| The answer to this question is…it
depends. Learning a language is comparable to taking a two-week
vacation to Egypt – it’s an adventure! We never
know what interesting information we will learn about the
history, the people, their customs, and their ideology. And
as with any adventure, there are a number of factors to note
as you embark on your language-learning journey.
Firstly, a native tour guide will enrich your travels, just
as a native language instructor will enrich your language-learning
journey with real life stories and little known facts about
the people and the area of the language. Language is the window
to the people and their culture. Someone who has immigrated
to Canada can speak from experience about the idiosyncrasies
that surprised him or the customs to which she had difficulty
adjusting. These very stories that come out of discussions
about the language will be an eye-opener and a motivation
for you as you prepare to adjust |
| IMPORTANT LEARNING FACTORS
Language Background:
People learning a third or fourth language learn more
easily than people learning their second language
Self-study:
Engaging in the language outside of formal language
classes will help you learn more quickly
Consistency:
Maintaining a consistent learning schedule accelerates
language learning
Immersion:
Getting involved in the language community increases
your ability to learn a new language
Age:
After puberty, people usually retain an accent |
|
to their culture in your business relationships
and travels.
Secondly, just as a travel agent is able to assess what “style”
of vacation to offer you, a professional language trainer
will assess your language learning style. A twenty year old
who has backpacked through the Middle East for six months
has a higher tolerance for risk and adventure than a fifty
year old who vacations at a Holiday Inn in Florida annually.
The same is true for language training. Someone who speaks
only English often learns a second language differently from
someone who is learning a third of fourth language. The multi-lingual
language-learner is able to take more risks and is more confident.
Also, as a rule, the ability to adjust to the changes in grammatical
sequences and accent is accelerated the younger one is, but
regardless of age, the learning journey is just as enjoyable!
Thirdly, a vacation is enriched when you have the opportunity
to converse with the locals and avoid the tourist traps, just
as language learning is enriched when you have an opportunity
to use the language outside of the formal training environment.
Immersion is best – the ability to shop where the locals
shop and work with the locals will accelerate your language-
learning journey immensely. Short of that, you can also create
mini-opportunities for immersion, like attending a social
function at an ethnic club, corresponding with someone in
their language on the Internet, spending time with a cross-cultural
friend, listening to music in the tongue you are studying
and many others.
Just as your motivation will determine whether you come
home with stories about white sandy beaches or stories about
bartering an old pair of jeans for vegetables at the market,
your motivation for learning a language will determine whether
you learn to greet the hotel concierge in his/her language
or you learn to jabber with the locals at the pub. Regardless
of your personal learning factors, style or motivation, the
journey is full of exciting new adventures that are as fascinating
as the pyramids of Egypt! |
