Publisher: The Commercial Press http://www.commercialpress.com.hk
Authors: Beijing Languages Institute

Description:

This is a comprehensive textbook set for classroom use or self-study, aimed at the learner of Chinese who plans an extended visit to China. Book 1 begins with an overview of pinyin, the phonetic writing system used, and then each short lesson describes the activities of an overseas Chinese family visiting China. Each lesson has one or two dialogues, new vocabulary, "Study Points" (grammatical and cultural notes), supplementary vocabulary, and exercises practicing the content of the lesson. Every five lessons there is a "revision" (review). The accompanying Exercise Book clearly illustrates the characters taught in each lesson (though it doesn't show stroke order), and provides additional character reading practice and limited writing practice. A substantial glossary/index of all primary and supplimentary vocabulary, ordered by pinyin, is included at the back of the volume.

Strengths:

A wide range of topics are covered. Illustrations are clear and professional. Exercises are helpful. Short lessons help keep learners focused on acquiring a little language at a time. Good cultural and customs context. Fictional characters of different ages in the example family help maintain interest for different learners. The four CDs in the set should provide plenty of support between classes or to self-study learners.

Weaknesses:

The pace of this set is deceptively fast. The dialogues tend to be long and complex even early on. Beginning learners may need to spend longer on initial lessons before progressing to later lessons. More group activities for classes would be helpful. The indices at the end of the volume are oddly broken out into primary and secondary vocabulary, with proper nouns in two separate indices as well, making four separate places to check for a word if one knows its pronunciation. There is no character stroke order instruction (not even general rules). The set is expensive -- even though the value is reasonable compared to other sets, based on the extensive coverage, some beginning students may not want to invest so much up front.

Recommendation:

This set could be used by an adult language class for multiple semesters or even years, depending on the pace of the class. There does not seem to be a separate teacher's guide, but there are study notes in each lesson which a teacher could use to build on. Learners with some prior experience in Chinese or facility in learning foreign languages may be able to use the set for self-study, but the pace seems agressive for true beginners. Using the Exercise Book to provide the additional hanzi reading and writing would allow the learner to choose whether or not to purchase that book, except that the CDs are usually sold in a package with both books. This set is primarily recommended for those who have spoken and/or written some Chinese sometime in the past and need a refresher, or those who will study with a teacher who will be able to provide additional support and answer questions during the lessons.

Details:

Book Name:    Chinese for Today
Book Type:    Textbook
Age Range:    Adult
Number of Pages:    447
Number of Lessons:    35
Dialogues:    y
Vocabulary:    y
Grammar:    y
pinyin, zhuyin, or both:    pinyin
Explanations in English:    yes
Character instruction (traditional or simplified):    both (reading only)
Illustrations (color, b&w, none):    b&w
Class/Group Activities (games, songs, etc.):    no
Glossary - pinyin, zhuyin, hanzi, English:    P, H, E
Index - pinyin, English, both:    pinyin
Textbook available:    yes
Workbook  available:    yes
Teacher's Book available:    no
Practice Media Available (Tape, CD, CDROM):    CD
Cost:    $45.95

Lessons:

Phonetics

1. Welcome
2. Introduction
3. Looking for Someone
4. Where Are You Going
5. To the Post Office
6. Mailing a Letter
7. Exchanging Foreign Money for Renminbi
8. What's the Date Today
9. What Time Is It
10. Making a Telephone Call
11. Whose Pen Is It
12. Shopping
13. Going to the Airport
14. In a Restaurant
15. Consulting a Doctor
16. The Weather in Beijing
17. Asking People's Age
18. Sightseeing in Beijing
19. We Are Just Talking About You
20. Saying Goodbye
21. A Chance Meeting
22. We Went to the Great Wall
23. Invitation to a Dinner
24. Seeing People Off
25. Chinese Forms of Address
26. Asking the Way
27. When Old Friends Meet
28. Talking about Learning Chinese
29. The "Man" in the Shop Window
30. How to Write Chinese Letters
31. We Are in the Same Profession
32. What's on the Radio and TV
33. I've Been to Xi'an Before
34. Leaving China
35. Wish You a Pleasant Trip