I study with other foreigners, but last semester we only had one language course left (综合), other courses were all about how to teach Chinese. I’ve been thinking of continuing with the masters if I can get a scholarship. Most of the courses will be with other foreigners, but those foreigners always speak Chinese with each other, just like I’m doing with my classmates too.

It’s even better for you as you hear your classmates speaking native Chinese all the time. And as you said, they can help you in many ways.

I think the way for me to continue learning Chinese is to learn something else in Chinese (perhaps masters in teaching Chinese).

Basically I was just nodding my head while reading this post! 🙂 I think what you’re doing is a great inspiration for us advanced students who want to continue the journey in mastering Chinese.

Well, the problem is that it takes enormous amounts of time to acquire that natural feel for a language. Giving students a few hints here an there so that they know what to focus on in their listening and reading is essential. I know I would have understood some concepts much, much quicker if I had had more teachers who actually understood grammar.