Help! A Language is Attacking Me!
February 9th, 2010 by Julia Bolotina
Taking the plunge into learning a new language can be terrifying, and the experience even more so. You’ve heard all the promos on how many doors it opens, but when you’re wading through yet another translation that just makes absolutely no sense, it can be really tempting to just conclude that languages are just not your thing. Maybe you’re just not cut out for it, right?
Not so! I’m on my third non-native language right now, and believe me, I’ve been through all of the painful “bloody hell how does anyone remember this” moments, the “why the f*** do you need subjunctive” moments, the “why does every *&$^% word start with q” moments, and everything in between. The thing is, it really does get better. I promise. If you’re brave enough to keep going with languages, or not sure if you are, here are some tips to help you on your way:
Yes, it does get better.
There really, really, really is a learning curve. Here’s how it goes (at least for me. Have a different one? Leave a comment!):
a) The Noob Stage. You’re totally new to the language, and it’s pure, painful memorization. You’re amazingly proud when you’re able to read that one sentence that the textbook constructed especially for you. On the other hand, quizzes are pretty easy: it’s just regurgitating what you’ve memorized, or translating things you’ve already seen with massive amounts of vocabulary and grammar help.
b) The grammar stage. This is when you’ve finally memorized all of the grammar. You’re way more confused about the language than you’ve ever been before, but things are looking up. I mean, you’ve memorized all of the grammar, that means you technically know the language, right?
c) The shoot me stage. This is when you realize that the language has a seemingly infinite amount of rules and details that Wheelock (or whatever your introductory textbook was) didn’t happen to think were important. Oh and it has way more vocabulary than could possibly be necessary (who needs 20 words for “kill”?). And those subjunctives, and those horrible “q” words? Well, apparently authors really love using them. Just to torment you.
d) The epiphany stage. Suddenly, things start falling into place. Vocab’s still a bitch, and grammar is just starting to settle in, but all of a sudden you can see the writing through the words (or start to string something coherent together, if you’re learning a modern language). All of a sudden you’re reading (or speaking), not just translating.
e) The cruising stage. Grammar really settles in. You’re still looking up massive amounts of vocabulary, but at least it’s not every word. If you concentrate, take a deep breath, you can actually read, left to right (or right to left, depending on the language), like you would in English. Conversation is starting to come more freely, although it still sounds oddly like English with an accent.
f) The Comfy stage. You’re not fluent yet, but you know enough to suit your purposes. From here on in, its just practice, practice, practice. …and lots of it. This is the easiest rut to get stuck in, unfortunately.
The point is, painful as it is, there really is a light at the end of the tunnel. You just have to keep that in mind, and force yourself through the painful bits. It really does get easier.
I meant the bit about practice.
Some people try to read through the whole grammar book, memorize it, and hope that will teach them the language. It doesn’t. Believe me, I’ve tried (well not the whole book. I think I gave up somewhere around strong verbs). The only way to learn a language is to keep practicing. Thankfully, same thing goes for vocab. For those of us who don’t have the best memory for vocab, practice works really well.
If you’re studying modern languages, practicing is a lot easier; just turn on the TV! And yes, I know, you’ve heard that millions of times from your profs, but just never feel like it. Try watching those classic movies you’ve always heard of. That way, it’ll feel like you’re catching up on classics, rather than doing homework.
Know thyself.
Start by figuring out what kind of learner you are. Visual, mechanical, or auditory? This may sound cliché, but it really helps you learn faster. Also, figure out if you’re a logical or intuitive thinker. If you’re more logical, grammar is your friend. If you’re intuitive, try to just go with your gut, and work out the grammar afterwards.
Set goals, and don’t sweat the small stuff.
Yes, languages can be overwhelming. Know how much new information you can process at a time, and don’t try to understand everything at once. If you’re patient, things do eventually fall into place. Knowing your goals can help you prioritize: if you’re learning just to be able to converse, focus on vocabulary, and watch lots of TV! If you want to read in the language, focus on vocabulary and try to get a feel for style and idiom – these will let you at least understand the gist of what you’re reading, and give you an intuitive grasp of non-standard usage. If you’re studying language for the sake of the grammar, you probably don’t need to be reading this blog.
Cue Cards Are Your Friend.
I’m not kidding. My entire windowsill is covered in boxes filled with cue cards, and my purse rains little white slips of paper with bizarre words written on them.
Also, try using these to memorise grammar, as well as vocab. I had a lot of trouble memorizing Old English declensions, until I put them on cue cards: 15 minutes of shuffling, and I (mostly) haven’t had trouble since.
Take a step back.
Language classes are designed to constantly challenge you – which can make you feel like you’re going nowhere. Take a step back, and look at how much you’ve progressed. Try going back to things you read a year ago, and see how much easier they are. Even better, try picking up a book in the language, and just reading it. Forget about the perfect translations you need to make for class, forget about the vocab you don’t know, forget about the fine points of grammar. If you just read and try to get the sense of it, you’ll be surprised at how much you can actually understand.
Photo from here.
February 10th, 2010 at 11:43 am
Languages are easy. Your brain is programmed to learn them, you just need to acquire the language in a more natural way. Memorizing grammars and vocab can be a waste of time if you have not tried to speak the language in order to get that gut intuition for how it works. Try getting ahold of the two best tools around, either Pimsleur or Rosetta Stone. Pimsleur will get you speaking and conversing very quickly. It’s an audio program where you must participate and respond to questions in the new language while someone gives minimal explanations and translations in English. It paces the new vocab and concepts very well and gives you all the most important building blocks to use the new language. I’m not sure if the library has copies of these particular programs but enough snooping on the internet can get you a good deal
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February 13th, 2010 at 1:29 am
Learning a new language is such a love/hate relationship for me.
I enrolled in the French program at U of T to force myself to really learn the language and boy do I know what you’re talking about. I have all these cue cards plastered all over my wall in my room and I actually spend time and sit down to study the language.
I am am proud of the fact that I enrolled in the French program in university. It’s forced me to work harder and really immerse myself in the language and culture more so than I would have, I bet, had I not enrolled in the program.
February 14th, 2010 at 8:01 pm
Greg, I have to admit I’ve never used Rosetta Stone or programs like it, but I’m skeptical about how well they could work. Yes, it’s based on intuitive learning, which is wonderful, but it is still essentially vocabulary and (some) grammar learning. If they keept showing you pictures and getting you to learn the names of, for example, colours based on them, that’s essentially a more fun version of cue cards. Unless you’re under 7, immersion can only take you so far – you have to sit down and do at least some active learning.
The only program that I’ve heard of that is based on immersion that I think coudl work really well is the program that First Nations House (I think) has set up for learning Anishinaabe (I think)… it’s based on students teaching other students the language; while it is based on immersion, it places responsibility on students taht I think woudl encourage more active learning. I’ve heard great things about it, anyway.