The time factor in Mandarin language learning: the four-week intensive versus the regular high school semester

Abstract

This study compared two groups of high school students in their learning of a third-year Mandarin level 3 class under two conditions: an intensive four-week (85.5 hours) summer program and a 22-week (88 hours) regular semester program. Students in both conditions had been classmates through four semesters of Mandarin instruction and had similar Mandarin oral proficiency at the end of the second year (SOPI (Simulated Oral Proficiency Interview) pre-test). The SOPI post-test administered at the end of both programs showed no differences for students in either condition on Mandarin oral comprehension, vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar usage; however, students in the distributed learning condition were significantly better on oral fluency than students in the intensive learning condition. Overall, however, findings support the conclusion that an intensive foreign language-learning program can be as effective as a traditional semester-long language class.