Once again about learning languages
The topic of learning foreign languages has been discussed many times here. In the archives you can find many different interesting ways and practical tips on learning languages. At some point I decided that I, too, probably should share the experience gained in the process of learning foreign languages: I can speak more or less fluently in six languages.
All I am writing about here is my personal understanding of the problem of learning languages and my vision of possible solutions. I do not claim any truth or science and do not have a completed professional education in the field of linguistics.
I will not consider language learning at the tourist level, where a sufficient level is the ability to understand the main menu items in a restaurant, make an order, or be able to ask for directions and understand what you have been told. Knowledge of the language at this level, of course, is useful, but it cannot be called "proficiency in the language." For me, the level of ownership begins from the moment when I can calmly read texts in this language using only the dictionary built into the electronic reader (formerly AlReader, then CoolReader, now finally PocketBook Reader).
To begin with, some obvious or non-obvious facts from my experience about learning languages:
At this stage, the grammar of the language is mastered: how the verbs are conjugated, how the sentence is constructed, how different tenses are formed, how different degrees of adjective comparison are formed, what is the word order in different sentences, etc.
At this stage, the focus is on (if possible) a complete study of the grammar of the language, so that when reading texts, you can only use the dictionary in the future without needing to look at the grammar to understand the meaning of the sentence. In the framework of UniCert, this level corresponds to the level B1 / B2 (without taking into account other skills such as listening, writing texts, etc.).
Although I have this second stage, it begins long before the completion of the first stage and never ends: the study of the new vocabulary takes place daily. For this, I always highlight for myself the "word of the day" in the languages that I learn. Today these are the words to yank (en), schmachten (de) and suerte (es). (I will write more about the “words of the day” in the second part.)
As part of the lexical phase, three phases of study can be distinguished:
Recognition phase: when the word is recognized in the text and its meaning is correctly defined in this context. This may not always be easy, because the context can greatly change the meaning of a word, especially in the case of ambiguous words such as peg (en), einstellen (de) or sacar (es).
')
Phase of active use: when a word or phrase is actively used, in the right context and when it would be used by native speakers. Here it is important to catch that moment which words and expression are usually used to express a certain thought by the speakers. Examples of such expressions are, for example, at the end of the day (en), im Endeffekt (de) or en último término (es) to express the result of an action, which in Russian corresponds to the expressions “in the end”, “in the end”, "As a result."
The main problem here is that dictionaries very rarely indicate the frequency to be used by carriers of one or another expression, and therefore, without a lot of reading and listening experience in the language, it can be difficult to understand which expression is more commonly used and to take such a translation from the dictionary that the average carrier puzzles its complexity and singularity (perhaps in this context, the dictionary expression is not used or used only in book speech).
Phase of creative application: when a word and its meanings are already so familiar that you begin to understand the play on words and use this word in an unusual context in order to express a particular feature, to play with words.
Here is an example of such use from Stashef's “Escape velocity” (“escape velocity”), where he is a pun (the key word for understanding is highlighted by me):
If during the first two stages we learned to understand a foreign language, then at this stage we begin to actively use the language to communicate and express our thoughts. And here, going beyond the scope of tourist phrases and basic vocabulary, you begin to understand that in order to correctly and naturally express your thoughts in a foreign language, it is necessary not only to learn the language, but also to rebuild your thinking under this language. Only by starting to think like speakers think (or who speak a language at a very high level) can we learn to express our thoughts on it naturally.
For example, for adequate communication in English, much more attention needs to be paid to the (grammatical) time of our actions: its length (continuous tenses) or its completion (perfect tenses vs. simple tenses), degree of confidence (going to vs. will + vb vs. continuous ), attachment to a specific moment or regularity (simple tenses), and so on. Also, unlike the Russian language, logical dependencies between separate semantic units of a sentence are much less often separated into subordinate sentences (“I saw how she left” and “I saw her leaving”).
The German language, for example, is similar in its syntax to Russian: here, too, subordinate clauses are often used to express dependencies. But for German, unlike Russian and English, where the action (verb) is in the sentence in most cases in second place (well, in general at the beginning of the sentence), it is necessary to think in details and circumstances. That is, if a German wants to say “I have to hand over the work tomorrow no later than 12 hours in the dean's office”, he will first say when (morgen spätestens um 12 Uhr), then what (meine Arbeit), then where (im Prüfungsamt) and only later call the action itself (abgeben): and his thought will also develop (Ich muss - morgen spätestens um 12 Uhr - meine Arbeit - im Prüfungsamt - abgeben).
The skills of “thinking in a foreign language” are the most complex skills, for the acquisition of which in adulthood (when the thinking process is already more or less formed), it is necessary to make significant efforts. Few (if anyone else at all) succeeds in reaching the level of “comparable” with native speakers, even after many years of studying the language and being in the language environment. But here it is important not to despair and, if possible, soberly assess your abilities, being able to rejoice at each achievement.
In conclusion of this (first) part I would like to give a little comic plate that helps to assess your level of language according to how it is assessed by speakers or people who are fluent in the language. The label is based on my experience and may have nothing to do with your reality.
If this topic and my “non-professional” approach to it (as I already wrote, I do not have any professional education in linguistics) will interest readers, then in the second part I will try to formulate some more general learning practices that are not dependent on the language itself. and in the third part (if the second turns out to be successful) I will share my personal experience of learning German.
All I am writing about here is my personal understanding of the problem of learning languages and my vision of possible solutions. I do not claim any truth or science and do not have a completed professional education in the field of linguistics.
I will not consider language learning at the tourist level, where a sufficient level is the ability to understand the main menu items in a restaurant, make an order, or be able to ask for directions and understand what you have been told. Knowledge of the language at this level, of course, is useful, but it cannot be called "proficiency in the language." For me, the level of ownership begins from the moment when I can calmly read texts in this language using only the dictionary built into the electronic reader (formerly AlReader, then CoolReader, now finally PocketBook Reader).
To begin with, some obvious or non-obvious facts from my experience about learning languages:
- A language is not just a set of grammatical rules for how a particular time or degree of comparison of adjectives is formed correctly. Language is a means of expressing thoughts. Therefore, in studying a language, one must first of all concentrate on how to express a particular thought, and not on how to grammatically correctly conjugate a particular verb. I do not urge to completely ignore grammar - no communication is possible without it - I just want to draw attention to the fact that the courses traditionally take too much time grammar - namely, how to say correctly and too little semantics - what a person wants to say .
- You can not learn the language "in reserve", "then to use", "to make a good impression on the interview." Ilya Frank in his books compares learning a language with a climb to an icy hill: either from a run up or inevitably down. As soon as we stop studying the language, we immediately begin to slide down, and this movement increases exponentially.
- In general, you can not learn a language. Language can be learned. All life. Even native, let alone a foreign one. Such an expression as “proficient in language” is used only by advertisers-marketers and those who have not yet tried to master the language in this “perfection”.
- Even knowing the language well, it is impossible to speak it always well. Mood swings, biorhythms, just hunger and fatigue can have a significant impact on the level of the language: many, I am sure, with a hangover and in their native language, are not able to correctly formulate anything, not to mention a foreign one.
- It is impossible (if you are not bilingual from birth) to speak well simultaneously in two non-native languages: language interference inevitably arises. To speak well in a foreign language - you only need to speak it, and not on any other. It takes me an average of 4-5 hours of conversation to completely switch to another language, after which the level rises significantly.
Stages of language learning.
1st stage - grammatical.
At this stage, the grammar of the language is mastered: how the verbs are conjugated, how the sentence is constructed, how different tenses are formed, how different degrees of adjective comparison are formed, what is the word order in different sentences, etc.
At this stage, the focus is on (if possible) a complete study of the grammar of the language, so that when reading texts, you can only use the dictionary in the future without needing to look at the grammar to understand the meaning of the sentence. In the framework of UniCert, this level corresponds to the level B1 / B2 (without taking into account other skills such as listening, writing texts, etc.).
2nd stage - lexical.
Although I have this second stage, it begins long before the completion of the first stage and never ends: the study of the new vocabulary takes place daily. For this, I always highlight for myself the "word of the day" in the languages that I learn. Today these are the words to yank (en), schmachten (de) and suerte (es). (I will write more about the “words of the day” in the second part.)
As part of the lexical phase, three phases of study can be distinguished:
Recognition phase: when the word is recognized in the text and its meaning is correctly defined in this context. This may not always be easy, because the context can greatly change the meaning of a word, especially in the case of ambiguous words such as peg (en), einstellen (de) or sacar (es).
')
Phase of active use: when a word or phrase is actively used, in the right context and when it would be used by native speakers. Here it is important to catch that moment which words and expression are usually used to express a certain thought by the speakers. Examples of such expressions are, for example, at the end of the day (en), im Endeffekt (de) or en último término (es) to express the result of an action, which in Russian corresponds to the expressions “in the end”, “in the end”, "As a result."
The main problem here is that dictionaries very rarely indicate the frequency to be used by carriers of one or another expression, and therefore, without a lot of reading and listening experience in the language, it can be difficult to understand which expression is more commonly used and to take such a translation from the dictionary that the average carrier puzzles its complexity and singularity (perhaps in this context, the dictionary expression is not used or used only in book speech).
Phase of creative application: when a word and its meanings are already so familiar that you begin to understand the play on words and use this word in an unusual context in order to express a particular feature, to play with words.
Here is an example of such use from Stashef's “Escape velocity” (“escape velocity”), where he is a pun (the key word for understanding is highlighted by me):
“Oh, they know how, well enough.” Sam smiled. “I’ve been asking for my way out here. Seems there's very little free metal on Falstaff. Even the iron's all locked up in rust, in the soil. "
"Oh." Dar pursed his lips. "So what do I use for money here-nails?"
Sam started, surprised. "How'd you guess?"
"You're kidding!"
...
“What does they do around here when the Revenue Service comes calling?”
“They pay their tacks , like honest citizens. What's the matter? Culture shock? "
3rd stage - productive.
If during the first two stages we learned to understand a foreign language, then at this stage we begin to actively use the language to communicate and express our thoughts. And here, going beyond the scope of tourist phrases and basic vocabulary, you begin to understand that in order to correctly and naturally express your thoughts in a foreign language, it is necessary not only to learn the language, but also to rebuild your thinking under this language. Only by starting to think like speakers think (or who speak a language at a very high level) can we learn to express our thoughts on it naturally.
For example, for adequate communication in English, much more attention needs to be paid to the (grammatical) time of our actions: its length (continuous tenses) or its completion (perfect tenses vs. simple tenses), degree of confidence (going to vs. will + vb vs. continuous ), attachment to a specific moment or regularity (simple tenses), and so on. Also, unlike the Russian language, logical dependencies between separate semantic units of a sentence are much less often separated into subordinate sentences (“I saw how she left” and “I saw her leaving”).
The German language, for example, is similar in its syntax to Russian: here, too, subordinate clauses are often used to express dependencies. But for German, unlike Russian and English, where the action (verb) is in the sentence in most cases in second place (well, in general at the beginning of the sentence), it is necessary to think in details and circumstances. That is, if a German wants to say “I have to hand over the work tomorrow no later than 12 hours in the dean's office”, he will first say when (morgen spätestens um 12 Uhr), then what (meine Arbeit), then where (im Prüfungsamt) and only later call the action itself (abgeben): and his thought will also develop (Ich muss - morgen spätestens um 12 Uhr - meine Arbeit - im Prüfungsamt - abgeben).
The skills of “thinking in a foreign language” are the most complex skills, for the acquisition of which in adulthood (when the thinking process is already more or less formed), it is necessary to make significant efforts. Few (if anyone else at all) succeeds in reaching the level of “comparable” with native speakers, even after many years of studying the language and being in the language environment. But here it is important not to despair and, if possible, soberly assess your abilities, being able to rejoice at each achievement.
Score your level.
In conclusion of this (first) part I would like to give a little comic plate that helps to assess your level of language according to how it is assessed by speakers or people who are fluent in the language. The label is based on my experience and may have nothing to do with your reality.
| Achieved level | Level characteristic | Characteristic assessment of the media |
|---|---|---|
| First level | I learned from the phrasebook “Please give me two beers!” And was able to build on this model “Give me two servings of Munich sausages” | Usually characterized by the fact that you are praised for your knowledge of the language, especially the waiters, taxi drivers, bartenders and other random people - that is, where the level of language is required is the smallest. |
| Average level | A good active vocabulary and good basic grammar. In this case, as a rule, most phrases sound for a native speaker, either funny, or artificial, or too “twisted”. | Understanding while, as a rule, does not suffer much, because the conversation is usually about simple things. However, to say the same thing correctly, you must completely rebuild the phrase or use other words. Therefore, there is usually no comment at this stage from anyone. You are understood, smiling, prompted by the words - but only individual words, without correcting the “global jambs”. |
| Advanced level | There is a rich active and passive vocabulary, a good knowledge of the entire grammar of the language and a certain level of language feeling. Phrases at the same time are more or less natural, but often contain small grammatical errors: an excess or a missed article, a slightly wrong word, etc. | At this stage, the media can fix your small flaws, as they are easy to fix and, in general, the sentence is built correctly and sounds natural. However, as practice shows, usually here just the least corrections come in: your accent or peculiarities of pronunciation are perceived as perceived as your characteristic trait and simply stop paying attention to it. |
| High level (in non-native language!) | You are mistaken for a carrier until you make any mistake from the advanced level. Depending on the level, this time can be from 5 minutes to several days. Usually this level is “given” to those who move to the country of the studied language under the age of 18, or very intensively and consciously engaged in the language before that age. | If suddenly you switch to another language - for example, in a telephone conversation - you are interested in what language and where you know it so well from. The phrase “this is my native language in general” is even more surprising and sincere. |
If this topic and my “non-professional” approach to it (as I already wrote, I do not have any professional education in linguistics) will interest readers, then in the second part I will try to formulate some more general learning practices that are not dependent on the language itself. and in the third part (if the second turns out to be successful) I will share my personal experience of learning German.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/154685/
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