Comments on: Active Chinese – Lazy Learners Welcome http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/ No-nonsense China Expat & Travel Community Thu, 09 Feb 2012 03:53:18 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: The Word http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-21659 The Word Sat, 13 Nov 2010 16:04:53 +0000 http://www.lostlaowai.com/commentary/blog/2007/03/12/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-21659 Now that is funny. Chinese calling others lazy. I work on the mainland and I think these chimps are the most lazy, uneducated, sub-humans I have ever seen. The average American worker can do the work of 3.5 Chinese chimps. China is developing only because of foreign currency and an influx of western ideas and technology and the sheer number of people (i.e. cheap labor). It is obvious it's not because the people are smart or motivated, it's only the numbers. Look at Chinese history: 5000 years of watching the grass grow and NO innovation... Ohhh, one more thing. I think China is developing far beyond the sophistication of it's populace... Now that is funny. Chinese calling others lazy. I work on the mainland and I think these chimps are the most lazy, uneducated, sub-humans I have ever seen. The average American worker can do the work of 3.5 Chinese chimps. China is developing only because of foreign currency and an influx of western ideas and technology and the sheer number of people (i.e. cheap labor). It is obvious it’s not because the people are smart or motivated, it’s only the numbers. Look at Chinese history: 5000 years of watching the grass grow and NO innovation…

Ohhh, one more thing. I think China is developing far beyond the sophistication of it’s populace…

]]> By: fiona http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-12334 fiona Fri, 30 Jan 2009 21:29:11 +0000 http://www.lostlaowai.com/commentary/blog/2007/03/12/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-12334 hey jonas are u on of the jonasbrothers and am just asking and i have just stared chineses hey jonas are u on of the jonasbrothers and am just asking and i have just stared chineses

]]> By: Study Chinese in China http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-12262 Study Chinese in China Tue, 20 Jan 2009 11:09:45 +0000 http://www.lostlaowai.com/commentary/blog/2007/03/12/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-12262 It's the excellent way............ There are many ways to learn Chinese. Study Chinese in China is also a very good option. I should say this the best method. It’s the excellent way…………
There are many ways to learn Chinese. Study Chinese in China is also a very good option. I should say this the best method.

]]> By: Ryan http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-12041 Ryan Wed, 10 Dec 2008 03:28:51 +0000 http://www.lostlaowai.com/commentary/blog/2007/03/12/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-12041 Hey Lauren, not a cent. I was given unfiltered access to the entire site for the review, but that's all. The review is pushing two years old though, so there are certainly a lot of new (and possibly better) tools out there for learning Chinese now. It seems in the last year alone the Web has exploded with Chinese learning material. Good reason for us to revisit the topic I suppose. Hey Lauren, not a cent. I was given unfiltered access to the entire site for the review, but that’s all.

The review is pushing two years old though, so there are certainly a lot of new (and possibly better) tools out there for learning Chinese now. It seems in the last year alone the Web has exploded with Chinese learning material.

Good reason for us to revisit the topic I suppose.

]]> By: Lauren http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-12040 Lauren Wed, 10 Dec 2008 01:52:45 +0000 http://www.lostlaowai.com/commentary/blog/2007/03/12/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-12040 This was the third hit on google when I was looking to find an unbiased review of this program. Nice review. How much did they pay you to write it? This was the third hit on google when I was looking to find an unbiased review of this program. Nice review. How much did they pay you to write it?

]]> By: Jonas http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-3527 Jonas Mon, 07 May 2007 02:41:03 +0000 http://www.lostlaowai.com/commentary/blog/2007/03/12/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-3527 Good reply Sean. I appreciate your need to defend your point of view. Maybe we are all anal in this repect - it seems there is not so much worry on this point amongst Chinese(except maybe in the Beijing centred learning institutions?)What I did find when I engaged a teacher after working through the Activechinese stuff was that Shanghai teachers themselves (mandarin language graduates) get a little fed up with the Beijing/northern vocabulary in texts, and having to handle the retroflex 'r' added as a suffix. Personally I would prefer to learn the language spoken around me rather than aiming for a distant accent. PS - did any of you hear Deng Xiao Ping's Sichuan accent? (no need for a pure Beijing accent for the top job!) While I'm on that point - have you or any of your colleagues come across any Chinese regional dialect material available on the Internet? If you know the owners of Active Chinese, ask them to get their virtual tutor,Angelina, speaking Shanghainese! Good reply Sean. I appreciate your need to defend your point of view.
Maybe we are all anal in this repect – it seems there is not so much worry on this point amongst Chinese(except maybe in the Beijing centred learning institutions?)What I did find when I engaged a teacher after working through the Activechinese stuff was that Shanghai teachers themselves (mandarin language graduates) get a little fed up with the Beijing/northern vocabulary in texts, and having to handle the retroflex ‘r’ added as a suffix.
Personally I would prefer to learn the language spoken around me rather than aiming for a distant accent.
PS – did any of you hear Deng Xiao Ping’s Sichuan accent? (no need for a pure Beijing accent for the top job!)
While I’m on that point – have you or any of your colleagues come across any Chinese regional dialect material available on the Internet? If you know the owners of Active Chinese, ask them to get their virtual tutor,Angelina, speaking Shanghainese!

]]> By: Sean http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-3031 Sean Sun, 22 Apr 2007 10:48:30 +0000 http://www.lostlaowai.com/commentary/blog/2007/03/12/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-3031 Jordache This is a common conversation I have with students: -I have a great teacher that would like to teach you English. -Really, who? -He is my friend from Nigeria, he lives near BLCU. -Nigeria, oh no, I would not want to learn from someone that is not a native speaker. -But Nigeria's national language is English. -I would only learn from a native speaker from the US, UK, or Australia, the rest have bad English. -But you need variety in your listening ability, only Londoners speaking English in your tapes all the time is not good. -Bu xing! And on and on. I think you get the general idea. IF people in China can constantly criticize our fluency and pronunciation, I do not see why we cannot too. After all Chinesepod is not free and is a subscription based service that is not cheap. This idea that her Chinese is not so great with the s/sh thing did not come from me. It came from Chinese that are teaching at Beijing Unis for duiwaihanyu. It seems to me that maybe you work with or for them or have some motive other than to tell me I am wrong. I feel I am entitled to my opinion about a product that is for sale. Call me misguided if you want, but it does not change my or other Chinese teachers opinions about her Chinese. Podcasts are great. but one must admit most are put together by amateurs trying to make a little money. Podcast quality is hit and miss at best with a small fraction being of any long lasting quality. Jordache This is a common conversation I have with students:

-I have a great teacher that would like to teach you English.
-Really, who?
-He is my friend from Nigeria, he lives near BLCU.
-Nigeria, oh no, I would not want to learn from someone that is not a native speaker.
-But Nigeria’s national language is English.
-I would only learn from a native speaker from the US, UK, or Australia, the rest have bad English.
-But you need variety in your listening ability, only Londoners speaking English in your tapes all the time is not good.
-Bu xing!
And on and on. I think you get the general idea.

IF people in China can constantly criticize our fluency and pronunciation, I do not see why we cannot too. After all Chinesepod is not free and is a subscription based service that is not cheap.

This idea that her Chinese is not so great with the s/sh thing did not come from me. It came from Chinese that are teaching at Beijing Unis for duiwaihanyu.

It seems to me that maybe you work with or for them or have some motive other than to tell me I am wrong.

I feel I am entitled to my opinion about a product that is for sale. Call me misguided if you want, but it does not change my or other Chinese teachers opinions about her Chinese.

Podcasts are great. but one must admit most are put together by amateurs trying to make a little money. Podcast quality is hit and miss at best with a small fraction being of any long lasting quality.

]]> By: Jordache http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-3025 Jordache Sun, 22 Apr 2007 04:31:05 +0000 http://www.lostlaowai.com/commentary/blog/2007/03/12/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-3025 Sean is misguided in his comments about the accent on ChinesePod. It has an occasional touch of the southern to it, but to say it's 'really bad' is absurd. There are 1.3 billion people in China. Only a small percentage of educated Beijingers (an a tiny percentage of the total population) speak stylized, 'perfect' Mandarin. All the rest, including the tens of millions of highly educated people across China, according to Sean, are 'really bad'? Even more importantly, ChinesePod is an effective tool. It works.Picking up on a a minor detail, like a slight variation in accent is so anal. Sean is misguided in his comments about the accent on ChinesePod. It has an occasional touch of the southern to it, but to say it’s ‘really bad’ is absurd. There are 1.3 billion people in China. Only a small percentage of educated Beijingers (an a tiny percentage of the total population) speak stylized, ‘perfect’ Mandarin. All the rest, including the tens of millions of highly educated people across China, according to Sean, are ‘really bad’? Even more importantly, ChinesePod is an effective tool. It works.Picking up on a a minor detail, like a slight variation in accent is so anal.

]]> By: Life In Suzhou China Blog | Adventures of the Humanaught » Blog Archive » Put Down The Chalk & Pick Up The Language http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-3024 Life In Suzhou China Blog | Adventures of the Humanaught » Blog Archive » Put Down The Chalk & Pick Up The Language Sun, 22 Apr 2007 03:56:57 +0000 http://www.lostlaowai.com/commentary/blog/2007/03/12/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-3024 [...] ideas, coupled with my use of ChinesePod’s free MP3s, Active Chinese’s cool lessons and a couple of text books I’ll have to dust off… hopefully [...] [...] ideas, coupled with my use of ChinesePod’s free MP3s, Active Chinese’s cool lessons and a couple of text books I’ll have to dust off… hopefully [...]

]]> By: Ryan http://www.lostlaowai.com/blog/learning-chinese/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-2606 Ryan Sat, 07 Apr 2007 00:04:00 +0000 http://www.lostlaowai.com/commentary/blog/2007/03/12/active-chinese-lazy-learners-welcome/#comment-2606 Hey DaShan, that little tongue twister is a good one. I learned it shortly after first starting Chinese studies and haven't played much with it since. Thanks for the reminder. Hey DaShan, that little tongue twister is a good one. I learned it shortly after first starting Chinese studies and haven’t played much with it since. Thanks for the reminder.

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