What you’re really asking is if there is a big difference between first and second language acquisition and the answer is yes, there is, but people have written numerous books about that and it’s not something I’m going to discuss here. However, I’m going to question your statement. Do you really know expats who have been using Chinese non-stop for ten years? I mean, really? Like, only speaking Chinese, not using their native tongue more than occasionally? I know a few, and their Chinese is very, very, very good. I do think that time is a major factor, but it’s counted in hours, not years.

I’ve noticed some expats who have lived in China/studied Chinese for 5+ years, even close to 10 years, yet their speach patterns, vocabulary, and pronunciation are all very “waiguoren” sounding… clearly time alone and non stop daily exposure to the languange like a native has not fixed the problem.

The implications are quite simple. Second language learners tend to default to reading books and to gloss over the need to listen critically or to speak accurately. So at least a return to drills to actively notice where one’s pronunciation is poor or where one’s hearing is incomplete.. can be very productive.

It doesn’t matter whether you study Chinese or English as a second language… too little time is spent on phonology and the results are poorer learning performance.

So just commit to returning to the topic regularly and often as possible.

I enjoy the mainstream Chinese texts that include BPMF along side the Chinese character as these keep me engaged in the sound of the language. That may be more productive as one matures than returning to simpler basics.

One thing I like is the part where you said, “This is where it’s invaluable to have a good teacher that will spot your weaknesses and do his or her best to correct them. If you normally use expression X, s/he might prompt you to use expression Y which is slightly more suitable in this situation.” I agree that a teacher or some kind of feedback is a good way to improve and activate your dormant vocabulary or other previously solely input-based content. However, most native speakers wouldn’t correct you if you make mistake or a not-so-accurate sentence, unless they simply don’t understand what you mean. A good teacher (like the ones we have :p) corrects and sharpens the student’s way of speaking and vocabulary use.

There are different definitions of passive and active here. For me, passive vocabulary are words you understand but can’t really use. It’s not word you understand but choose to not use for some reason. For instance, swear words in English are very much in my active vocabulary, it’s just that I choose not to use them very much. This isn’t the only way of looking at it, but it’s the one most useful for language learning, I think. I’m not worried at all by understanding many more words than I can comfortably used. In my experience, they gradually turn to active through tons of immersion and some opportunities to speak and mimic how others speak. Still, I wrote this article because that process is fairly slow and it can be significantly sped up if necessary or desirable. I suppose I don’t find it desirable enough. 🙂

I think you must have misunderstood what I meant. I have been practising speaking A LOT during my entire time in Taiwan, although it has of course fluctuated. I don’t see why this should “haunt” me in any way, I’m actually quite happy with the way I have learnt Chinese, at least if we disregard the first 1-2 years.

Having a substantially larger passive vocabulary isn’t a problem and is completely natural. The reason I would like to do more drilling is that there are areas in which I don’t know a lot of stuff actively and would need to practice. I’m sure immersion would solve that problem as well over time, it’s just that the type of Chinese I tend to read/listen to don’t involve that kind of language.