Chinese Language Academy

Excellent course (took the crash course). Small class size. Will continue when schedule/​work location allows. I wasn’t a fan of having class 2 days a week for two hours though — doesn’t seem like an efficient use of time (although meeting twice is intentional i’m sure, to improve retention). I’d be more likely to take more courses here if it were one day per week (longer meeting time).

Learning Mandarin at CLA was a great experience. I took the 101 crash course with Wenjia, who was an amazing teacher. She had a great knowledge of the language, was vibrant and spunky. She brought energy to the classroom, despite it being two hours of intensive studying after work on Monday/​Tuesday!
Can’t beat it for the price! I’d recommend it.

Everything about this course was great. I learned a lot, I meet interesting people, and I spoke/​wrote a lot of Mandarin. This course is fast and intense, but if you want to learn Mandarin, you want to learn it well, and you want to learn it now this is the course for you. I took the introductory course and finally felt that I was getting to a more true understanding of the Mandarin language. It isn’t just a class with forced memorization, the instructors teach you the meaning behind the words and characters so that you can carry on that information with you and use it to help yourself learn more.

I took the intensive 4 week introductory class and highly recommend it to anyone who wants to learn Chinese. The teachers place a lot of emphasis on learning the tones which is probably the most important and hardest thing to learn but necessary if you want to be understood. The course also introduces reading and writing Chinese characters. The class was small (6) and every student got a lot of attention and encouragement. The teachers are very, very good at introducing new words and explaining sentence structure. The repetition drills really help to make it all stick.

I was introduced to the Chinese Language Academy through a Living Social deal for their CLA 16 Crash Course. I’m currently taking the class and love it! I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning Mandarin Chinese. The course is intense, interactive and fast-​paced. By my third class, I couldn’t believe how much I had learned. I was speaking simple sentences and learning how to read and write Chinese characters. The class size is small, which makes it easy for the instructors to provide individual attention. I have to say that I am extremely impressed with the instructors. They are engaging, friendly, and patient. There is never a dull moment. The Chinese Language Academy offers several levels of learning, from Elementary to Advanced… and, not to mention, they are reasonably priced. I definitely want to take the next level course. Overall, this is a great program and I really don’t have a single negative thing to say about it.

I took the April 2015 Mandarin introductory crash course. I highly recommend this to anyone with an interest in learning Chinese oral and written language, with a dash of Chinese culture and practical insight into interacting with people in China. Our main instructor was completely fluent in English as well as Chinese, and was remarkably capable of listening to her beginning students’ attempts to communicate in Chinese, understanding (what on Earth!) they were trying to say and effectively offer corrections and suggestions. I can say the same about an instructor-​in-​training who took on one of the sessions. Although very enjoyable, the class was rigorous and did not waste a moment, either in class or in the assignments. Although I have taken Mandarin before and have traveled to China often on business over the years, just the 4-​week crash course by itself had a huge impact on my comfort level with the language, the written characters and my ability to speak the tones. I’m looking forward to taking the higher level programs with CLA in the future. Note for DC residents: the CLA location is less than a block from the Farragut North Metro station on the Red Line, so it’s a snap to get to!

I took the 16 Hour Crash Course and really enjoyed it. I learned a lot and the teacher was really good about engaging each of the students and making sure we all progressed and grasped the language at a basic level. This class is a great introduction to the Chinese language and Chinese culture.

The program is designed for working professional who want to learn Chinese. I went into the class with almost no Chinese speaking ability. At the end of 4 weeks I recognize close to 100 simplified characters, can read pinyin, and have basic grammar needed for simple expressions. I was surprised that by week four, I was able to type a brief introduction about myself in Mandarin with limited coaching from the staff.

Great staff, very helpful. Considering how difficult a language Mandarin is, the staff is very effective in their teaching methods to get the basics across. As with any class, you get what you put into it. Do the homework and exercises and you’ll get a good foundation/​basic understanding.