Hacking Chinese Podcast

Courses and textbooks encourage narrow but advanced proficiency in Chinese, but if you want to be able to communicate well, you need to see through the illusion. Link to article: Seeing through the illusion of advanced Chinese learning: https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-illusion-of-advanced-learning-and-what-to-do-about-it/ #learnchinese #courses #illusion #proficiency #progress Seeing through th...

Travelling is often touted as one of the best ways to learn a language, but is it really? What are some downsides of travelling to learn Chinese, and how should you travel to get the most out of it? Link to article: Why travelling isn't the best method to learn Chinese: https://www.hackingchinese.com/pros-and-cons-with-travelling-to-learn-a-language/ #learnchinese #travel #immersion #languagel...

I’ve spent two years in a master’s program for teaching Chinese as a second language, designed for native speakers and taught in Chinese. Here’s what I learnt from the experience! My Skritter review: How I learnt Chinese, part 6: Graduate program in Taiwan: ⁠https://www.hackingchinese.com/i-learnt-chinese-part-6-graduate-program-taiwan/⁠ #learnchinese #mystory #taiwan #ntnu #tcsl 5 insights from t...

You probably know what it’s like to use apps for learning Chinese vocabulary, but do you know what it’s like to run a company that builds such apps? And how can technology help us learn more, now and in the future? My Skritter review: Boosting your Chinese character learning (also contains episode 53 about Skritter): ⁠⁠https://www.hackingchinese.com/skritter-chinese-review-boosting-your-character-...

Have you listened to a recording of yourself speaking Chinese, only to find that your voice sounds unfamiliar and strange, like another person? Then that means you’re doing something wrong. Link to article: ⁠ Get to know your Chinese voice to level up your speaking ability: https://www.hackingchinese.com/know-your-chinese-voice/ #learnchinese #record #voice #mimic #pronunciation Get to know your C...

Listening, mimicking and getting feedback is the best way to learn Chinese pronunciation, but unless you're a small child or extremely talented, adding some theory to the mix can also be helpful. Link to article: How learning some basic theory can improve your pronunciation: https://www.hackingchinese.com/how-learning-some-basic-theory-can-improve-your-pronunciation/ #learnchinese #pronunciati...

Learning Chinese is more like walking a thousand miles than running 100-metre dash. Make sure that your strategy works in the long term Link to article: ⁠⁠ Learning Chinese is more like walking a thousand miles than running 100-metre dash: https://www.hackingchinese.com/learning-chinese-is-more-like-walking-a-thousand-miles-than-running-100-metre-dash/ #learnchinese #journey #sprint #longterm #goa...

Learning Chinese full time is easy, the hard part is to make progress, even when you’re occupied with other things. Link to article: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠How I learnt Chinese, part 5: Returning to Sweden: https://www.hackingchinese.com/i-learnt-chinese-part-5%ef%bc%9a-returning-sweden/⁠ #learnchinese #mystory #sweden #languagelearningjourney Chinese listening challenge, May 2023: ⁠https://www.hackingchinese.com...

Many things influence listening comprehension in Chinese, some are related to the language, and some to the situation, but some are also related to you as a listener. How can you become a better listener in Mandarin? Link to article: ⁠⁠⁠⁠ Beyond tīng bu dǒng, part 5: Becoming a better listener as a student of Chinese https://www.hackingchinese.com/beyond-ting-bu-dong-part-5-becoming-a-better-liste...

Learning new characters and words from a list is rarely a good idea, but there are exceptions! Let's have a look at five types of vocabulary lists how to use them to learn Chinese. Link to article: ⁠ Vocabulary lists that help you learn Chinese and how to use them: https://www.hackingchinese.com/different-lists-for-learning-chinese/ #learnchinese #vocabulary #lists #characters #words Should yo...

Students often rely on lists to learn new Chinese characters and words. This can be useful in some situations, but there are also many problems with this approach. Link to article: Should you learn Chinese vocabulary from lists? https://www.hackingchinese.com/should-you-learn-chinese-vocabulary-from-lists/ Kickstart your Chinese character learning with the 100 most common radicals: https://www.hac...

I learnt a lot in my first year in Taiwan, but the more I learnt, the more I realised that a single year would not be enough. Link to article: ⁠⁠⁠⁠How I learnt Chinese, part 4: My second year in Taiwan: https://www.hackingchinese.com/i-learnt-chinese-part-4%ef%bc%9a-second-year-taiwan/ #learnchinese #mystory #taiwan #languagelearningjourney Chinese speaking challenge, April 2023: https://www.hacki...

The general benefits of physical activity are of course well-known, but the more specific benefits for learning languages are often overlooked, so let's have a look at 6 benefits of learning Chinese through sports! Link to article: ⁠⁠⁠ 6 benefits of learning Chinese through sports: https://www.hackingchinese.com/practising-sports-to-learn-chinese/ #learnchinese #sports #physicalactivity Learni...

Methods for learning Chinese can be good because they are efficient, because they to focus on the right content, or because they are enjoyable, allowing you to spend more time. But no method is good in all these ways at once, so what should you do if you just don't like the most efficient method? Link to article: ⁠ Should you use an efficient method for learning Chinese even if you hate it? ht...

To communicate in Chinese, many skills need to work in unison, but trying to improve all of them at once is a recipe for frustration. Instead, limit your focus to make progress and stay motivated! Link to article: Don't try to improve everything at once when learning Chinese: https://www.hackingchinese.com/dont-try-to-improve-everything-at-once-limit-your-focus/ #learnchinese #focus #progress #mot...

My second year of learning Chinese was largely spent in Taiwan, where I learnt a lot, despite not always using the best approach. Link to article: How I learnt Chinese, part 3: My first year in Taiwan: https://www.hackingchinese.com/i-learnt-chinese-part-3-first-year-taiwan/ #learnchinese #mystory #taiwan #languagelearningjourney Chinese reading challenge, March 2023: https://www.hackingchinese.co...

Playing games is a wonderful way of learning Chinese and 麻將 (májiàng) is one of the simplest games around. Apart from the numbers 1-9, you only need a handful of extra words to play. The game is extremely popular and as such, it can open up many doors, both cultural and social. Link to article: Learn Chinese by playing Mahjong (麻将, májiàng): https://www.hackingchinese.com/learning-chinese-by-p...

Learning Mandarin finals is mostly about understanding how vowels work and how they are combined. Link to my pronunciation course: Hacking Chinese Pronunciation: Speaking with Confidence: https://www.hackingchinese.com/courses/mandarin-chinese-pronunciation-course/ #learnchinese #pronunciation #course #finals #mandarin A guide to Pinyin traps and pitfalls: Learning Mandarin pronunciation: https://...

ChatGPT has been all over the news for its ability to interact with humans. It has even been used to pass university exams. But how good is ChatGPT at Chinese? Can it pass the HSK? Link to article: Can ChatGPT pass the HSK? https://www.hackingchinese.com/can-chatgpt-pass-the-hsk/ #learnchinese #chatgpt #hsk #exam #ai #reading Hacking Chinese Pronunciation: Speaking with Confidence: https://www.hac...

My first year of learning Chinese was spent in an intensive but conventional university environment. While I learnt a lot, many things were also left out! Link to article: How I learnt Chinese, part 2: Learning Mandarin in Sweden : https://www.hackingchinese.com/how-i-learnt-chinese-part-2-foreign-language-learning-in-sweden/ #learnchinese #mystory #sweden #languagelearningjourney How I learnt Chi...

The best way to learn to understand spoken Mandarin is to listen as much as you can to engaging content you can make sense. In this article, I go through what to listen to and how to do it. Link to article: Beginner Chinese listening practice: What to listen to and how : https://www.hackingchinese.com/beginner-chinese-listening-practice-what-to-listen-to-and-how #learnchinese #beginner #listening...

For some students, the HSK is not just a proficiency test, but also a roadmap to learning Chinese. Is treating it as such a good idea? And if you do, what should you keep in mind? Link to article: Using the HSK as a roadmap to learning Chinese : https://www.hackingchinese.com/using-the-hsk-as-a-roadmap-to-learning-chinese/ #learnchinese #hsk #roadmap The new HSK 3.0: What you need to know: https:/...

Some people have a clear goal in mind when they start learning Chinese, others just stumble into it and have to figure things out along the way. Link to article: How I learnt Chinese, part 1: Where it all started : https://www.hackingchinese.com/how-i-learnt-chinese-part-1-why-i-started-learning-chinese/ #learnchinese #mystory #motivation Chinese New Year and New Semester Course Discount: https://...

2022 was a year of stability on Hacking Chinese; consistent but without major breakthroughs. What was the most popular article? The most popular podcast episode? Let’s summarise the year that was and highlight content you really shouldn’t miss! Link to article: Best of Hacking Chinese 2022 : https://www.hackingchinese.com/best-of-hacking-chinese-2022/ #learnchinese #bestof #2022 Chinese listening...

Introverts are not worse language learners than extroverts, but not using opportunities to communicate can slow you down. Here are some methods I've used to compensate for this as an introvert learner. Link to article: 8 tips for learning Chinese as an introverted student : https://www.hackingchinese.com/learning-chinese-as-an-introverted-student/ #learnchinese #introverted #languagelearning Chine...