Award-Winning Mandarin Chinese Courses & Classes in San Diego, CA

Any Chinese language learner may be able to benefit from a San Diego Chinese course, and Varsity Tutors can help you get enrolled quickly and easily. Whether you're a student at Olympian High School trying to get an early start on your Chinese, a University of San Diego student struggling to finish up your language requirements, or a working professional looking to learn Chinese to open yourself up to new business opportunities, there's a course that fits your needs and your schedule. Having the opportunity to regularly practice your Chinese can be one of the most significant factors in how well you learn the language, and a Chinese course can help with this. You'll be provided with a community of other Chinese learners to practice and converse with and an expert Chinese teacher who can introduce you to new concepts and give you feedback.

There are plenty of reasons to learn Chinese. For starters, it's the most widely-spoken language in the world, with over a billion native speakers, and proficiency with Chinese may provide a distinct advantage to anyone pursuing a career in international trade. You'll also be unlocking a world of new art, cuisine, culture, and Eastern philosophy. China is geographically large and culturally diverse, much more so than many in the West likely realize, and there's a wealth of knowledge to be learned from studying Chinese history and tradition.

What will I learn in a San Diego Chinese class?

China's diversity is reflected in its language. There are several dialects of Chinese connected by a single, complex writing system. Worldwide, Mandarin is the most commonly used and is the official language of the People's Republic of China, but Cantonese has historically been the most popular dialect in the United States. Other dialects that you might be interested in learning include Wu, Xiang, Gan, and Hakka. As for the connecting thread of written Chinese, there's a lot to learn. Over 50,000 characters are used in written Chinese, 20,000 of which are used regularly, although only 2,500 of them make up the bulk of Chinese communication. Chinese characters themselves provide no indication of their own pronunciation, and there's no alphabet, so you'll have to work on memorizing each character. There's also pinyin, a system used to translate Chinese characters to the English alphabet, which you may have to learn if you're interested in international communications.

This writing system is just one reason Chinese is considered to be one of the most difficult languages to learn. Even when spoken, Chinese dialects have little in common with English. Chinese is a tonal language, which means that the tone with which a speaker pronounces a word affects its meaning. Mandarin Chinese uses 4 tones, but other dialects use as many as 9. Chinese also has no articles, verb inflections, or plurals: every word has only a single grammatical form, which can take a lot of getting used to for a native English speaker.

You'll also have to study vocabulary, pronouns, pronunciation, grammar, and verbs, including how to differentiate verbs that sound similar to each other. There's a lot of ground to cover, but with the help of a San Diego Chinese course, you can start making inroads. With a language as complex and dissimilar to English as Chinese, the time you spend practicing the language can be the most important factor in your pursuit of success. A Chinese course can help you invite more Chinese conversation into your life, so you can become more immersed in the language and build your skills.

How will a San Diego Chinese course help me learn?

A San Diego Chinese class is taught entirely online. You'll converse with a qualified Chinese instructor and fellow Chinese learners in group discussions that are presented in a live, interactive online classroom. You'll be able to see your classmates and teacher just as if you'd gathered to practice Chinese face-to-face, but with some distinct advantages provided by this online environment. An online class is more accessible and flexible than a traditional class. You won't have to worry about fitting an extra commute into your busy day, and you'll be able to find a class that suits your schedule and lifestyle. The convenience that an online classroom provides may be particularly important when you're studying Chinese. As already noted, Chinese can be extraordinarily difficult to learn and may require a lot of dedicated practice to master. By providing you with an outlet for your Chinese skills available right at your fingertips, a San Diego Chinese class seeks to remove barriers between you and your pursuit of your Chinese-learning goals.

You might be able to imagine how useful a group class can be when you're trying to learn a new language. Class discussions can help you broaden your vocabulary and practice your grammar, and even when you're going over material that you feel quite comfortable with, you may still be reinforcing your own understanding by helping your classmates learn. At the more advanced levels, your instructor may even choose to teach the class entirely in Chinese, so you can experience a totally immersive language environment and get plenty of practice in as you strive for total Chinese proficiency.

We also know that sometimes it's nice to get some one-on-one time with a professional instructor in, too, which is why you'll be able to reserve focused private time with your Chinese teacher so you can really drill down into concepts that you're struggling with. Every aspect of the class, from the scheduling to group conversation to having direct access to your instructor, is intended to make the class effective in helping you aim for success in Chinese.

How can I get signed up?

Contact Varsity Tutors today, and we can give you more information about course offerings and scheduling. Once we've found something that's right for you, we can get you enrolled in a San Diego Chinese course quickly and easily. Courses start on a rolling, monthly basis, so there might be a course that's perfect for you just around the corner. Canyon Crest Academy students, we can accommodate your extracurricular activities and sports practices, and University of California students considering a major or minor in Chinese may find that extra boost they need to strive for fluency. Let us know what you're looking for, and we can get you started in a course that may transform your understanding of Chinese.