Course description
Structure
Section titled “Structure”Intended outcomes
Section titled “Intended outcomes”Let’s start with what I want the couple (Team of Teacher, Learner) to get out of the course: Teacher: a proper introduction to their own language (and we dispel unhelpful myths such as 廣東話冇文法), broad introduction to current resources available, and a pedagogical system that can be extended after the course proper Learner gets: speaking / listening: A1 to A2 oral proficiency (beginner / beginner-intermediate), depending on whether the Team choose to do the extras reading: be able to read Jyutping be able to read (Team decision) the most common 100 or 316 廣東話適用漢字. This covers 50% / 80% of the characters in daily usage. be able to convert remaining 漢字 into 粵拼, effectively reading any material their oral proficiency allows writing: be able to type Chinese characters (through Jyutping input methods) Team: some quality time together impress the family for couples with / thinking of kids, progress towards a both-parents Cantonese environment
Time requirements
Section titled “Time requirements”The time expectation / intensity averages to daily 30 minutes for Teacher and 30 minutes for Learner, with weekends off and built-in breaks for catching up / holidays etc. High-intent Teams / Teachers / Learners can do suggested extra.
This 30 minutes includes practice time, so it’s not always new material. At the end of this message I’ve attached my notes for what a sample week (on numbers) look like.
In 12 months, the programme asks for min 100 hours of Cantonese usage. The extensions (some during the same 12 months, some after the year) would add another 150 hours, bringing the Learner to A2 level.
We start the first activity in Feb 2026. (Jon and Eli are getting married (again) in Argentina, so we’re not available until then.)
Schedule
Section titled “Schedule”For the Team, the daily learning happens in your own time. You choose when to sit down and do some playing.
For the Teacher, you get instructions and printable materials one week ahead (I’ll try for two, but pretty sure it’s gonna slip in this first run) irregular Teacher meetings to clarify the instructions (every 2 weeks or so, 1.5 hours, 2-3 days before the bloc of activities start) asynchronous support (peer and otherwise) through a forum (discussion board), and on Discord weekly office hours (prob HKT Monday evening) irregular moderated Learner meetings (every 3 months for them to talk to one another)
For this private experimental run, there is no direct cost. (Many of the activities will, however, need the Cantonese Font variants from the Complete Pass.) What I ask for is commitment, your feedback (as Learner, Teacher, and the Team), and if the plan works, publicity that the plan works 🙂
Designer
Section titled “Designer”I was a teacher, and worked with the International Baccalaureate to develop workshops for teacher trainers to train experienced teachers. I come from a Constructivist school of thought, basically, that teaching is not pouring knowledge into a passive empty container, but should create opportunities for learners to actively engage in a way that is meaningful for their context.
Around 2021, I thought our collective inability to easily and accurately prepare Jyutping-annotated material, where the tone is actually comprehensible, is the most important thing that must be solved for Cantonese to have a future. Since then I’ve researched and developed the Cantonese Font, which fully solved this issue.
Jon had been married to an Argentine lady Eliana for ten years, and we’re getting married again in Argentina 🙃 This is partly 自肥; Eli finally commits to learn Cantonese. So… we’re actually also doing this course together.