Mandarin Lessons

ChinesePod Review

by admin on 29/09/09 at 7:50 am

Making the decision to learn Chinese is a hard one. I imagine that you had to think long and hard before entering such a commitment. That’s normal. It is known to many that Chinese is a very challenging language to learn – with all the characters you have to memorize, the tones, vocabulary, and more. But, it does not really have to be hard at all. All you need is a lot of practice and some help from ChinesePod.com.

What is ChinesePod?

There are a lot of programs and software online that offers to teach Chinese within a certain number of weeks, but ChinesePod is probably the best as it gives a very comprehensive program on the subject matter. The whole program provides you with an expert teacher who will guide you through the lessons, podcasts you can take with you anywhere, tools for improving your vocabulary, and even conversational Chinese practice lessons. Not only that, ChinesePod has also prepared study plans for students who can’t find the right learning style for them. Through this, you’ll know how to take on learning Chinese without feeling frustrated.

Yes, learning Chinese is that easy! All you need to do is to listen to podcasts, which are already provided for, on your own time, and then go back to ChinesePod.com for a review of the lessons. Before you know it, you’d be speaking the language spoken by billions of people around the world!

Our Analysis
After comparing ChinesePod with other online programs that more or less offer the same things, here are the pros and cons that I have discovered…

PROS
1. You can learn on your own time just by listening to their podcasts wherever you go, whatever you are doing. This is of big help to students who are very busy and barely has time to attend sit-down lessons.
2. Since an expert guide is provided to students, learning is interactive and progress can be easily tracked. Students have someone to go to whenever they do not get something, and concerns can be easily addressed.

CONS
1. ChinesePod is not something you can download into your system. You will need to go online for lessons and tools, unlike other programs that allow students to download everything for more convenient access.
2. You will have to pay extra for more advanced lessons. It isn’t a one-time payment thing until the advanced level.

Conclusion

The very fact that ChinesePod has grown to a huge international community, relied upon as the learning source for so many people new to the language, is enough testament to it’s quality. The ability to learn in a variety of environments, and then come back to the central community to test how you’re doing, is a huge advantage that no other learning method has been able to match so far. If you’re serious about learning Mandarin, this is the program for you!

Visit ChinesePod’s website for a free seven-day trial and start your journey toward Chinese fluency!