June 19th, 2009 | Written by: John M. Quick
On February 23, 2009, I began learning Mandarin Chinese. Using the Rosetta Stone software, I was able to become proficient in Chinese after only four months of practice.
Rosetta Stone is an incredible tool that I highly recommend to all language learners. Not only is it self-paced and interactive, but it takes an intriguing approach to teaching Chinese. While using the software, the student is immersed in a wholly foreign world. No English can be found. No translation occurs. The learner is exposed only to the unknown language. He must read, hear, speak, and type only in Chinese. From the accompanying images and activities, the student deciphers and constructs his own meaning. Thus, the new language is discovered and absorbed through the learner’s situated experiences. This reflects the way that one learns his native tongue and is remarkably fast and effective.
After four months with Rosetta Stone, I am confident that I can conduct everyday tasks in Chinese. I know how to handle things like buying and selling, meeting and greeting, social events, and basic conversation. My current understanding of Chinese is comparable to my proficiency in Spanish after four years of traditional instruction! I believe that Rosetta Stone can both supplement the learning of traditional students and help nontraditional students learn a language very fast. It costs about the same as a one semester college course, yet provides years worth of knowledge in the same amount of time. If you are interested in learning a new language or improving your existing skills, I recommend that you use Rosetta Stone. I have never experienced a better language learning system.
While I can now handle many basic life situations, the keys to becoming fluent in Chinese are to practice and increase my vocabulary. Rosetta Stone has given me a solid foundation, especially in regards to grammatical syntax. I need to continue learning new words to grow my capabilities. Although I have completed the entire program, I plan to continue using Rosetta Stone to review and practice. I will also seek an alternative source for expanding my vocabulary. Studying Chinese has been an exciting and rewarding experience for me. Without Rosetta Stone, I would not have been able to learn Chinese in such a fast and effective manner. To demonstrate my progress thus far, I decided to rewrite this blog post below in simplified Chinese.
二零零九二月二十三号上，我开始我的中文课。用Rosetta Stone软件，只要四个月的练习,我能精通中文了。
Rosetta Stone 是一个俱佳的用具。我推荐所有的语言学生都用它。它不只是自步和互动， 可是它的教式很有意思。在用着Rosetta Stone的时候，我浸了一个外星球。我找不到了英语或者译文。我只经历一个陌生语言。我只看，说，和写了中文。从照片和活动，我构和发现了我的意思。因此, 我的知识是从经历来的。这样跟我的最初英语学习一样，也有效。
过后的四个月跟Rosetta Stone，我能做平常的东西用中文。我会买卖，见面，和讨论多东西。我中文知识比我西班牙语一样，可是我在中学里学了四年的西班牙语！为传统和非传统的学生，我想Rosetta Stone很有用学一个新语言。一个大学课比Rosetta Stone价格差不多一样， 可是Rosetta Stone有多年的课。如果你要学一个新语言，你应该用Rosetta Stone. 我不知道一个更好的语言学用具。
虽然我能对付多日常活动，我的关键流畅的中文是练习和加词汇量。Rosetta Stone 给我一个强基础的语法。我需要学习新词扩大我的能力。虽然我结束了我的电脑课，我会继续用着Rosetta Stone练习。还有，我会找另一个资源学中文词。我想学中文很有意思和重要。没有Rosetta Stone, 我不能写这个或者跟一个中国人说话。
| Tags: china, chinese, education, interactive learning tool, language, Rosetta Stone | Category: Teaching and Learning | Comments (3)
