Is it possible to learn a new language if you have already passed the «learning age»? And is it possible to do this quickly, without stretching the process for many years in a language school? Yes, and it’s not at all as difficult as many used to think, teacher and polyglot Tatyana Prolesko is sure.
There are many articles and tutorials on how to learn a new language. After reading them, the image in my head is something like this: you need to go to good courses, buy proven teaching aids, keep in mind the terms “motivation”, “self-development”, “goal” and “deadline”, download a couple of applications on your phone and join which some language challenge in social networks. It is done! But in practice, for some reason, this is not enough, even if everything is in order with your goals and motivation. And if a new language is really needed, for example, for work or in connection with moving to another country.
Among my students were students, businessmen, parents whose children went to study abroad. I realized that no matter how old you are, this is not an obstacle to learning a new language. And it does not matter what the goal is — to conduct business negotiations or to be able to maintain small talk abroad. Neither age, nor purpose, nor the presence or absence of «superpowers» in learning languages determines your future success. I offer 7 tips to help you quickly and effectively learn any European language at any age.
1. Remember that you can (yes, you can) speak a foreign language in the first lesson. You don’t have to be a prodigy to do this. All you need is a pen and paper. After the first lesson, you will be able to tell in a previously unfamiliar language what your name is, how old you are, what your hobby is, what coffee tastes like in your mug, why you decided to learn the language and what plans you have for tomorrow.
An important condition is necessary: a teacher who unconditionally believes in you and broadcasts this attitude to you
What do I need to do? Listen and automatically repeat these phrases after the teacher. Write them down in any convenient way, even if it means writing words in Russian letters.
What is happening in the brain at this moment? Based on what is happening, he “sees” that the goal is easily achievable, that you already know how, can and speak a foreign language. This eliminates all the negative thoughts that we are used to: “I won’t succeed”, “It’s very difficult and long”, “I have many years of hard work ahead”, “Again this grammar, phonetics, declension and agreement.”
Of course, you have to master all this, but you don’t have to memorize boring tables from the textbook. This knowledge will be woven into a lively, exciting process, and you will put the acquired language skills into practice immediately, and not in a vague future, «when I master the language well enough to not make a single mistake in speech.»
This allows us to overcome the most important problem — the language barrier. But for all this to work, a condition is necessary: a teacher who unconditionally believes in you and does not allow the thought that you will not be able to master a new language does not doubt your success. And who broadcasts this attitude to you.
Learning “beautiful” is much more interesting than memorizing school clichés like “London is the capital of Great Britain”
2. Buy an original book by your favorite writer and put it next to your entry-level textbook. Mentally imagine that you have already achieved the goal of mastering the language. And open the book to any page. You will be surprised to realize that on every page there are at least a few familiar words.
Even if it is only 1% of the total text, for example, the words I, We, Voyage, End, Simple, Coffee, Morality, Life (if we are talking about English). Or 5%. Or 10%. This minimum is enough to form a powerful psychological charge of self-confidence.
Today, there are a huge number of books on the method of commented reading. For example, next to a paragraph of a foreign text is its exact translation, or the translated words are inserted directly into the text. This allows you to read even Oscar Wilde in the original, without spending several years in a language school before that. You will discover the incredible beauty of a foreign language, whichever one you choose. And that creates motivation. After all, learning “beautiful” is much more interesting than memorizing school cliches like “London is the capital of Great Britain” (who even says these phrases in real life, unless they explain the basics of geography to children?)
3. Forget that it takes many years to learn a language. Three months is enough. Many are stopped by the thought that it will take a very long time to achieve a fluent level of language proficiency. How many years will pass? From the realization of the amount of time that will have to be spent on mastering all the levels in order, hands often fall down.
Based on my experience of working with students, I realized that three months is enough to master the basic level. After that, you will be able to carry on a conversation on everyday topics, understand the essence of the issues under discussion by 80% and be able to express your thoughts in simple phrases.
If in the future the language is needed for professional activities, you can plan another three months and increase the intensity of classes, bringing the level in line with the task. If you don’t plan to become a simultaneous interpreter or talk about the chemical properties of asphalt, it won’t take you many years.
Immersion in the language environment is a win-win option. Even if not for 3 months, but for 3 days
Learning a language is a process, not a result. You can also learn Russian to infinity, but many words and expressions will never be useful to you in everyday life.
4. Stop listening to people who convince you of the difficulty of learning a new language. Do not discuss this topic with them at all. All those “At your age? Well, well…”, “Where will you get the time for this?”, “There are online translators, why torture yourself”, “Good courses are very expensive” will only confuse you and deprive you of self-confidence.
Instead, include in your social circle people for whom knowing 2-5 languages is the norm and who do not understand how you can even ask the question “Can I?” You can. It only takes a little adjustment of the settings of personal beliefs and the influence of the social circle. Even if you have lived all your life in an environment that did not at all imply the knowledge of several or even one foreign language.
5. Buy air tickets to the country whose language you want to learn. Immersion in the language environment is a win-win option. Even if this dive is not for three months, but for three days. Go to another country for the weekend, taking Friday or Monday. Meet foreigners, communicate with them on any topic. Feel free to warn them that as long as you have a basic knowledge of the language, most will gladly pay attention to a person who wants to learn their language and at the same time just chat.
6. Find a good teacher. But to find it, you have to start looking. Not sometime later, not «when the conditions are right.» There will never be suitable conditions — there will always be something that “interferes”. Interview friends and acquaintances, attend trial (and most often free) classes. Compare different teachers and choose the one you feel comfortable with and who believes in you.
7. Remember that learning a language should bring joy, and not turn life into hard labor. Then it will be much easier and more interesting to study. For example, if you are a blogger and want to share your talent with a foreign audience in the future, make it a rule to write a couple of phrases in a new language at the beginning of each post. Forget about perfectionism, keep it simple and short.
You can read product instructions in a foreign language, you can turn on movies, music or programs in the background in the language you decide to learn. Even if you don’t seem to understand a word, do it. The main thing is that the topic is interesting to you. Art, sports, fishing, cross-stitching — choose a theme that is close to you, that makes you happy. Even in the background, this will work — the brain will remember the information, and you yourself will not notice how new words and expressions appear in your vocabulary.
Learning a language should be a pleasant process, recreation, not work. Mastering a new language will allow you to discover and use new opportunities, explore other mentalities, travel in a new format, adopt from other cultures what you will surely like and decorate the familiar reality. And at the same time you will be able to acquaint the world with yourself, with what you want to tell about yourself. And that’s a worthy goal, right?