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Techniques to Learn a Foreign Language

Immersion

The idea is that you pick up key words and phrases first, and then learn the grammar like a kid, unconsciously in the process. Ideally students learn the language through intensive exposure to it in a context that makes sense. So, for example, if you learn Italian, you better do so in Pizzeria. Your the teacher the can explain you the menu, you can start to discuss the wines and after the espresso review the dishes.

Immersion is commonly associated with the Berlitz, a language school that stopped using grammar textbooks long time ago. When Maximilian Berlitz started his school and was in need of an assistant French instructor in 1978; he employed a Frenchman only soon to discover that Joly barely spoke English, and was hired to teach French to English speakers in their native language.

Shadowing

Shadowing is a technique in which subjects repeat speech immediately after hearing it (usually through earphones). The reaction time between hearing a word and pronouncing it can be as short as 250 ms, which is only the delay duration of a speech syllable. The audio is usually accompanies by a manual of bilingual texts. The technique was developed by famous language learner Alexander Arguelles, who speaks over 50 languages.

Scriptorium

With Scriptorium students write the language while simultaneously speaking it out loud. While doing so students should (1) read a sentence aloud, (2) say each word aloud again as you write it and then (3) read the sentence aloud as you have written it. The purpose of this exercise is to force yourself to slow down and pay attention to detail and then review unknown words or refresh your grammar.

Mnemonic

The idea is to match the unfamiliar (what we want to remembered) with the familiar (what we already know). You use this for learning vocabulary by creating an association in your mind that makes it easy to remember. For example, lets say you wanted to remember the French word “chou”, which means “cabbage” in English. “Chou” is pronounced like “shoe” in English, so you could imagine yourself putting on cabbages on your feet instead of shoes. Then, when you need to remember “cabbage”, your brain will think “cabbage -> shoes -> chou”.

Drown Yourself to Swimming

Most people are not in the position to apply this technique, but if you can and really want to learn the language go for it. Drown Yourself to Swimming means leave the comfort of your home and go to the place where they speak the language and then live there and try not to speak any other language until you’ve learned the new one. It might take 6-12 month, but if you manage not falling back to a familiar language and actively search for conversations with locals, you will indeed learn it fast.