"Am I actually getting better at Chinese pronunciation?"

If you can't answer this question with data, you're flying blind. And most Chinese learners are.

Think about it: when you study vocabulary, you can count how many words you know. When you study grammar, you can pass tests. But pronunciation? How do you measure that?

Most learners rely on vague feelings: "I think I sound better than last month." Or external validation: "My tutor said my tones are improving." Both are unreliable — feelings are subjective, and tutors are polite.

What you need is data.

The Problem with Unmeasured Practice

Without tracking, three things happen:

You don't know what's working. Are those YouTube videos helping? Is your tutor making a difference? Without before-and-after data, you can't tell.
You can't prioritize. If you don't know which sounds are weak, you practice everything equally. This is massively inefficient — why drill a sound you've already mastered?
You lose motivation. When you can't see progress, you feel stuck. When you can see a graph going up, you feel energized. This isn't just psychology — it's the foundation of effective self-directed learning.

What to Track

Not all pronunciation metrics are equally useful. Here's what actually matters:

Tone Accuracy (Most Important)

Tones are the #1 differentiator between "understandable" and "confusing" Chinese. Track your tone accuracy percentage over time, broken down by:

Individual tones (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th)
Tone pairs (all 16 combinations)
Tone sandhi patterns (3rd + 3rd → 2nd + 3rd)

Skill Mastery

Think of Chinese pronunciation as a skill tree with branches:

Tones — 4 tones + neutral, tone pairs, sandhi
Initials — 21 consonant sounds, grouped by category
Finals — 38 vowel sounds and combinations

Each skill can be in one of several states:

New — haven't practiced yet
Learning — actively working on it
Reviewing — in spaced repetition cycle
Mastered — consistently scoring 90+

Tracking where each skill sits tells you exactly what to focus on next.

Practice Consistency

The most underrated metric. Research shows that daily short practice beats weekly long practice for pronunciation. Track:

Days practiced per week
Total practice time
Practice streak (consecutive days)

A 10-minute daily streak is worth more than a 2-hour weekend session.

Score Trends

Individual scores fluctuate, but trends tell the story. Are your average scores going up over weeks and months? Are specific sound categories improving while others plateau?

How TonePerfect Tracks All This

TonePerfect was built with progress tracking as a core feature, not an afterthought:

Skill Tree

A visual map of all 64+ pronunciation skills, color-coded by mastery level. At a glance, you can see which areas are strong (green) and which need work (red/orange).

Performance Analytics

Overall score trend over time
Per-skill scores with history
Tone breakdown — separate tracking for each tone
Weakest skills — automatically identified and prioritized

Daily Stats

Practice streak counter
Total assessments completed
Time spent practicing
Skills reviewed vs. new skills learned

Progress Over Time

Week-by-week and month-by-month comparisons showing how your pronunciation has evolved. This is the data that keeps you motivated and helps you optimize your study plan.

Using Data to Focus Your Practice

Once you have data, use it strategically:

The 80/20 Rule

Look at your weakest 3-5 skills. These are likely responsible for 80% of your pronunciation problems. Prioritize them.

Plateau Detection

If a skill's score hasn't improved in 2+ weeks, you might need a different approach — slow down, exaggerate the sound, or watch a video explaining the mouth position.

Celebrate Wins

When a skill moves from "learning" to "mastered," notice it. These milestones matter for motivation.

Start Tracking Today

TonePerfect's free plan includes basic progress tracking — enough to see your scores and identify weak areas. Premium unlocks the full analytics suite, including skill mastery tracking, score trends, and personalized recommendations.

Available on iOS, Android, and Web.

What gets measured gets improved. Start tracking your pronunciation today, and watch the data prove that you're getting better.