My first day at the Taipei Language Institute was both invigorating and demoralizing. As a teacher, I’m always studying and learning, but it was refreshing to take on the role of tóngxué 同学 ("classmate," a title used when speaking to students). In my jet-lagged state, however, it was challenging on Monday morning to stay focused and comprehend the 100 minutes of fast-paced, one-on-one instruction with Teacher Zhou (whereas in English we would refer to a teacher as Ms. or Mr., Chinese favors the use of titles). Her expertise in the nuances of the language and her ability to instantly come up with multiple examples was a source of both admiration and intimidation for me, a non-native instructor of beginning Chinese.
On Tuesday, I learned that I would have four different instructors each week, including Teacher Cai and Teacher Li, whom I met today. Each brought their strengths to our lessons. Language learning is inherently multi-faceted, incorporating listening, speaking, reading, and writing to varying degrees. This month, I’ll be focusing on improving my conversation and news reading skills, which is largely about vocabulary development. With Teacher Li, I’ll even be working to correct a subtle but somewhat fossilized pronunciation error.
I hope I’ve convinced some of you that I’m here for serious language study. Those who know me well know that it’s all about the food. After classes today, I discovered a tiny hole-in-the-wall place that serves xiǎolóngbāo 小笼包 better than Din Tai Fung’s and for a fraction of the price. They also make a delicious bowl of dāndānmiàn 担担面.
I think I'd need a nice bowl of noodles after two hours of Chinese language study and fossil correction too. 😁
Sounds intense. I don’t think I could do it (old dog, new tricks kind of problem). Kudos to you for digging into that kind of challenge and emerging with still enough strength to go in hunt of bao and noodles! LVTY (Living vicariously through you).