Questions tagged [learning-methods]
For questions about methods, techniques, and/or practices that assist in learning another language
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0answers
11 views
Should I mix different dialects on minimal pairs deck?
After posting this question, I investigated why I don't understand the sound difference, and I found out that one of the reasons must be the different dialects that exist in the deck. I installed the ...
3
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0answers
23 views
How can you understand the pronunciation differences if you don't understand them even on minimal pairs training?
The minimal pair training seems to be the best way for adults to distinguish the sound difference on a foreign language that doesn't exist in his/her native language. According to Fluent:
But it’s ...
3
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1answer
50 views
Learning japanese, 1 month progress (Tokyo)
I am a Japanese Language student here in Tokyo. I don't know if I'll get a downvote for this question, but might as well try. I've been studying Japanese for about a month now here in Japan using a ...
5
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0answers
35 views
What is the proper etiquette for a nonnative speaker who wants to practice Mandarin at a Chinese supermarket in the US?
There is a Chinese supermarket in the US I often shop at. I often hear the staff speaking Mandarin or Cantonese, and occasionally Hakka or Fujianese, amongst themselves and to Chinese customers. I can ...
3
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1answer
39 views
How should I decide the order of learning each of languages if you learn all of them in the end?
I wonder if you will have learned multiple languages in the end, the order of learning each of them has any influence and if it does, what is the most effective order to learn.
For example, suppose ...
2
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0answers
18 views
How can I find an appropriate image for a word on SRS?
I'm writing a script that converts my list of bookmarked words into SRS, with audio and image on it. Now, I'm writing a script to fetch an image from Google Image, but the images I got are mostly ...
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0answers
7 views
Should the answers on SRS also be the target language?
I bookmarked words I didn't know while reading texts in a foreign language, and then created my own Anki deck from the list of bookmarked words. Originally I used English as the answer (translation) ...
4
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1answer
43 views
Does one's target level make a difference?
Learning the script for Arabic, Greek, Russian, etc. seems too expensive an investment if one wants to learn just a little of the language (say A1 in the CEFRL). Likewise grammar beyond the very ...
4
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1answer
60 views
How can I make sure my pronunciation based on IPA is correct?
I have read this question and answers titled "How can I learn IPA?" and now start to (finally) learn IPA and phonetics.
However, while the question asks about the way to learn the IPA, which focuses ...
3
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2answers
81 views
How can I get over lack of learning resources in “minor languages”
Sometimes I want to learn a language but give up due to the lack of resources available. These languages tend to be the ones that very few people learn using English.
In my opinion, one of the core ...
7
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1answer
90 views
How to overcome limitations of memory palace?
I frequently use the loci method (memory palace) to learn vocabulary, but I find that after 150-200 words my house is full with words/images and there is no space left.
I know of people who can ...
4
votes
1answer
61 views
Does learning a new language while in the target country instead of learning the current language reach the goal of acquiring both faster in the end?
Here is the situation:
I have now been learning French for two months.
I will start to stay in South Korea for one month.
After staying in Korea, I'll stay in France and attend language school for ...
5
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2answers
148 views
Are paper flash cards better for retention than digital flash cards (both self made)?
Language Learning Stack Exchange currently has sixteen questions about flash-cards, fifteen questions about anki and twenty questions about spaced-repetition. There is no doubt that spaced repetition ...
4
votes
3answers
112 views
How to get most language learning benefits from frequent casual conversations with natives?
I know several languages on various levels:
Polish native
English C1-C2
German B2-C1
Russian B1
Spanish B1
I have tons of opportunities to speak to natives:
English - quite a few people at work (...
6
votes
1answer
118 views
What is the better way for structure the learning of 5 languages in 1 year and 6 months?
It's really this, I have a dream to speak Japanese, Korean, Standard Chinese, French and Russian. I know it is hard and very difficult to learn five language at the same time.
Right now, this is my ...
4
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0answers
38 views
Best way to improve your ability in a language post A-Level (Exams at age 18)
It is fairly clear how to get your standard of language up to an A-level standard (exams taken at age 18 in the uk) due to clear syllabi and textbooks up to this standard. However, I find that past ...
6
votes
2answers
98 views
kannada learning - beginner's way
I am a native Marathi (Maharashtra, India) speaker and I wish to learn Kannada.
These 2 languages are totally different except for a few words in common.
To start with, I would like to learn basic ...
2
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0answers
19 views
What is the easy and effective way to learn in tandem live, when speaker A has B1 and speaker B barely has A1 in the language of A speaker?
I learn German (~B1), my friend learns Russian (~A1, just a little bit of the vocabulary and ability to pronounce the text). Mainly we communicate through English. Next couple weeks we live together, ...
5
votes
1answer
53 views
Do gender differences affect language learning strategies?
As far as I know, there have been many discussions and a considerable amount of research about differences in learning between boys and girls, or men and women. See for example:
Gender differences in ...
6
votes
1answer
51 views
Is it a good idea to practice American English by listening to radio from the USA?
While I was looking for a better way to practice American English I found a website, where you can find radio channels from all over the world. Do you think it is a good idea to practice your ...
3
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0answers
51 views
Can adults learn grammar like 5 or 6 year old kids?
As the title said. Learning a language is complicated, but children can easily pick up any languages around them. Can adults learn grammar like toddlers? and How?
2
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0answers
40 views
how can I structure my plan learning korean?
I am not a native speaker of Korean and not-native speaker English. I want to make a plan for learning Korean well and maybe arrive to B2 in July 2019.
I do not have a lot time because I get up 6 Am, ...
5
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0answers
24 views
Resources for learning the Silbo Gomero (Gomeran Whistle)
Here's a fascinating video on the Silbo Gomero, or whistled tongue of the island of Gomera in the Canary Islands of Spain. Today, it's essentially used as an encoding of Spanish that can be carried ...
5
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0answers
35 views
Coming from Spanish, where do I start learning English?
Is there any manual or website that I recommend to start learning English?
Honestly, with my mother tongue (Spanish) I have forgotten and sometimes left without understanding, some concepts that are ...
2
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3answers
118 views
What are the effective ways to learn and remember any word. And use that in the right way
I am having trouble with picking the right word for the context that I am talking about. To get rid of the problem I practiced to find all the forms of any word that I encountered ever through books, ...
7
votes
2answers
167 views
Is shadowing really a technique for interpreter trainees?
Shadowing is a technique for improving pronunciation popularised by the polyglot Alexander Arguelles. There are many YouTube videos about the technique; most of them don't demonstrate shadowing in the ...
9
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0answers
53 views
Learn alphabet by replacing letters in native text
I've read before somewhere about a way to quickly learn how to read a foreign alphabet. You take an unfamiliar letter and put it in English words where the sound of that letter makes sense. That ...
4
votes
1answer
59 views
How many Hanzi (Chinese characters) are theoretically possible to learn per day using Heisig's RTH?
I am currently learning three new Chinese characters per day using Heisig's Remembering the Simplified Hanzi (1 and 2) combined with Anki. This leisurely pace suits me because Chinese is not my top ...
4
votes
1answer
108 views
Question about Leitner box. How many cards to study from levels other than 1?
I am trying to learn Tagalog. I have made around 1500 flash cards and I am about to start using the Leitner box.
If I choose to learn 10 new words every day (from level 1) when I am in the ...
6
votes
1answer
44 views
Learning Tahitian, having issues with comprehension
I'm taking a class at my school in Tahitian, it is the beginning level. However, I am having trouble with understanding and memorizing the words. I am a native English speaker and know Mandarin to a ...
6
votes
1answer
82 views
How does language learning in a classroom affect self-learning?
Circumstances require me to take a ~3 month break from my formal/classroom/directed language studies soon. Prior to studying my L2* under a teacher I was learning independently. How will my classroom ...
6
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0answers
56 views
What sequences of learning kanji characters, their readings, meanings, and related vocabulary tend toward longest retention?
In Japanese, many words can be written both with just the kana (phonetically) and with the kanji (Chinese characters).
For example, the character 年 (ねん - "nen") means "year". In other vocabulary it ...
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0answers
54 views
What are general cognitive principles that could explain why Heisig's method works?
This is a follow up to this question on Remembering the Kana.
James Heisig is author of a famous series of books involving learning Chinese and Japanese characters. These books are
Remembering the ...
5
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0answers
20 views
About Inductive-Contextual method [duplicate]
I am currently reading Lingva Latina per se illustrata, by Oerberg. It follows the Inductive-Contextual method, which I find quite pleasant and effective. I have not found, however, books using this ...
9
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3answers
172 views
Should I learn English from the UK if am I learning English from USA?
I'm learning still English and in some blogs and friends always tell me that I should I learn English from the UK and American at the same time, but for me it is something hard to learn both ways of ...
7
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1answer
62 views
Differences in language learning abilities and strategies between a 30 year old and a 70 year old?
This is a question about language learning for different ages, specifically people in the second quarter of their life versus someone in the fourth quarter of their life (assume average life span of ...
3
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0answers
32 views
In Anki, do you have any effective methods for learning words with multiple meanings? [duplicate]
I have been learning English for over a decade now, and my ultimate goal is to reach level C2. With that in mind, I use Anki as my base of vocabulary.
A very specific problem has been haunting me ...
7
votes
1answer
44 views
What is the popularity of using colored (e.g. red) transparencies to obscure words in a language book?
When I was in Japan twenty years ago, I noticed that high school students would sometimes study English from special books with black and red printing inside. The book would come with a red-colored ...
5
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1answer
83 views
Similar Languages to South-Slavic/Balkan
I am going to be travelling through the western Balkans (specifically Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo, Macedonia and Albania) and would like to learn some of the spoken ...
8
votes
1answer
108 views
How can I sound more 'native'?
I'm fluent in French and Russian - by which I mean that I don't have any trouble reading novels and can easily converse in either without making grammatical errors or feeling uncomfortable - and have ...
5
votes
1answer
73 views
Is thinking speech just in brain less effective than speaking aloud, to improve speaking skills?
I'm struggling with improving speaking right now, which is far inferior to my reading and writing skills. The language is Mandarin Chinese and I live in China and attend language school.
But the ...
6
votes
1answer
122 views
Japanese – how to learn it without using SRS?
I hate SRS (spaced repetition system), even though I have used it for more than ten years for various languages. I can’t stand the sight of it anymore, yet, I know of no better alternative for a ...
9
votes
3answers
145 views
Does living in a country where the language is spoken improve the language skill that much?
It seems quite common among language learners that living in a country where the language you learn is spoken is a very effective way to improve the language skill (especially speaking).
However, ...
4
votes
1answer
57 views
How does flow relate to language competency? Can it be taught/learned?
Psychological flow is kind of like going on autopilot, or
being completely immersed in an activity, and is also related to high
performance levels. I was reading about flow in music, but it reminded
...
8
votes
1answer
109 views
Studies on average time by full immersion in 2nd+ language to become conversant?
Are there any studies that have noted some "average"1 length of time for a brand new 2nd (or 3rd, etc.) language learner fully immersed in a culture to pick up a new language to a level of at least ...
3
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2answers
102 views
Can I learn a language with a child?
I am living with my brother, his wife, and their one year old daughter (my niece). They are attempting to raise their daughter bilingual in two languages, Language A and Language B. Language A is the ...
4
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1answer
66 views
Should I put more focus on the subtitle or the content when watching a movie to improve the listening skill?
I tried watching a few Chinese movie to improve my listening skill, but I wonder whether I should put more focus on following the subtitle or the content of the movie.
When I put more focus on ...
5
votes
2answers
116 views
Approach to multiple language learning goal for a multilingual family
I'm going to live in Japan with my future wife.
She is L1 (first language) korean speaker but lived in Japan for over 10 years making Japanese her L2 (second language).
My own L1 language is German ...
4
votes
1answer
68 views
What advantages and disadvantages does intensive classes in the country of the language have over weekly lessons in my own country?
At my Japanese school in Sydney, I've seen an ad for 2+ week summer course in Fukuoka, Japan. The discounted price for the course is 88 thousand yen for 30 hours of lessons, which is roughly ...
9
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4answers
120 views
What are some strategies for effectively studying two unrelated languages simultaneously?
We already have a few questions on this site asking about learning multiple related languages, however, what about learning multiple unrelated languages?
I'm a (mostly self-taught) student of Spanish ...
