be difficult. Obviously you should also try to help them too!

If you're in a big city in the West, try putting an advert up in a English language school or University, and there'll probably be some Chinese students who will be interested. In China, you should be able to find people everywhere.

So far, I've had no problems and I think it helped my Chinese a lot.