Understanding the Barriers in Learning Mandarin

Fransisca Yovita,

2004 | Tesis |

This study sets out to understand the barriers in Mandarin learning. This study aims to find out: first, the barriers learners experienced in learning Mandarin and why these barriers emerged. Second, how the learners of Mandarin encounter their learning barriers and finally, what learners think in developing a more effective Mandarin learning in the future. The data was collected using two methods of data gathering, they were: observations and the interviews. The observations were carried out two times in each two Mandarin courses in Jogjakarta and it aimed to find out the Mandarin learning activities in the classroom that were useful to see the Mandarin materials given and to see the learners-teacher relationship in the classroom learning (these were connected to the barriers that learners experinced). The interviews were carried out after the second classroom observations. The interviews with the teachers of Mandarin also conducted to find more information about Mandarin learning. 13 Mandarin learners and 3 Mandarin teachers participated in this study. The data then analyzed by the descriptive analysis of the qualitative data. The results of this study showed that Mandarin learners experinced almost all aspects of learning barriers, such as not having enough confidence in Mandarin learning. There were other things that followed when learners were not confident enough, they were: afraid of making mistakes, did not have an open-mindedness to complex materials, and did assume that learning Mandarin was difficult. Another learning barriers were that learners tended to ‘sacrifice’ their Mandarin learning when they were busy with their major activities and a barrier such as no chance for learners to learn in the neighbourhood. Most learners were interested in Mandarin learning but in fact, they were mostly not persistence in learning. Only few learners had their own ways to encounter their learning barriers but many of them did not anything to encounter it. Some learning barriers needed more attention from the Mandarin teachers and also Mandarin courses because learners could not encounter some of the barriers by themselves. This study enables to develop suggestions to make use of quantitative data using the methods of questionnaires to find more various barriers in Mandarin learning

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