- 31 Aug, 2019
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Student Stories – Rahul ：天才小虎
Student Stories – Rahul ：天才小虎
How our student completed HSK 1 to 3 in just 6 months !
‘I need to complete HSK 3 by July’ said a caller .
‘Sorry’ we replied ‘HSK 3 usually takes one year in a group class, it’s December now the earliest you can finish it is by January next year’
‘How about private classes ? ’ He enquired
‘In a private class the teacher will teach you according to your pace so depends on you, how fast you can grasp ‘
‘Sure then I’ll go for the private classes !’ He replied .
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When Rahul called us in December asking us to help him reach HSK 3 in 7 months we thought it was an impossible task. Of course we had heard of people completing it in 6 months but that is usually the case when they are living in China and are constantly exposed to a Mandarin speaking environment.
Whereas In India where there is very little exposure towards the language it is fairly difficult. One needs to be consistent and extremely motivated to complete this Herculean task, specially considering the fact that most people studying Mandarin in India are either working full time or are regular university students .
But by the end of June Rahul proved it otherwise to us !
He started his private classes with Nancy laoshi in January and by the end of February he had completed HSK 1 . For us it was the first time that a student taking private classes was able to complete the curriculum within such a short period of time along with memorising the characters . If this was not enough to amaze us he went ahead and completed HSK 2 and HSK 3 in the next 4 months !
By June Rahul was done with HSK 3 and had moved on to familiarising himself with the vocabulary for HSK 4 .
So now the million RMB question is how did he do it !!
Focus : You need to have targets and goals !
Rahul got admission in one of the top MBA Schools of the world – CEIBS, Shanghai. As part of the curriculum students need to pass HSK 3 by the time their course gets completed. He knew once he starts with his MBA studies he will be busy with other subjects so he planned to complete HSK3 before the course commenced. He kept a target infront of him and worked hard to achieve it !
Keeping a target is essential for this language which initially starts off relatively more difficult than other foreign languages due the alien nature of the vocabulary and characters . There are times when a beginner might want to give up learning as Mandarin isn’t exactly a cakewalk but during these moments having a target helps one to overcome these hurdles.
And trust us Mandarin starts off as a difficult language but once you get a hang of it, it gets easier .
Pre-study : Don’t wait for the teacher to teach you first, familiarise yourself with the topic beforehand !
Instead of waiting for a chapter to be taught in class and then learn the vocabulary with grammar Rahul always prepared the chapter before class. He made a list of the vocabulary for HSK 1, 2 and 3 and would learn 20 new words every day . His focus in the class then would be to use these new words in the grammar patterns being taught, hence maximising the interaction time with the teacher.
Many a times students don’t recall the vocabulary being taught and a substantial amount of class time is spent in making them remember the words. This is also one reason students shy away from using a new word and keep making the sentences from their limited vocabulary. This reduces the overall output of the class. Hence it is always advisable to prepare beforehand, memorize the vocabulary and grab every opportunity to use them in the class.
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Use it : Using what you’ve learned can be the best reward !
Being the country manager of the famous Chinese App Tantan, Rahul’s work requires him to coordinate with his Chinese colleagues along with occasional visits to the headquarters in Beijing. Everytime he learnt something new he made sure to use it while communicating with his Chinese colleagues. Their enthusiasm towards him speaking Mandarin and the constant progress he was making with his sentences kept him motivated.
We at Meiyu Chinese believe in the adage ‘use it before you loose it‘. The best way to learn a language is through using it which can be done by making friends with people who speak Mandarin or are learning chinese, or by teaching it to someone else. It is a scientifically proven fact that if you repeat what you have learned to another person it helps improve your memory and mastery of that skill.
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Rahul is now studying at CEIBS, Shanghai which is ranked as the world’s Top 5 Business School by the Financial Times. He is the only Indian amongst the 15 others to be placed at the advanced level of the Mandarin class which definitely gives him an edge above others.
We are extremely proud to be an instrument in his achievment of learning Mandarin in this short period of time. Sharing his Chinese language journey in the hope to help and inspire other students learning Mandarin at MeiYu!
Planning to join CEIBS ? Start your Mandarin classes now at MeiYu !