Basic Mandarin Chinese - Speaking & Listening Textbook - by Cornelius C Kubler (Paperback)

About the Book

Previously published as "Basic spoken Chinese", Ã2011.

Book Synopsis

This is the complete beginning-level course for spoken Mandarin Chinese designed to have you speaking quickly and accurately!

The Basic Mandarin Chinese series offers a complete introductory Chinese language course specifically designed for native English speakers. These books teach spoken and written Chinese separately, allowing you to focus on the area most important to you, and to learn the spoken and written forms of Chinese at different speeds depending on your available time and interest.

The free audio and video recordings included with this book reinforce the content and make the learning process easy. Whether you're learning Mandarin for work, travel or other reasons--the Basic Mandarin Chinese approach of having two separate but integrated "tracks" helps you to learn the language more efficiently and more successfully.

Key features of this Chinese textbook and discs include:

• Clear and detailed pronunciation, grammar and cultural explanations
• Exercises and activities based on real-life experiences in China
• Hours of video recordings filmed on location featuring dozens of native speakers in various parts of China and beyond
• Six hours of native-speaker audio recordings for all the book's dialogues and exercises
• Special software allowing you to interact with the recordings.

This Mandarin textbook is designed to be used with its separately available workbook, Basic Mandarin Chinese--Speaking & Listening Practice Book which provides a range of drills and exercises designed to dramatically enhance your spoken proficiency and improve your Chinese language skills. This book is a new edition of Basic Spoken Chinese.

All media content is accessible on the Tuttle Publishing website.

Review Quotes

"A breath of fresh air... Its dual track for spoken and written language finally gives American students a chance to develop oral proficiency without being slowed down by the character writing... An ideal textbook for any program that seeks to advance rapidly in spoken Chinese and to fully prepare the students for their encounter with China." --Dr. Jingqi Fu, Associate Professor of Chinese, St. Mary's College of Maryland

"Contextualized so learners know not only what to say, but why, when, and with whom it is appropriate to use such language. ...thorough and clear...refreshing." --Dr. Matthew Christensen, Associate Professor of Chinese, Brigham Young University

"I have been teaching Chinese to high school students for over 25 years and have used a variety of texts. I decided to try Basic Spoken Chinese (BSC) with one of my classes on an experimental level, and I have to say it is the best text of its kind that I have ever seen. --Richard Ayres, St. Xavier High School, Louisville, KY

"Kubler's books distinguish themselves with natural, culturally-rooted dialogues, detailed notes (for both written and spoken language), generous practice activities and an amazing care for organization. These books will be valuable tools for both students and their teachers." --Prof. Eric Pelzl, Wisconsin Lutheran College

"Meticulously planned, carefully prepared and patiently tested for over a decade, the Basic Chinese series represents the most comprehensive introductory materials available now. The eclectic approach, the flexibility in use, the attention to authenticity of language in its sociolinguistic context, the myriad of audio and visual aids, and the array of rigorously designed exercises makes the Basic Chinese the ideal material for any committed learner embarking on the journey of learning the Chinese language." --Dr. Jun Yang, Senior Lecturer in Chinese, University of Chicago

"Outstanding for its carefully graduated presentation of material in easily digestible sub-units, comprehensive and clearly written grammatical and cultural notes, and perhaps most important of all, its separation of the task of learning to speak the language from the very different processes of learning to read and write Chinese characters... The most exciting Chinese language textbook I have seen in many years." --Dr. James E. Dew, retired associate professor of Chinese, University of Michigan; former Director of the Inter-University Program for Chinese Language Studies in Taipei

"Professor Kubler in a detailed manner explains the structure of Mandarin sentences and does a good job comparing Mandarin sentences with the corresponding English ones, highlighting many of the pitfalls faced by the average English speakers trying to learn Chinese." -- Study More Chinese

"This is one of the best elementary Chinese textbooks, I believe, ever produced in the history of teaching Chinese as a second language... A great and unique work which will benefit students and teachers for many years to come." --Dr. Shengli Feng, Professor of Chinese Linguistics, Chinese University of Hong Kong

About the Author

Cornelius C. Kubler received his Ph.D. in linguistics from Cornell and is currently the Stanfield Professor of Asian Studies at Williams College. Since joining Williams, he has chaired the Department of Chinese and held visiting professor posts at Middlebury, National Taiwan Normal University, Chinese University of Hong Kong and other universities. He has authored many books and articles on Chinese pedagogy and linguistics, and he served as a consultant for many Chinese language programs in the U.S. and abroad, including orientation programs for Chinese language teachers arriving in the U.S. He has chaired the SAT Chinese exam Test Development Committee and recently completed a two-year stint as Co-Director of the Johns Hopkins Nanjing University Center for Chinese & American Studies in Nanjing, China.