from personal experience... what are effective ways to learn a new language ?

Question

is it by hearing songs, games, pictures, hearing other people, etc etc what helps to learn better a new language?

Answer 1

The problem with this question is that no one has personal experience at learning a language in two different ways, so no one has the ability to compare two ways of learning a language in personal experience and see which one was more effective. If we believe a certain thing helps language learning, we will think that thing helped us inasmuch as we believe that we are good language learners. Imagine that I believe that standing on one leg is helpful for language learning, so I take a German class and make sure to stand on one leg while I take my class and do my assignments. If I learn German later, I'll say, "See, I knew that standing on one leg helped." But in reality, it was probably other things I was doing that helped. Therefore, it's important not to just do what people say from personal experience, but to follow what research says on the topic.

And, since you asked, I'm a linguist and I study second language acquisition, so here are some things that I think work, based on my knowledge of linguistics research:
1. Get as much exposure to language that you understand as possible. Read in the language, watch movies in the language, watch television programs, listen to the radio, etc. Try to choose materials that you will understand. For example, you can choose books or magazines on topics that you already know well, so your general knowledge of that topic will help you to understand the material in a new language. Part of going to a language class is doing this too, because when your teacher talks to you in the language, he/she should do things that help you understand more of what he/she is saying, such as use pictures and gestures, repeat, and slow down. The more you understand, the more your mind has to work with when it's trying to figure out how to speak that language. Therefore, songs, games, listening to other people, and many other activities are all helpful, because they help you get exposure to meaningful material in the new language. By the way, a site that has radio stations from all over the world is www.mikesradioworld.com.

Whatever you do, don't do a lot of work that involves your native language. It's okay to explain grammar in a person's native language once in a while, but don't watch a movie with English subtitles, for example. If your brain has subtitles to read, it won't have to pay attention at all to the language that you are trying to learn, and you won't get that much out of it. Likewise, exercises where you translate to and from your native language aren't always that helpful. Also, don't try to practice something before you've been exposed to it. This would be like trying to do long division before you know how to do subtraction -- the material just isn't in your brain. The good news is that, if you've been exposing yourself to authentic materials in the target language, you'll be exposed to a lot of things.

2. I think that most researchers and language teachers nowadays believe that some type of practice is important. So, find a willing conversation partner. This could be a classmate (a non-native speaker) or a native speaker. Research has shown that non-native speakers don't learn "mistakes" from each other, only good things. So speak away! (And don't forget to write, if you want to learn how to do that, too.)

3. Have realistic goals for what proficiency level you want to get, what kinds of things you want to learn, and how long it will take. Language learning is sometimes hard work, and it can involve discipline to expose yourself to the target language if you aren't in an environment where it is used all the time. Likewise, it's not realistic to expect yourself to be fluent in a new language if you only study it once a week for about a year. Finally, consider exactly what you want to do with the language, and focus on learning that. I don't really need to talk about coffee tables in German, for example, so I probably don't need to learn the German word for "coffee table". There's no point in learning vocabulary that talks about things you don't need or find interesting.

I recommend that you enroll in a class at a community college, if possible. People who teach at community colleges usually have Master's degrees, and have usually chosen language teaching as their profession. This means that they take it seriously and have been trained in the most up-to-date methods of language teaching and learning. My second choice would be a university, because the teachers there are often TAs who have less experience. Private language schools such as Interlingua or small private colleges are sometimes more concerned about making money than providing quality language teaching. If you can't take a class, though, it's not impossible. For example, I'm currently studying Serbian on my own. Simply get as much exposure as you can and have a little discipline, and that can get you a long way.

Finally, here are some activities that you should avoid (because they aren't that effective):
1. memorizing dialogues in the target language
2. activities that involve translation between the target language and your native language
3. Activities that use words, but aren't really connected to meaning

Happy language learning!

Answer 2

Hi. I am currently living in Austria and working out here.
I find the best way to learn a new language is to live in the Country and live and speak the language. Make some friends or even find a partner. However, if you cant do that, then I am using The Rossetta Stone discs. These are used on your computer and are entirely in the language you are learning and fun and easy to use. Languages do take time, and alot of patience. Stick with it and take your time. [e-mail]

Good luck. Simon

Answer 3

Hearing the language spoken and practicing the words you know in the language pretty frequently. The more a person hears a language the more that person is familiar with the way it sounds

Answer 4

The best and easy way to learn is to work as a salesperson in the area where that language is spoken.
Other ways, come after ~ to read practice~ to talk with other people etc.

Answer 5

All of the above. TV, radio, Newspaper, Magazines. I don't recommend music because people use too much slang. For a proper lerning of a proper language get a proper source. That helped me when learning english.

Answer 6

Mixing with the people who speak the language all the time. Thats what we have found when I worked in schools.

Answer 7

talk to people who speak the language that u want to learn

Answer 8

A language tutor

Answer 9

I learned English from reading comic books.
BTW, to learn any language to the point of fluency, takes 2,000 hours.

Answer 10

to learn to speak you must speak, so go to some place with Korean speakers and practice. You do not have to have friends, but you can attend Korean activities or restaurants and stores and use your knowledge. They will enjoy your speaking to them in their native language.