Language Learning

Notes on Language Learning - Basics

Thor May

When you learn a language you must manage these things:

a) Your mental state :You have to prepare your mind and your feelings to communicate in a different language. Sometimes your intuition is more help for this than organized practice. Sometimes it is more effective to focus on “getting the meaning across somehow” than worrying too much about rules. (Schools are not good at teaching you this !)

b) Your ability to express content : You need to know the right words and phrases for stating your meaning appropriately.

c) Your ability to organize language : You need to know how to organize the grammar of phrases, sentences and paragraphs. You need to do this without thinking about it (like riding a bicycle: procedural memory) rather than trying to remember grammar book rules (declarative memory).

d) Your ability to manage the sound system of the language (phonology) : this means both the phonemes (vowels and consonants -> segmental phonology) and the musical patterns of speech (stress & intonation -> non-segmental phonology).

e) Your control of the social rules of speaking -> your words, expressions and body language must be right for the social situation (register control), and adjust to the listener’s needs. These rules are different in each culture.