this post was submitted on 06 Jun 2024
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I don't get the downvotes here. Learning a language is not easy without immersion. Yes you can bang through literature and even multiple courses... but without frequent use our brains simply lose the connection. Neurons that fire together wire together. This goes doubly for speech.
Many Americans (most?) are taught a second language in school but the lack of places to use it sees this education go to waste. The US is a large country with pockets of ethnic groups throughout - but as far as immersion with another language goes... it is sorely lacking.
It's unfortunate but a reality.
It's a lot about motivation. I'm sure many people have tried to learn a language, maybe on Duolingo or somewhere else. But as the initial excitement wears off, they give up. And that's normal, that's how most of us are built. You can't beat brain chemistry with sweet arguments that "it's good to know another language." There needs to be a strong incentive from the outside, like school when the second language is mandatory, or life in another country with no access to a community that speaks your language. With the internet, that's nearly impossible nowadays. There are a lot of expats who never assimilate in countries like Germany because in places like Berlin English will do. So I totally understand people from the US, who have limited access to other languages and cultures, plus whenever they go people speak English.
The internet argument goes both ways however: you can never leave your house and be able to interact with people from virtually anywhere, as well as consume content in any language.
I don't think it does. Yes, you can use it both ways. However, my point was that if there's no strong outside motivation pushing you towards learning the language, it's challenging to force yourself to do so. Furthermore, one must reach the level where they can interact with native speakers first. At the beginning, your vocabulary is limited, you don't know grammar rules, slang is not typically available in a dictionary. The initial desire to learn a language often wanes before reaching that level, as it's difficult for most people due to our brains' focus on short-term survival and benefits.
I live in a post-Soviet country with a large Russian-speaking community. Most Russians I know who eventually learned the official language of my country did so under specific circumstances: they attended a kindergarten without Russian children, were enlisted in the army, found employment where they couldn't use Russian or English, etc. Conversely, those who do not speak the official language typically never faced a pressing need to do so. The notion of "it would be good to learn X" is usually insufficient to motivate us to work hard for years to become proficient in another language.
Of course, there are exceptions, but they do not represent the norm.
Too add on
I took a Spanish class in high school
My dad knows some Spanish so he helped me practice but I passed with a good grade. I could not tell you one thing in Spanish. It was hard but kind of fun
Hopefully my several thoughts and word vomit make sense
Yep. That is the moment where, if you could say bike to Spain or Mexico (or a town that spoke it with some frequency,) you could make that knowledge more permanent. A lot of people have nowhere to use it and that knowledge gathers rust over time.
I just want to say that I've been learning an Asian language for over a decade and have retained almost all of it from infrequent immersion. I don't know how or why, but it sticks!
What I'm trying to say is that you shouldn't feel discouraged because you think it's meaningless if you're not jumping in with both feet every day. Rather, you're still making some progress even when dipping your toes in occasionally. Trust the process!