Why You Need a Foreign Language & How to Learn One: Online Version
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CHAPTER 11
THE FIRST STEPS IN LEARNING A FOREIGN LANGUAGE
Classes versus Independent Study
We will assume that you are going to learn and utilize your foreign language in a non-academic setting. However, if you do have access to formal language instruction----then by all means take advantage of the opportunity. Traditional classroom instruction does not conflict with the self-instructional methods described below.
Universities are the most popular destination for language students who want to pursue the traditional learning route. Over the past ten years or so, the demographic profile of the "typical" university student has dramatically changed. Undergraduates (and even graduate students) were once comprised almost exclusively of the under-twenty-five, daytime student crowd. Non-traditional adult learners now make up the fastest growing segment of the university population. Universities are responding to this trend by offering more and more classes in the evenings---when working adults can attend.
Many employers offer tuition reimbursement to their employees. The content of these courses is usually subject to company approval. Therefore, if you want your employer to pay for your evening Spanish class, then you will have to build a case explaining why Spanish is relevant to your current position. (If your employer already has customers or facilities in a Spanish-speaking country, then you should be able to build a case.)
To find out whether or not the university in your area offers evening classes in the language of your choice, check their website---practically all universities now offer searchable online class schedules.
Learning a Language on Your Own
If formal classes at a university or other institution don’t happen to fit your lifestyle and budget, don’t despair. If you can’t go to classes, then you can bring the language instruction to you. On a modest budget, you can equip yourself with books, audio materials, and even multimedia computer programs designed for self-studying language students. An assortment of these items (plus supplemental exposure to the foreign language) is all you need to learn any language.
If you have never studied a foreign language independently, then you probably aren’t aware of the specific books and audio courses that are on the market, and their relative strengths and weaknesses. To address this concern, I have included in this book a section entitled, “The Language Student’s Buying Guide.” This chapter is a roadmap for first-time shoppers.
As a prelude, though, it is worth mentioning a few of the broad categories of the materials that you will be using:
Full-length audio courses: These are packaged programs that contain a course book, and a compliment of audio cassettes or CDs.
Supplemental audio programs: These often consist of only an audio component. They focus on a particular aspect of language-learning, such as vocabulary, or verb conjugation.
Textbooks, dictionaries, and flashcards
When you choose the self-study route, you don’t have to designate fixed blocks of time (such as every Tuesday and Thursday night from 6:00 to 8:30) to learn a language. You will, of course, have to maintain your own study regimen, but you can blend language study into the normal routine of your life.
Begin with a Review of English Grammar
You have probably not formally studied English grammar since grade school or high school. Even if you are an articulate speaker and writer of English, you may not know off the top of your head what the pluperfect tense is, or the difference between a gerund and an infinitive. Once we become functional in our own language, these distinctions tend to fade quickly from the mind. It is safe to say that the average corporate CEO would not be able to produce an impromptu diagram of a sentence if his or her life depended on it.
While the terminology of grammar may have a negligible impact on the average adult professional life, there is a lot to be gained by reviewing fundamental grammatical concepts before you begin the study of a foreign language. This will enable you to more quickly identify the differences and similarities between English and a foreign language.
English grammar books are easy to obtain. You can buy one at any bookstore. Don’t fret too much over the selection of this book; your only objective is a basic review. If you are the parent of an adolescent, then you may even be able to borrow your child’s grammar text.
Copyright 2005 Beechmont Crest Publishing
