Like most other interesting things, learning how to speak Chinese Mandarin can be a kind of fashion. If you are a fashionable, diligent and assiduous person, learning Chinese can be your quite good choice.   Learning how to learn Mandarin is not difficult, but it does take time. Like any foreign language, you have to be willing to put time and effort into the process if you want to become fluent.   Whether it is group courses, immersive cultural experiences, computer-based lessons or online coursework, it's really up to the student to find a method that is most comfortable for him or her. And also, knowing these are necessary for your AP Chinese.   Following is a comparison of the more popular ways of learning how to speak Chinese Mandarin, along with the pros and cons for each. This should help you make an informed choice regarding your own education.   Textbooks For most languages, a textbook works well. Languages like French, Spanish and German have a lot of commonalities with the English language. After all, most English words have their roots in these languages as well as Latin. Learning Chinese is much more difficult from a textbook because you can't discern the proper pronunciation. Also, sentence structures can be difficult to learn from a book, because there's no way to get feedback. Audio textbooks can be of some help, but again, there's no give and take with an instructor.   Group courses Many students enjoy learning in a group environment. In many communities, local colleges or private institutions offer basic or intermediate Chinese courses. These classes can be a great way to learn the language. However, you have to move at the pace of the average student in the class, so if you're a fast learner or get stuck on a particular lesson, it's easy to become frustrated. Plus, many students don't feel comfortable pronouncing words before a bunch of strangers and pronunciation is very important when learning how to speak Chinese Mandarin.   Computer-aided learning This is one of the most familiar ways to learn any language. The CD or DVD courses allow you to learn how to speak Chinese Mandarin in an interactive fashion. Some Chinese lessons even use your computer's microphone so you can match the pronunciation of each character. The main drawback of these courses is that you don't have a live instructor that you can get feedback from or ask questions if you're really stuck. These features come in very handy when you're trying to learn how to speak Chinese Mandarin.   Online courses Online courses such as eChineselearning allow you to learn to how to speak Chinese Mandarin directly from a native speaker, who serves as your instructor. You work at your own pace on a one-on-one basis so you get feedback in real time. If you need to work on particular skills, your instructor can help you. And there's no class waiting for you to get a specific pronunciation or rule down before moving on. For most people, this is an ideal way to learn the language, since you move at your own pace in the privacy of your own home.   If you got any questions in learning Chinese, you can visit the site: http://www.echineselearning.com/