Language learning and golf

[marckami]

You really are frustrated with golf. ;)

Great vid.

[robrobbins]

I'm learning French and German. Even though I make considerable effort to make it fun and interesting, it is still tedious and time consuming to build one's vocabulary. But I think the Internet makes it worth while because you have access to other cultures once you can browse their web sites. C'est gentil !

[lingosteve]

What exactly are you doing that is tedious? Yes it takes time, that is why it is important to do things that you enjoy, and, as in the case of listening can be done while doing other tasks.

[robrobbins]

I create my own custom help files for the languages I'm studying. It is tedious but effective. To enjoy myself I collect movies, books, and music in the target language, stuff that reflects my other interests, but without an advanced knowledge of the language it does little good.

[owenjd]

Hi Steve. Thanks again for posting an interesting video.

I think there is an interesting parallel between language learning and golf or any number of activities. What a lot of people fail to recognize is that getting good at anything usually requires deliberate practice. Deliberate practice can be enjoyable or it can be miserable. It mostly depends on how you feel about the activity.

[lingosteve]

No Owen, deliberate practice at golf does not necessarily bring improved performance. The wrong kind of deliberate study of languages does not either.

[owenjd]

Steve, thanks very much for taking the time to respond. I see your point and agree that directed effort alone isn't enough. In your book you mentioned that when going through language learning books you always skipped over the exercise sections that ask you to complete tasks like conjugating verbs etc. Are there other specific methodologies in particular that you think should be avoided? Declension tables and the like :) Thanks again.

[lingosteve]

Some review of grammar is necessary, some study of tables is occasionally beneficial, but there are best limited to minor activities and mostly after extensive input , listening and reading , especially the way it is one at LingQ.

[owenjd]

Steve, I think the way you play golf is the way most people try to learn languages. They don't do it frequently or deliberately enough, they get frustrated, and they miss the point which is to have fun.

Looking forward to your next video!

[laurentius88]

I agree. Is there something in our school system that makes us not want to learn? Very sad, if that's the case! It's like, we enjoy everything that we haven't done at school: drinking wine, playing golf, fixing cars, sudoku... but who would sit down and solve some math problems just for fun? Or learning french?

[oulula]

nice video. i already agreed, but now i agree more.

[zocurtis]

Well, it was fair and balanced at the end at least. Thanks for the link Steve, very interesting article.

[NephilaClavata]

I learn languages because I want to, because I enjoy them/the culture and it's interesting and fun. Zulu has no practicality for me in where I live, and people think that I shouldn't learn it for that reason, but I'm not learning it to be practical. I'm learning it because I just flat out enjoy it and am interested in it. I think that more people should do that, learn things because they are enjoyable and not merely because they must. Learning can be enjoyable, people need to realize that.

[biantai888]

This IS a good video. It brought up several good points.

[MTEvideo]

Great video!

[zocurtis]

Hey Steve, you should post the link to the article in the description so we all could read it. Thanks and great video.

[yuriythebest]

very nice video! Yeah "the buzz" is probably the greatest incentive for language learning, sure, you get the added benefit of being able to communicate/comprehend it but that's just the pretext. I am currently perfecting my greek (and also getting some basic japanese knowledge) no real reason other than I like that type of activity

[mistulac]

Не так часто встречаешь человека у которого слова сходятся с делом. Ваш сайт это прямое продолжение ваших слов - легкий, интересный, полезный!

[loki2504]

You're right ! When I learnt spanish (without grammar)it opened me so many door to so many cultures (dominican culture, argentinian, peru, bolivia...) and it was the same with all the European languages => very fun ! Now I'm struggling with indonesian and japanese. I often meet japaneses but indonesians are seldom...

[paladin1000]

Most people will only learn a new language if it's a requirement. There are few people who will learn a language just for the fun of it. As you mentioned, learning a new language is like learning to play a musical instrument. In the beginning, there is frustration and discouragement. At this stage, most people give up. Only those with determination and passion will acquire the language, despite the challenge. And some people are more passionate about golf or poker than languages! Thx 4 the vids!

[thairob]

I like what you said about language learning opening doors to a whole other part of humanity. I know I stay motivated because through my Japanese learning, I've discovered so many new things (books, authors, music, TV shows, actors, etc) that I would have never noticed without the language. It's exciting to think about all the discoveries locked away that language holds the key for. Language learning could be viewed as the final frontier.

[coolsteven2]

i love to learn languages i discovered that because of you ^_^. i find it SO fun! and i dont do it because i HAVE to. i am friends with this Japanese foreign student and we hang out every once in a whole =D what i love about languages personally, is that its like "secret code" xD its quite fun when me and my friend speak in spanish and no1 understands xD and i love to meet people, though i am shy. learning lnges is like relearning to meet people.

[laoshu505000]

As usual, great video Steve.