When it comes to choosing a career, which is more important to you?
Your passion towards the field of study? Or is it your proficiency? Ideally, it should be both.
Everyone would love to enjoy and excel at their work at the same time.
This similar principle applies even in the context of mastering a new language.
While there are people who genuinely enjoy learning languages as a hobby (linguaphiles), it certainly gives you a greater reward when you master a new language successfully and comprehensively.
In a way, being multilingual is equivalent to having a superpower. It has the ability to lead you to greater heights at work, relationships and personal growth.
In this article, we will be talking about how you can learn Mandarin as an absolute beginner in Kuala Lumpur and the advantages of learning Mandarin in this day and age.
Mastering The Right Pronunciation To Have Smooth Conversations
To activate your Mandarin superpower, you must be well-versed with 汉语拼音 Hanyupinyin (The romanization of Chinese characters)
Under the pinyin system, ALL Chinese words are pronounced with FOUR sound tones to form phrases and sentences.
However, there’s a trick. One syllable can mean entirely different with four different tones. Let’s take the example of the syllable la. When pronounced in the first tone, la means to pull (written as拉). On the other hand, if it is pronounced in the fourth tone, la could mean spicy (written as辣) or even candle (written as蜡）.
You can refer to the guideline below for the elaboration of the four tones.
- 第一声First tone (high tone and long) Lā
- 第二声Second tone (ascending tone and long) Lá
- 第三声Third tone (low tone and short) Lǎ
- 第四声Fourth tone (descending tone and short) Là
When you master the Hanyupinyin, you not only master the correct pronunciation, but you also get to expand your Mandarin vocabulary at the same time too. That’s called 一举两得 (Yījǔliǎngdé) which means to kill two birds with one stone.
Find out where you can take Mandarin lessons from different parts of Malaysia.
Recommendations To Learn Mandarin For Beginners In Kuala Lumpur
Learning Mandarin as an absolute beginner can be challenging and lonely.
It’s best to learn from an experienced Mandarin teacher who is well-versed in various teaching methods for different language components (listening, speaking, reading, and writing).
For those of you who are currently based in Kuala Lumpur, here are three amazing recommendations to start learning Mandarin.
Recommendation 1: Edu Mandarin KL
At Edu Mandarin KL, learners can expect a diverse and dynamic learning environment that caters to various Mandarin teaching syllabus, such as SPM, IGCSE or even the 汉语水平考试(Hanyushuipingkaoshi) — better known as the HSK Examination.
For students who prefer to take physical Mandarin lessons here, the Kuala Lumpur headquarters is located at Taman Melawati, while the online lessons are conducted once or twice per week.
Their online Mandarin lessons combine holistic and balanced teaching methods. Furthermore, separate speaking tests will also be administered once the learners are more confident in their Mandarin conversational skills.
Explore these Mandarin lesson recommendations if you are based in Melaka.
Recommendation 2: The Language Tree
The Language Tree offers multiple physical Mandarin classes for beginners that cater for various specialisations and age groups.
Most beginners will enrol in either the Core Mandarin Class, Rapid Literacy Class or the Survival Mandarin Class. The language learning centre is located in Desa Sri Hartamas.
For the Core Mandarin Class, learners are able to build their listening skills and overall language comprehension confidence through repeated training on how to pair the pinyin with the right Chinese characters. It’s similar to learning the ABCs in English.
On the other hand, for those who can speak little Mandarin but have difficulties reading and writing Mandarin, then you should join the Rapid Literacy Class!
Are you planning to live in a Chinese-speaking country for a short period? Join the Survival Mandarin class and learn basic conversations about self-introduction, and most importantly, questions on how to order food or purchase items.
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Recommendation 3: Superprof
Superprof is a tutoring platform that offers language learners a diverse range of tutors.
One thing is certain. You will not be disappointed in terms of quantity and quality!
With Superprof, you get to select your Mandarin tutor DIRECTLY based on your preferences in terms of teaching background, teaching styles and lesson availability with just a click on the screen!
Superprof allows you to learn Mandarin with confidence. You can rest assured that all the tutors’ profiles have been verified, and you can easily access their basic information as well as their hourly rates, anytime and anywhere you want before you proceed to hire them.
In other words, Superprof got you covered from A to Z!
Explore these Mandarin learning options in Johor Bahru.
Why Learn Mandarin Now? — The Three Es of China
Mandarin is increasingly becoming a global language in the 21st century. It is even more apparent in recent years where we can observe the influence of China in three “E” aspects of our everyday life.
The first E: Entertainment
While it’s easy to think of Korean media when we talk about trends these days, Chinese dramas and variety shows are not too far behind too. They have gained a new surge of worldwide popularity, especially in South East Asia due to their solid cast, and pictorial cinematography with elements of traditional Chinese culture and history.
This is also due to the increased international distribution on social media as well as video streaming entertainment sites or Over-The-Top (OTT) media such as WeTV (owned by Tencent) and IQiYi (owned by Baidu) too.
Some examples of popular Chinese dramas that are most watched by Malaysians on these from 2022 and 2023 include Who Rules The World, Love Like The Galaxy, Love in Flames of War and many more.
In other words, the Chinese media market is extremely HOT among Malaysians now!
The Second E: Education
If the US has Ivy League (Harvard, Yale, Princeton etc) and the UK has the Russell Group (Cambridge, Oxford, Nottingham etc), China also has its famous and highly reputable C9 League (九校联盟).
The following list comprises the nation’s top 9 leading public universities.
- Fudan University (复旦大学)
- Harbin Institute of Technology (哈尔滨工业大学)
- Nanjing University (南京大学)
- Peking University (北京大学)
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University (上海交通大学)
- Tsinghua University (清华大学)
- University of Science and Technology of China (中国科学技术大学)
- Xi'an Jiaotong University (西安交通大学)
- Zhejiang University (浙江大学)
Thinking of studying in China one day? Learn Mandarin from these Mandarin classes from Seberang Perai.
Image by rawpixel.com on Freepik
The Third E: Economy
Do you know how did the whole online shopping gimmick of November 11 come about?
Originally known as Singles Day (光棍节) in China, the Double 11 sales event was introduced and launched by the Alibaba Group as a shopping day that offers massive discounts on items sold on the platform.
The rest is history.
The online economy dominance does not stop there. Even though there were talks of banning Tik Tok this year in the US, we simply cannot deny the influence of this app during our pandemic days.
Until today, Tik Tok (known as Douyin- 抖音 in China) is the most downloaded and mobile app globally. For your information, Tik-Tok is a video-sharing social media platform that’s owned by a multinational Internet Technology company in Beijing.
With the growing technological innovation in the country, China is officially the world’s largest faster-growing consumer market, both offline and online! This signifies lots of investment between countries, increasing job opportunities and global collaboration.
To be part of this global experience, you need a strong grasp of Mandarin.
Try Online Learning To Experience Flexible Mandarin Lessons
You can kickstart your Mandarin learning journey with online lessons.
Online classes offer you the flexibility to navigate your learning according to your learning pace and interest. Not only that, it is extremely cost and time effective in the long run, as you can save on transportation and decide the class duration according to your schedule!
Through Superprof, you can easily take online lessons from Mandarin tutors that are based in Ipoh, without being confined to learning solely from your location.
As a beginner in learning Mandarin, your lessons can be personalised according to your specification. Furthermore, online lessons also help to cultivate self-discipline and give you a sense of satisfaction upon completion.
Image by Freepik
Benefits Of Mastering Mandarin Today
Trust us, your Mandarin superpower will take you places when it comes to seeking new opportunities (at work/study) in big cities like Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai or even Paris.
In the context of work, mastering Mandarin enables you to build meaningful relationships and foster heartfelt conversations whenever you are meeting a Chinese-speaking friend or client. It instantly creates a sense of connection between the two parties.
Nelson Mandela famously said, “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.”
Instead of treating this as a regular New Year’s Resolution, start taking action and make it a consistent self-investment!
What are you waiting for? Start enrolling in a Mandarin online lesson with Superprof to unlock your superpower!
Get the best of both worlds by enjoying and excelling in Mandarin!
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