Teachers open the door. You enter by yourself. Chinese Proverb
With over 955 million native speakers, Mandarin Chinese is the most spoken language in the world. Spoken widely in China, Taiwan, and Singapore, Mandarin is the language for those who want an international business career, travel in China, or enjoy navigating media written and spoken in Chinese.
Keep in mind that when we talk about Chinese, and when most people talk about Chinese, we mean Mandarin, as opposed to other languages in China like Cantonese or Wu, for example.
With a tutor, you can quickly and effectively begin to grasp the fundamentals of Chinese! It’s a vastly different language than English, so learning it on your own can be quite challenging.
Thankfully, you can quickly find a variety of different Chinese tutors so you can find the one who suits you and your needs best!
Where Can You Find Chinese Lessons?
How do I begin looking for a Chinese tutor?
Many secondary schools and Universities offer Mandarin Chinese courses. But what do you do if you need extra help in your existing Chinses course, don’t want to take a course through your school or University, or you’ve already graduated?
Luckily, you still have plenty of options!
Word of Mouth
Word of mouth works well when it comes to finding private tutors. Ask your friends, family, and acquaintances to ask their friends, family, and acquaintances. Someone is bound to know a tutor or know how to find one! This can also be a great way to snag a negotiable rate.
Bulletins
A less common way of finding what you need these days is simply looking at local notice boards or online community forums. Many local tutors will advertise in the most cost-effective way possible: with a flyer.
While you might need to do some digging to find out more about a tutor you learn about from a paper pinned to the bulletin in a coffee shop (especially if they don’t have a website), you can find some real gems this way.
Online Platforms
Going online and searching on social media and education platforms is another great way to find people. This system is very effective because word spreads very quickly on the internet.
Check your local Facebook, Neighbourly, Stuff, and Reddit groups to see if anyone has offered their teaching services, or make a post that you are in search of a tutor.
Using a platform like Superprof, you can easily search for the perfect Mandarin tutor who suits your needs regarding availability, budget, level, and teaching style.
How Do You Choose the Right Private Chinese Tutor?
How can I be sure I've chosen the right tutor for my Chinese lessons?
There is no one “best tutor” out there for Chinese lessons. Every student is different, and every teacher is different. It’s the same for any subject. Some pairings will get along famously, and others simply won’t.
You will need to have an introductory meeting to see if you and your tutor match in personality, teaching and learning styles, and energy.
See if you can arrange an introductory meeting with your prospective tutors so you can make a more informed decision.
How to Find a Good Match
What should you look for in a prospective tutor? Ultimately, it’s up to you to decide what’s relevant and important, but there are a few things you should consider if you’re not sure what to look for.
- What is their availability and does it match yours?
- What kind of class do you want? In-person or virtual? Both?
- What is your budget?
- Do they have a general curriculum they use with their students? Does it cover what you want to learn?
- What is their teaching method and does it match your learning style?
- Do you get along on a personal level?
Typically, students will learn better from a tutor they get along with. But, if you decide that’s not so important to you, feel free to go with the tutor who might have a stronger teaching style even if they aren’t the most jovial!
First Class Free with Superprof
In any case, make sure you talk to any potential tutor before getting lessons with them. A lot of the tutors on Superprof offer a free hour-long first class/orientation so you can work out the details of your lessons and see whether you get along or not.
The Advantages of Private Mandarin Chinese Tutorials
Why should I get a private Chinese tutor?
There are plenty of advantages to getting private lessons, regardless of what you’re learning.
Many people seek out a private tutor for extra help in a class they’re taking in school or Uni. People also look for tutors to teach them more about a skill or subject they already have experience with, to learn a new hobby, for fun, or to gain valuable skills for their careers.
Progress at Your Own Pace
Private Chinese tutorials allow you to progress in the language at your own pace.
You don’t need to worry about keeping up with the rest of the class or feel you’re being held back by students who learn at a different pace. If you want to take your time going over something because you haven’t understood it, you can!
Learn What’s Important
Skip what you don’t like and spend more time on your interests. If you're interested in Chinese speaking tutorials, your language learning can focus on the conversational aspects and speaking Chinese rather than getting bogged down with really dry grammar rules.
If you’re more interested in a certain topic, you and your tutor can focus on that. Whether it’s Chinese calligraphy, learning Pinyin, Chinese characters, speaking, translation, pronunciation, or listening, you can choose exactly what you want to learn.
If your goal is to be able to have a fluent conversation, understand business lingo, or pass the GCSE, your tutor can tailor your lessons to meet your goals.
Flexible Schedule
Furthermore, you get to choose when and how often you have your private tutorials. Whether it’s daily, weekly, or monthly, you can choose the frequency of your attendance.
Personalised Feedback
You’ll get tailored and immediate feedback from a private Chinese tutor. This can help you progress more quickly. Your tutor’s job is to make sure you are understanding and mastering the information.
Therefore, you can count on your tutor to modify the lessons and teaching methods as needed to help you succeed.
How Much Do Private Chinese Lessons Cost?
How much can I expect to invest in my education?
Cost is an important thing to consider when learning Mandarin through private tutorials.
For many, it seems like too big of an investment at first glance. However, consider how much faster you can progress with a private tutor, and therefore how much time you’ll save versus trying to learn on your own!
Cost of Mandarin Tutors in New Zealand
First of all, remember that tutors’ rates depend on their experience and qualifications. Generally, a more expensive tutor will have a lot more experience teaching than a less expensive tutor. However! That doesn’t mean that the more affordable tutor is a bad teacher!
This is why you need to have an introductory class.
Additionally, learning the bare basics of Mandarin may be more affordable than learning the
Generally, Mandarin tutors across New Zealand cost an average of $30 per hour but can range from about $20 per hour up to $65 per hour.
Additional Costs of Private Tuitions
You may have to invest in textbooks, but your tutor may also supply you with any supplementary documents you need for their lessons.
If you meet for face-to-face lessons, you may need to provide a fuel stipend if your tutor travels to meet you.
For the most part, typical private Chinese lessons shouldn’t have many additional costs.
How to Make the Most of Your Chinese Lessons
How can I be sure my tutoring sessions are worth it?
To make sure you get the most bang for your buck and progress well in your studies, there are a few things you can do to make sure it’s worth taking private lessons.
Check In Regularly with Your Tutor
Having a private tutor for learning Chinese is a great way to quickly advance. However, you have to be honest with your tutor. Don’t hesitate to talk to them if you’re having difficulties or have any doubts about the tones, certain phrases, or how to put together a sentence in your new language. Since you’re not in a group class, you can ask whatever you want, whenever you want. There are no stupid questions.
Work On What You Find Difficult
It’s pointless spending hours studying something you’re already good at. To get the most out of each hour of Chinese tuition, work on what you find difficult with your tutor and try to structure your next lessons around this.
Prepare for Your Next Tutorial
To make quick progress, you’ll need to work outside of your tutorials and study for your next session. That’s right: homework.
Don’t wait until your next tutorial to do some work. Go back over your previous lessons and review the exercises you did in class. You can even ask for practice material to complete on your own time from your tutor.
Practise Speaking Chinese
Don’t be afraid to practice speaking and listening in Chinese with your tutor. After all, how else will you start to recognise and make all the different tonal sounds?
You might feel silly or bad at first, but your tutor should be able to help you put aside those feelings in favour of getting better through experience.
Immerse Yourself in Chinese Culture
Having fun with Chinese TV and movies, songs, books, and online space is a great way to learn Chinese faster and with gusto. When you’re motivated to be able to more easily understand these things, you’ll be more motivated to do well in class!
Furthermore, you reinforce what you’ve learned when you are exposed to the information over and over. Watching Chinese media can help you retain your Mandarin knowledge!
So, are you ready to start learning Mandarin with a private tutor? Start searching with Superprof to find your best match!
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