Q1: Are there quizzes (weekly tests) in this course?
A1: No. There are three scheduled assignments and two scheduled oral tests. The only place where there are in-class tests is in the lab. See the Labs page for the schedule.

Q2: Do we have to learn the pinyin for every word?
A2: Pinyin is a learning tool which enables you to learn the pronunciation of each new word you encounter. You are expected to use this tool in your learning all the time but you will not be tested on it directly.

Q3: Do we have to learn full characters?
A3: You do not need to be able to write full characters from memory but you must be able to recognise them. A portion of the final exam paper will contain full characters but you may respond in either character form. Mind you, if you plan to visit either Taiwan or Hong Kong you are advised to acquire a more active knowledge of full characters.

Q4: What do we have to learn for the exams?
A4: You are expected to learn all the material covered in the course reader and the grammar sheets. There may be other incidental material encountered on the course but this will not be tested in the exams as such.

Q5: How do I learn Chinese characters?
A5: There are two aspects to the learning of characters: ability to recognise and ability to reproduce.
Making your own flash cards is one good way of testing and improving your ability to recognise characters. As for reproducing them, the only way I know is to test yourself by writing them out repeatedly. Use the word list from the textbook, cover the Chinese and use the English as a prompt.
Other ways to aid your familiarity with characters is to make links in your mind with compounds which have a component in common.

Q6: How do I download and read online handouts in Chinese characters?
A6: These files are pdf documents. You do not need Chinese word processing software to access them but you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader. To download a free version of this software, click on this link: www.adobe.com

Q7: Do I have to write full characters for tests and exams?
No you don't have to. You can choose which form of characters you use, you can even use a mixture, although this isn't very good practice.