How to Learn a Foreign LanguageWhat You Really Need To Know

1
How to Learn a Foreign LanguageWhat You Really
Need To Know

• Dr. Michael A. Brookshaw
• Department of English and Foreign Languages
• Winston-Salem State University
• June 28, 2007

2
Goal

• To provide basic information necessary for a
  clear understanding of the true nature of
  learning a second language.

3
Quote

• A man who does not know a foreign language does
  not know his own.
• ---Goethe

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Goal of all Foreign Language Study

• To communicate with a native speaker of the
  language

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What is Language?

• Language, the principle means used by human
  beings to communicate with one another. Language
  is primarily spoken, although it can be
  transferred to other media, such as writing.
• MSN Encarta

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General Language Facts

• Over 6,800 Tongues
• 8 Countries account for more than half of all
  languages
• There are 832 languages in Papua New Guinea
• India has 15 official languages
• Over 1000 languages are spoken in Africa

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Most Widely Spoken Languages in the World

• 1. Chinese (Mandarin)
  1,075,000,000 
• 2. English
  514,000,000
• 3. Hindustani
  1496,000,000 
• 4. Spanish
  425,000,000 
• 5. Russian
  275,000,000 
• 6. Arabic
  256,000,000 
• 7. Bengali
  215,000,000 
• 8. Portuguese
  194,000,000 
• 9. Malay-Indonesian
  176,000,000
• 10. French
  129,000,000

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Rationale for Learning Another Language?

• Knowing another language brings opportunities
• Better knowledge of other peoples cultures
• Read and understand more
• Employment advantages
• The World is at Your Fingertips
• You become a Citizen of the World (Globalization)

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General Reasons People Learn a Second Language

• Personal
• Professional
• Social
• Educational

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What do People Generally Speak About?

• Family
• Business
• Personal Care
• Travel
• Food

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What is language really about?

• According to Ricardo Gonzalez it is about
  patterns, time expression. He notes
• There are 15 ways to express time
• A word must be repeated 15 times to be stored in
  long term memory a structure 60 times
• The Parts of Language Make the Whole
• Repetition is the Mother of all Learning

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Second Language Acquisition

• An understanding of second language acquisition
  can improve the ability of mainstream teachers to
  serve the culturally and linguistically diverse
  students in their classrooms (Fillmore Snow,
  2002 Hamayan, 1990). While significant
  professional development is necessary to gain a
  full understanding of second language acquisition
  theory, some key concepts can be quickly
  understood and applied in the classroom.
• Current theories of second language acquisition
  are based on years of research in a wide variety
  of fields, including linguistics, psychology,
  sociology, anthropology, and neurolinguistics
  (Freeman Freeman, 2001).

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How Languages are Learned

• Learning a Second Language Involves an
  Understanding of Second Language Acquisition and
  Includes
• How the First Language is Learned
• Theoretical Approaches to Second Language
  Learning
• Factors Affecting Second Language Learning
• Learner Language
• Second Language Teaching and Learning in the
  Classroom
• Myths and Facts about Language Learning

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Language Learning Myths

• Learning a language is fast and easy.
• Children learn languages better
• Adults are too old to learn a language
• Fluency is easily accomplished

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Why Spanish?

• The historical connection
• 4th largest Spanish Speaking population in U.S.
• 2000 mile border with Mexico
• Current demographic reality
• Continental reality of the Hispanic world
• Dissolving Borders Globalization

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The Spanish Speaking World400,000,000 speakers

• Venezuela, 21,000,000
• Colombia, 35,000,000
• Ecuador, 5,000,000
• Perú, 23,000,000
• Chile, 14,000,000
• Argentina, 34,000,000
• Uruguay,3,000,000

• Bolivia, 7,000,000
• México, 93,000,000
• Guatemala, 10,000,000
• El Salvador, 5,000,000
• Honduras, 5,000,000
• Nicaragua, 4,000,000

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The Spanish Speaking World400,000,000 speakers
(2)

• República Dominicana, 7,000,000
• Puerto Rico, 3,000,000
• Las Filipinas, 3,000,000
• Estados Unidos, 25,000,000
• Costa Rica, 3,000,000

• España, 39,000,000
• Guinea Ecuatorial, 500,000
• Cuba, 11,000,000
• Uruguay, 3,000,000
• Panamá, 2,000,000
• Paraguay, 5,000,000

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The Spanish You Already Know

• Mosquito
• Chocolate
• Banco
• Radio
• Discoteca
• Vitaminas

• presidente
• mamá
• animal
• especial
• constitución
• ángel

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More Spanish You Already Know

• Montana
• Nevada
• Colorado
• Arizona
• Florida
• California

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Spanish in the last 10 years(1)

• Surge in the Spanish population nationally
• Spanish is more of a necessity than a choice
• Spoken by 39 million Hispanics
• Not speaking Spanish can be a handicap
• There is nothing foreign about Spanish anymore
• Spanish dominates all other languages in the
  public schools

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Spanish in the last 10 years(2)

• The need in the workplace for Spanish is
  tremendous
• The president,himself, gives his radio address in
  Spanish
• Language and culture of Latin America have
  flooded the nation
• 83 of college students study Spanish
• Demographics demand that you learn Spanish

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Spanish Facts (1)

• The second language of the U.S.
• Hispanics are the largest minority
• The U.S. has the 4th largest Spanish population
  in the world.
• Hispanics are becoming politically and
  economically powerful.
• The U.S. is being Hispanized

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Spanish Facts (2)

• The U.S used to be Mexico until 1848
• The U.S. has a intimate history with all things
  Spanish.
• Hispanic language, art, culture have exploded.
• Our heritage is locked in Spanish
• The U.S. has always had Spanish influence

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What a Good Language Learner Needs to Have for a
Successful Experience

• Basic Understanding of and information about
  Language
• Positive Attitude about Second Language Learning
  Process
• A Desire to Communicate with Someone who Speaks a
  Language Different from your Own
• Commitment to the Language Learning process
• A Basic Language Foundation (words- 1500-2000)
• Appropriate Strategies and Techniques (method)
• Time to Learn and to Practice
• Memory Ability
• Realistic language goals and objectives

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What Can Learning a Second Language do for Me?

• Improve Analyzing Skills
• Enhance creativity
• Increase English Vocabulary
• Change Cultural Attitudes
• Augment Higher Order Thinking Skills
• Enhance Memory
• Improve Writing in English
• Improve Test Taking Abilities
• Enhance the Learning of the Native Language
  Culture
• Enhance Knowledge of Cultural Diversity

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A view on language learning

• Many of us have the experience of trying to
  learn another language and then giving up because
  it is too demanding, which translates into not
  making the progress we expect.
• This is why you have an enormous advantage as
  soon as you realize that learning a language is
  not straight-forward. This understanding means
  that you can actually start to learn it without
  being discouraged when your progress is slower
  than you want it to be. You can improve because
  you are in the position to set yourself realistic
  and achievable goals, and you can reach these
  precisely because they are realistic.
• Learning a language is a long term occupation and
  you have to return again and again to words,
  expressions and grammar that you have already
  learned and then forgotten. It is true that there
  are exceptional individuals who soak up new
  languages easily as adults, but they are in a
  tiny minority.
• www.downloadalanguage.com

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The Tongue-Tied AmericanCongressman Paul Simon,
1980

• The United States has fallen far behind other
  nations in foreign language skills and this
  decline creates certain problems and challenges.
• At every port of entry into the United States we
  should erect a sign
• -WELCOME TO THE UNITED STATES-
• WE CANNOT SPEAK YOUR LANGUAGE

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John Naisbitt (1982)Megatrends

• Thinking Globally
• For Americans, it is self evident that this is
  the time to learn another language--and learn it
  well. The size, proximity, and economic promises
  of Latin America make Spanish an attractive
  choice. To be really successful, you will have
  to be trilingual fluent in English, Spanish,
  and computer.
• --p.78

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Review

• Goal Basic Information on Language learning
• Definition of Language
• General Language Facts
• Rationale for Language Learning
• The Nature of Language
• Second Language Acquisition
• Language Myths
• The Reality of the Spanish-Speaking World
• Traits of a Good Language Learner
• Benefits of Learning a Second Language

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Final Quotes

• Education is the most powerful weapon which you
  can use to change the world.
• -Nelson Mandela
• The illiterate of the 21st century will not be
  those who cannot read and write, but those who
  cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.
• -Alvin Toffler
• We must be the change we wish to see.
• -Gandhi