English Tip of the Week: Face-to-Face conversation

How to learn a new language

Many people ask me "What's the best way to learn a foreign language?" Well there is unfortunately no silver bullet, how ever, I will be posting tips on this subject and what I believe are some of the best way to learn English. This tip is about face-to-face conversation practice.

1. Conversation, Conversation, Conversation.

If there’s a “secret” or “hack” to learning a new language, it’s this: hours and hours of awkward and strenuous conversation with people better than you in that language. An hour of conversation (with corrections and a dictionary for reference) is as good as five hours in a classroom and 10 hours with a language course by yourself.

There are a few reasons for this. The first is motivation. I don’t care how cool your study guide is, you’re going to be far more invested and motivated to communicate with a live person in front of you than a book or audio program on your computer.

The second reason is that language is something that needs to be processed, not memorized. In my experience staring and memorizing a word in a book or with flashcards 100 times does not stick the same way that being forced to use a word in conversation a mere two or three times does.

I believe the reason is that our minds place more priority on memories which involve actual human and social experiences, memories which have emotions tied to them. So, for instance, if I look up the verb for “to complain” and use it in a sentence with a new friend, chances are I’m always going to associate that word with that specific interaction and conversation I was having with her. Whereas I can blow by that same word 20 times with flashcards, and even though I may get it right, I haven’t actually practiced implementing it. It means nothing to me, so it is less likely to stick with me.

Are you interested in practicing face-to-face conversation and improving your English? Contact me:

http://pagrondahl.wix.com/pro-class#!contact-me/c24vq

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