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advice on two language schools - anyone been here recently?


hongputaojiu

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Hi guys

 

Just a follow up to my post last week about choosing online vs language school.

 

So I have decided to go with the language school option. This is due to the fact that I am lazy student and the structure of having classes ensures I will actually do some study!

 

I am trying to choose between these two language schools for a 4 week intensive

 

http://www.omeida.com.cn/Fees/ (Yangshuo)

 

-11040RMB 4 weeks

- 3hrs per day HSK prep 1-1, and 1hr per day conversation tutor

-private room accomm + food

-they have lots of reviews on tripadvisor (a sign of a great marketing dept?! :lol: ?)

 

http://learnchineseinyunnan.com/ (Dali and Lijiang)

 

-7600RMB 4 weeks

-4hrs per day HSK prep 1-1

-private room accomm only

 

So there is obviously a start difference between the two in terms of price. 

 

For me the most important is the teacher, but there is no real way of know (despite the school assurances of well qualified teachers) about the teachers, unless someone here has first hand experience of either of these schools. 

 

Anyone know anything about them?

 

cheers

hongputaojiu

 

PS.: why these two schools? Its a combination of price, somewhere I havent studied before, and an interesting location to spend up to a month of my summer. There are many big city summer classes which are super expensive. I found one in Beijing were the class fees were very cheap (less than 1000RMB per week for HSK small group class 4hrs per day) but the accommodation was very expensive, and the location not so great (think outside 4th ring). 

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update from omeida in Yangshuo- just now there student manager Wendy told me that can't guarantee that the classes would be run by a qualified teacher, they also use English majors with a certificate in teaching chinese. I personally want to avoid a teacher without a qualification in teaching chinese. Do you guys agree with this thinking?

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yeah thanks imron that was my feeling too, but I was starting to think maybe I was being too fussy!! But I personally can now see the difference between those with a background in studying teaching and those with other majors. 

 

I am still not certain that the Dali/Lijiang school is a great choice either, its hard to find any info from anyone who has studied there.

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Outside of those who had studied teaching, I would also consider teachers whose major was related to the Chinese Language (e.g. perhaps Chinese Literature or similar), or if it was related to my own field (Computer Science).  Other than that I'd be fussy, unless the person came with a great recommendation from someone I trusted.

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yeah thanks imron, I agree.

 

I am also curious what the "certificate" is that many language schools say their non-qualified teachers possess.

 

Does anyone know if there is a standard or is this like the international "tefl/tesol" course  :P

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I've heard that during the busiest few weeks of the year (summer), it can be hard for lots of schools to find enough qualified teachers to meet the boosted, short-term demand.

 

they also use English majors with a certificate in teaching chinese

 

I think that'd be fine if the certificate is a good one.

 

Personally I'd be happier being taught by an English major than a Chinese Literature major.

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I think someone who has studied a foreign language is going to have a better idea how to teach a language to a foreigner than someone who hasn't. They'll have a better idea of their own weaknesses, and have models for what to aim at. And they'll be more focussed on improving the student's language ability than sharing the wonders of Chinese culture and civilisation.

 

This is just generalisation and guesswork of course! Best of course is 对外汉语-trained. It's fun to hear 对外汉语 graduates fume about how their friends all say 'do you really need training to teach Chinese to 老外?' :D

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Possibly, my experience (from many years ago, so maybe not relevant) is that they will like to drop into English as much as possible.  Conversely, one of the best teachers I had was a Chinese Literature major, which I guess skews my preferences somewhat.

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Thanks guys, I do appreciate everyones feedback.

 

I have a lot of experience with this as I have studied at numerous language schools both in China and outside of China, on university exchange, on Confucius institute scholarship, on my home country government scholarship, and as a private fee payer in a private language school.

 

I am also a qualified school teacher in my home country. 

 

So I have seen fantastic teachers, motivated teachers, lazy teachers, unqualified teachers, teachers with other majors, life experience only teachers, etc etc. There is no perfect combo to get the best teacher. Having said that, I do believe having completed an undergraduate study in language education does teach you about how learners learn. Even the out-of-date normal university teaching programs will give some prep.

 

The best teacher I had was majored in 对外语 and followed up with a masters in the UK in education. I think this has given her the edge of other teachers - that is, the exposure to western educational teaching methodologies. 

 

I am still curious about the mysterious chinese teaching "certificate" though  :lol:

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A Chinese teaching certificate might mean a lot or nothing at all. Private schools and universities both offer certificates, with some lasting several weeks and providing actual training, but many others just consisting out of a few hours of watching a teacher teach. I agree with the posters above that a "Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language" (or 对外汉语) university degree is the most reliable and consistent qualification a Chinese teacher can hold at the moment.

 

However, I would recommend you look into the other aspects of the school as well. Studying Chinese in China is actually quite a complex thing and to ensure you do not have a room above a 24/7 karaoke bar and a classroom with air conditioning, might be also very important both for your experience and language progress.

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so on the basis of everyone's advice, I will give omeida a miss. They have confirmed they cannot guarantee a qualified teacher. I would also recommend others give them a miss too.

 

still not certain about the Dali/Lijiang school. Anyone been there? At least they say they have university qualified teachers. 

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you make the conclusion that our teachers are unqualified, judged simply by their education background. 

 

yes I did. I think people should really think hard about this before spending their money at a language "school".

 

what disappoints me is that it too me asking many specific questions to eventually find this out from your representative. I can only assume if people don't know what questions to ask they may never know. if people are happy to pay money knowing that their language trainer is not a qualified teacher, that's ok.

 

I would just give my recommendation that I wouldn't want someone without a solid background in education teaching me. that's coming from a qualified school teacher. I hope it doesn't upset the tefl crowd but I still stand by it.

 

Therefore I would not use your organisation, especially as it is quite expensive at 150RMB per hour for HSK training when you cant guarantee they are a real teacher.

 

But I do appreciate your reply.

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when you cant guarantee they are a real teacher.

 

I think this is a ridiculous  edit: over-the-top thing to say. There's zero guarantee that someone with four years of 对外汉语 studying behind them will be a better teacher than someone with four years of actual teaching experience.

 

Earlier I wrote that "Best of course is 对外汉语-trained" but on reflection I think I'm wrong to say that; it's simply another data point to help you guess who would or would not be a good teacher.

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