Advisory Placement Testing - Chinese (Mandarin), German, French, Japanese, Spanish

Students, did you know that if you have a previous background in Chinese, French, German, Japanese or Spanish, you may take an "Advisory placement test" to determine which course would be the best for you to enroll in. In addition, based on the result and after consultation with a test advisor,you may sign up to earn extra units based on the previous study. How does this work? For example, if the test and advisor recommend you enroll in German 2, you take that course and upon completion of German 2 with a grade of A or B, City College will award you units for both German 1 and 2 (5 units per course for a total of 10 units).

For details on the placement tests and the awarding of additional units, click on the appropriate link: Chinese (Mandarin)

• For Chinese, please note: The score of the CPT is used for advisory purposes ONLY. 

• The CCSF Chinese Language Program does NOT issue any certification of Chinese language competency/proficiency based on the score of the CPT. 

• Students may NOT use the result of the CPT to fulfill any high school, college, or university course requirements. 

• Students may NOT use the result of the CPT for the purpose of transferring to another college or university. 

• Students may NOT use the result of the CPT for the purpose of fulfilling job requirements. 

The Chinese Placement Advisory test is administered in the Language Center; its Spring 2012 schedule will be announced here.

The French, German, and Spanish advisory placement tests may be taken wherever you have internet access, or you can use the Language Center facilities: French, German, Japanese,  Spanish

Spring 2012 Semester - See you in January!

The Language Center will close on Tuesday, December 20th at 6:45 p.m. It will reopen on Wednesday, January 18th at 9:00 a.m. Start your language class off right with a visit to the Language Center and spend some quality time with the audio, visual, and interactive materials available for your particular course. Tutoring for most languages will be available in the Learning Assistance Center (R-207). The schedules will be posted as they become available here. Additionally, the Language Center will be holding various workshops, as it did this semester, to orient students to the materials available and assist those students who are trying to get traction on grammar for Spanish, French, and German and who need a little refresher course in the mechanics of English grammar (subject vs. object anyone?). More language-specific grammar reviews will also be held for French, German, and Spanish. Check back on this blog during the first weeks of the Spring 2012 semester for more information about upcoming workshops.

Celebrities, and some Actors and Actresses Speak Foreign Languages. You Can too!

Here's an interesting website with short clips of various celebrities, and some more serious actors and actresses speaking foreign (other than English) languages. There's Bradley Cooper speaking French, Sandra Bullock speaking German, Mila Kunis speaking Russian, Viggo Mortensen speaking just about every language, and more.

Language Center Study Sessions for Students of French, German, and Spanish

Students of French, German and Spanish, do you have unanswered questions about grammar that keep coming back to haunt you as you proceed through the semester?  Are you asking yourself, what exactly is the difference between a subject and object, or, if you will, the nominative and accusative cases, in German?  What about the "Estructura" sections in Plazas?  Do you have questions about "ser" vs. "estar" or matching adjectives with their nouns?  And how about "les adjectifs possessifs" in French? 

The focus is on you, the students of French, German, and Spanish.  So bring your questions to the study sessions as scheduled below.  They will be held in the Language Center classroom (R-205E).  If you are not sure where that is, just ask at the Language Center Service Counter. 

FRENCH:

Tuesday: November 8 and December 6 from 1:00-2:00 p.m.

SPANISH:

Thursday: November 10 and December 8 from 1:00-2:00 p.m.

GERMAN:

Monday: November 7 from 11:00-12:00 p.m.
Wednesday: November 9 from 2:00-3:00

Monday: December 5 from 1:00-2:00
Friday: December 9 from 10:00-11:00

We hope to see you then! 

Start Preparing Now for Finals: Some Tips and Tricks

Read these helpful tips put together by education students at East Carolina University.  They are helpful and practical and these students know what they are talking about.  For example, have you ever looked into how you can use your textbook to help you study?  Lesson 3 (p. 4) "Using Your Textbook to Study" breaks it down for you.  Lesson 4, "Ask Your Professor", encourages students to go to their instructor's office hour.  That's why they're there, to answer your questions.  Hint: instructors really LIKE it when students ask about the material.  Think about it this way: language-learning consists of many parts of a puzzle.  For all this and more Click here for article (in .pdf format). 

Do You Want to be Better at Languages?

If you're almost ready to tear your hair out of your head with those verb conjugations, thinking that "Oh, no, I really can't learn a foreign language," take this BBC language 9-question quiz; it will address common concerns that foreign language students have and get advice on using your strengths and overcoming your weaknesses (if any).  

Foreign Language Learning Tips - From Students Like You!

Everyone has his or her own system and approach for learning a foreign language, but sometimes crowd-sourcing can help you to come up with new learning strategies.  Check out Language Learning Tips from the BBC and language learners around the world. 

You Can Learn Any Language! Yes, You Can!

You can't get any more inspirational in terms of learning a foreign language than Barry Farber (except, perhaps, your own instructor).  Watch a short excerpt from his video "How to Learn any Language" and see if you don't agree that his approach is accessible and engaging, and add your own 21st century media solutions into the mix.  The Language Center has the full 2-hour lecture on DVD, as well as Mr. Farber's accompanying book.  You can request either at the Language Center Service Counter.  Or both! 

What to Expect ... When You're Taking a Foreign Language Class at CCSF

If you're thinking of taking a foreign language class next semester, or are already enrolled in one this semester, watch this short video to get a sense of what taking a language class at CCSF is all about.  Then sign up for a continuation class next semester, or a 1A or 1 level class.  Maybe a conversation class in the 10 series?  Or both! 

Click here for video

Are you Learning Mandarin? Be Inspired by Chris's story

Follow Chris through his extended stay in China.  What is it like to go there, learn the language, get to the know the culture and the people?  You might be inspired in your Chinese language learning to read his tips on how to learn Chinese.  Here is an excerpt from "Ready to Return":

Mind your tones

"The hardest thing when speaking Mandarin are the tones. Even though I thought I remembered how to say a word, and could even visualise it in its written form, when speaking it aloud my tones would often be incorrect. This would incur laughs from native speakers which really dented my confidence. I still have problems with tones today, but I find that extensive listening can help greatly with this."

Don't Try This Abroad! And Other Amusing Cultural and Linguistic Misadventures

Check out these short videos from BBC Language and prepare to be amused as students of various languages talk about their cultural and linguistic missteps and misadventures abroad.  They are baffled in Barcelona, flustered in France, and blundering in Bavaria! 

Workshops for Chinese, French, German, and Spanish

The Language Center offers a series of workshops for students of  French, German,  Spanish and Chinese in the 6 or so weeks of each semester.   Earlier in the semester, the Language Center offered a series of workshops covering English grammar for Students of French, German, and Spanish, which also included discussions of foreign language grammars, if time permitted and students requested.  Currently, the workshops being offered introduce students to the various resources and materials available to these languages, whether in-house or on-line.

Here's the schedule for the weeks of 9/19-9/30:

Monday, 9/19: 9-10 & 1-2  - Spanish, Plazas (3rd and 4th editions)
Tuesday, 9/20: 9-10 & 1-2 - Spanish, Plazas (3rd and 4th editions)
Wednesday, 9/21: 9-10 & 1-2 - French, Allons-y
Thursday, 9/22: 9-10 & 1-2 - French, Allons-y 
Friday, 9/23: 10-11 - German, Deutsch: Na Klar!

Thursday: 9/29: 1-2 - Chinese, Online Resources  

Check in at the Service Desk.  You will receive a voucher for one hour of lab credit after the presentation. 

The Language Center in R-205: Your Place for Foreign Language Learning at CCSF

Whether you're a first-time student at CCSF enrolled in a foreign language class, or a continuing/returning student, the Language Center offers a wide variety of resources for every language learner. These include audio materials on iMacs (with voice recording capabilities) for each textbook, high-speed internet access for foreign-language-related materials selected by faculty here at CCSF, as well as links to publishers' websites where you will find chapter-by-chapter materials, such as online flashcards and self-tests.

But wait, there's more! You'll find interactive, textbook-based CD-Roms for French, German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish, as well as CD-Roms for Mandarin (PinyinMaster, Critical Language Series), Cantonese (Critical Language Series, and Japanese (Power Japanese). There are writing programs installed on the PC's for French, Spanish, and Chinese, MS Word software enabled to create Russian, German, Japanese and Italian accent marks or characters. Rounding things out is a collection of DVDs and videos, most notably for French, Italian, and Spanish.

Faculty monitors with backgrounds in most of the languages taught at CCSF are here to answer your questions or refer you to the language tutors in the Learning Assistance Center, so schedule a regular visit to the Language Center this semester. You'll be glad you did!