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.