What Babbel & Duolingo DON'T Teach You about Foreign Languages
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- Опубліковано 5 вер 2024
- You have the app, you have been practicing for months, but you aren't sure if all of those days of practicing your Spanish or French will pay off. Well here are some of the most common problems people have when they try to speak a foreign language abroad.
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When I was in France, I'd ask people to please repeat more slowly. They were happy to repeat, but just as fast as the first time LOL. I eventually got used to it.
Yup. "Plus lentement, s'il vous plait" cuts no ice at all :-)
I call it machine guy French. It’s hard to defending against. I find that I’m sampling, picking up about 20% of the words and inferring the rest from the nature of the discussion!
I appreciated the people who would understand and slow down. Not dumbed down, just slower. It takes a while to get used to the speed at which people normally speak.
I was an English language teacher for 9 years, I've taught myself 2 languages to fluency, visited 71 countries and lived in 5. Personally, if you're a tourist you just need about 50 phrases: numbers, directions, phrases to speak to cashiers and basic 'about me' q&a. If you want to get to A2, B1 you really need to be focusing on some basic grammar and high frequency words. Imho, apps do a horrendous job at teaching useful words and phrases and too few language courses are focused on the words and phrases you will need.
WOW! That's fabulous!
Thank you. This was the conclusion I came to a few months ago before my first trip to Italy. I bought a 3 month subscription to Rosetta Stone, the online version for TRAVEL. It wasn't until the 4th week (out of 6 weeks worth of online classes) before they mentioned how to ask, "where is the bathroom?". Such a waste of money and time. I wish I had just taught myself phrases and words on my own. I ended up using my Google Translate app when we had rental car trouble. Not once did I need to know how to say, "they have flowers, we have flowers, she has flowers, he has flowers".
I learned English and French at regular school... Not good. Just basic to read and write. Forget speaking and listening.
But Dutch, I learned when I moved to Belgium. And it's tailored to the needs of people moving into the country. Directions, doctors appointments, shopping, renting, etc. It's only when you reach higher levels that you go into broader subjects for chit-chat. Very useful. And there's a separation between speaking, listening, reading and writing.
Is there an app you can recommend that does teach useful words and phrases? I've tried Duolingo and Busuu. At this early stage, I am interested in 'tourist level' communication in French. Thanks!
@@mffmoniz2948 Where are you from originally?
My awesome Italian language teacher, Manu, at Italy Made Easy, says a lot of great stuff. One of which is, especially as a beginner, to focus on pronunciation. If you pronounce well and your grammar is bad you will still be understood. If your grammar is good but they can't understand your pronunciation, you will probably NOT be understood. 🤩
Thanks for sharing. I love Duolingo. However, it can’t be the only way someone learns a language.
Try to get into one of those sites where you have a real person talking to you. Even if you only do that like once a week it helps a lot.
@@peterpain6625 I agree with both of you. I use Italki.
def not. Try a mix of methods. At least for me with Portuguese, I'm using Pimsleur for Speech and some grammar every day, and working on a grammar book a few times a week. Also, try to visit an ethnic restaurant that will likely have speakers of that language. good luck ;)
I taught English in Japan back in the 90s and prior to going there, I took a couple of years of college level Japanese. I thought I knew the language but I kept having people say “I understood you but we would say…” I came to the realization that written Japanese was not the same as spoken Japanese! I started watching lots of TV and let go of my fear of making mistakes and my Japanese rapidly improved.
I've lived in Missouri for about a year (a long time ago). During my year the people from Missouri first asked if I came from England. As time past by they placed me in countries which came closer and closer to Missouri. People from out of state asked me if I came from Missouri. I thought that was pretty funny. Thanks for the interesting vlog. Love from the Netherlands.
Ben je nederlands?
My German has never been very good. But I found that I could hold basic conversations if the people I was talking to worked with me. Had a much harder time when the other person didn't account for my weak German skills. But, I also found that I understood other people, or even, say, the news on the radio, if I didn't try to catch - and translate - every word. If I tried that, I'd fall hopelessly behind. And when speaking, if I tried to be perfect, like in front of a teacher in German class, or treated each sentence like a math equation to be solved, I'd never be able to complete a thought. And finally, I realized I didn't have always to speak in complete sentences. Hell, I don't always do that in English. Anyway, I managed to a poiint that I always felt so much more comfortable in Germany than other countries on the continent because I knew I could understand, and make myself understood to a much greater degree in German than any other foreign language.
Nice video!
Another language hiccup that’s OK (has happened to me a few times): If you polish your accent and grasp of basic grammar well enough to “fool” someone into thinking you’re a fluent speaker, only to have to jump in when they speed up to say wait, I’m more of an intermediate speaker and I’m not following everything.” It’s not a problem and nobody is likely to be annoyed.
I used Duolingo daily for 1.5 years before travelling to Germany and Switzerland, I instantly realised I could not reply when someone spoke German back to me. Restaurant menus and street signs and train stations were really easy to understand but Duolingo teaches you to read and learn words but not to have conversations, that's why it's flawed.
I speak Spanish, but there are places I visit I cannot understand the locals at all, although they tell me they understand me pretty well
Same here. Some speak either on "fast forward" or some strange accent i can't quite grasp.
@@peterpain6625I've played Spanish spoken in Spain & Mexico for people and they did not know what language it was when from Spain. It's truly so different to our non Spanish speaking ears
@@TingTingalingy It is what I perceive as a lack of annunciation and intonation that gets me. My brain tells me that what I hear sounds more vowel sounds that have a soft emphasis on the beginnings and endings of words, so it's very hard for me to understand. I'll catch maybe 50% of key words & then use context clues to stitch them together. This isn't a diss against the beautiful peoples of different countries. This is a disconnect on my part on how I process what they say.
I studied "high German" in high school and College. My Husband is also German. I get my best practice at the local German Club, watching Fussball and having a beer.
Local German clubs are virtually non-existent in 99% of the world, including German heavy enclaves in USA
When I was speaking other languages I was always using my English tongue but my friend suggested I use my Spanish tongue instead and it worked like a charm to pronounce things
My kid learns Dutch at school but we speak Portuguese at home.
The Dutch gets in the way when she tries to read in our native Portuguese, because she first tries to apply the sounds the dutch way, and for lots of words, that doesn't work.
I agree. I'm quite good at English but the first couple of times I visited southern USA i had to ask people to repeat all the time. But today after about 20 visits, I'm beginning to get the hang of it. I actually managed to get through a 30 munute interview at a local radiostation without asking the host to repeat a question a single time 😄
Best way to combat the slang is to befriend the people and they will teach it to you. Have a strong foundation in the language first. You will open so many doors.
@@jflatley38 Tbh, I don’t really bother with slang in a target language. If I learn a slang word passively, fine, but I won’t use it actively myself. And … I’ll try to say this without sounding like a terrible snob … the sort of people I want to get to know aren’t those who constantly use slang as a verbal crutch.
@@StamfordBridge I agree. It can even insult people if you use some slang words. Stick to the real language.
@@hassanalihusseini1717 Very true. Even more so with curse words. Some new language learners are eager to use curse words to sound cool, but it’s like shooting off a gun before you learn to handle it.
All of this is true…but it goes to show that you can’t rely on the apps alone you have to implement other strategies like practicing with people from these other countries help your ears to adjust.
I was in Latvia last Summer I was in a store with my friend. We brought a nesting doll there and I said "Paldies" which means thank you and the woman at the store had such a big smile on her face. I know Latvians don't really show emotion that often so it really stood out to me. I always try to learn some basic phrases. Hello, goodbye, thank you, Where is? the bill.
Great tips! The speed is always what throws me off when I was working to learn enough French to visit, people always seem happy that one is trying. Finland is next on my wish list and I've started working to learn. Kiitos!
When you watch language videos: 1) opt for "street" versions. Most people you'll encounter won't speak formal versions.
2) watch the country...Brazilian Portuguese is not continental Portugal Portuguese
3) Quebeqois is not European French....etc.
Language apps teach listening and reading more than speaking and writing, I think. They're helpful in some ways, but limited in others. I find Duolingo to be a good, free introduction to a language and then a supplement to classes, books, modules, etc.
Hi Wolter from Detroit Michigan my brother just retired and moved to mazalan Mexico and loves it I’m sure it will be fun learning Spanish he got tired of cold Michigan weather.
His name is Mark
People think Latin, Greek, and German have a lot of cases. They need to try Finnish for cases.
That's right, German has an undeserved reputation for being very difficult, it has only four cases. Russian has six, Lithuanian and Latvian seven, and Hungarian 18 (!).
I think it depends on what you consider a case. And if the definition of case extends to 18 then it’s a faulty definition. it would be as if to the store, from the store, on the store were all different cases . Sometimes it’s a simple post, positional particle that’s added, sometimes with vowel agreement, sometimes without.
Things can get needlessly complicated. If you look at a Latin grammar, they will specify may be 10 different ablatives eight different datives or whatever it is. And a bad teacher will require students to remember the names of the different types of dative. But who cares? Do you know that in certain cases you use the dative and it can become second nature.
So are Budapestbe, Budapestre, Budapestban. Budapestböl really substantially different cases? Looking online I see that there are grammarians name all of them, but frankly, strikes me as a little nutty and over complicating. There you go.
Dont compare Finnish or Hungarian cases -- which are highly regular -- with flective case endings in IE languages
It has a reputation as being one of the most difficult European languages, which is deserved
@@alansmith4748
It really depends if you’ve learned (or are a native speaker) of an Ural-Altaic language (or Korean or Japanese). A friend from Los Angeles, Korean-American, growing up with both languages ,moved to Hungary and got to fluency in Hungarian in six months stayed for years
For me, the Celtic languages with initial letter transmutations were impossible. Started trying w Welsh. Hard. And I learned Mandarin (two years and then an intensive six months in Beijing) .
I use Duolingo to learn vocabulary. Fluency is only going to come in frequent conversation and exposure. Watch foreign language TV or listen to music to get more familiar if you are not in conversation. If I can pick out words, managing the rest is broken but at least comprehensible.
These are great tips, thank you! And I love your new intro!
Thank you. We are trying out some new edits. I appreciate the heads up and input.
Im currently learning Italian ready for a trip in August. Using Duolingo, I am doing ok but I'm always apprehensive that they will respond thinking I'm a fluent speaker haha.
I'm also learning Italian on Duolingo and Coffee Break Italian is a really good resource to try as well. It's very conversational and I really recommend it for that simulated "call and response" speaking practice that Duolingo doesn't have as much. Have fun on your trip!
@jo_gaojian oh thanks. Ill take a look at Coffee Break Italian. I find with Duolingo im very good at translating text but it moves on so quickly to the next lesson and also teaches stuff not really relevant, such as haunted hotels and ghosts haha.
I live in Italy and speak fluent Italian, but the problem is every region has it's own dialect.I live near Milan and can understand a lot of the dialect from there,but if I go 40kms to Bergamo,I haven't a clue what they're saying when they speak Bergamasco.
@@anthonyhind1308 I am Italian born and bred and cannot understand most local dialects either.
@@LOKI77able Ha, ha, I had the same response from Austrian friends when I complained about that some dialects where hard to understand. "No worry, even we Austrians don´t understand all the dialects!" :)
Really comforting message. I've been learning Russian using one of those apps mentioned and things have seemingly gone pretty well. Then I've tried to talk a little Russian with some Ukrainians and, well, realized there's quite a lot to improve, so to say.
The first time I visited my German wife's grandmother and uncle everyone spoke Hochdeutsch and I was able to communicate The next time I went back they were more relaxed and switched to dialect and I had no clue what was going on.
Oh, in Belgium and Netherlands too. Older folks are from another world.
I like how apps will have you learn the word for something like “moon” before you learn the term for something like “credit card”
Great advice. Language learning is a companion to world travel. Be curious, respectful, and confident! You will go far
Spot on, Mark!
Nothing compares to human-to-human language learning. I even got a better understanding of English grammar when I was in Mexico studying Spanish!
My Spanish teachers were from Barcelona. I used the vosotros form in Mexico and people thought I was French.
Mr. Worldwide🌎😎
Perhaps they thought you actually were from French Guiana?
For me Duolingo is great because I’m a visual learner and reading it makes all the difference to me! I started Duo after using Pimesleur, where for years I got stuck on sounds-seeing them really helped. I also love Rosetta Stone, which feels like being tossed to the wolves and just figuring it out! Kinda like when I go the country I’m learning-Greece. I have a blast with it but I’ll admit I’ve been at it for years and I feel like I’ve advanced to the level of a slow four year old, lol!
Thats a great video, thank you Mark ! You have such a wonderful positive energy and a beautiful family, and i really enjoy your channel.
I am from the german part in Switzerland, and even me, as a fluent swiss german speaker, has sometimes problems to understand the dialect from the Valais and from the Graubünden. People from Southern Germany will be mostly okay with the "normal" dialects like from Berne (where I live), but people from Northern Germany will understand nothing.
Im am fluent in speaking and understanding French (and have no accent), as I spent the two first years of school in the French part of Switzerland. I however have the dictionary of a child, so speaking about polititics, religion and other things like that, is difficult (but I understand everything).
Englisch is not a first language, but I am fluent in it (with an accent), and I read all books in Englisch. The only times I might struggle, is when I really am tired, and also the only person in a group of native Englisch speakers. I will still understand everything, but it will be very tyring, and I might miss a joke or an innuendo.
Spanish is okay, certainly not fluent, but enough to get by and have simple conversations. Italian I never took a single lesson, but I can understand most of it, as its very similar to French. I wish, that my mandarin, which was once quite good, would be better. But thats a language that if you dont use it, is really difficult to keep (at least it is for me).
One of the best things about Wolters World and Mark Wolters is not only is he book smart, but he's also emotionally smart and street smart too -- a rare threesome that you don't see to often 😂
hell yeah. cool to see some more stuff in finland. been learning finnish since january
Duolingo and Babbel are a good first step to "break the ice" i guess. It really helps if you got someone to actually talk to in the language you learn. Even if it's only 30min or an hour to learn speed, cadence and the little quirks of pronouncing some words. Just try people. Open your mouths and start using what you learned. Fail. Laugh it off. Try again better. You'll get there. Smiling and the phrase "Sorry, that wasn't quite right was it?!" in any language helps ;)
Great video. Thanks for sharing! Hope you and your family stay safe and healthy whereever you travel wherever you travel.
I agree with your short video, you really don't need the language if you have English but it has helped me out of a sticky situation on at least one occasion depending on the destination. Even just knowing a bit helped me navigate a purchase, etc. in Eastern Europe.
Great timing on this video! I just dropped my “speaking in 7 languages” video on my channel, looking to hearing your thoughts on language learning!🤘
I started learning Spanish in elementary school (public school) with numbers, colors and common phrases. I then took 4 years of Spanish in HS, including Spanish literature, but where I really learned how to converse was in college in a total immersion course. From the moment I stepped in the door I was only allowed to speak Spanish.
Now I'm trying to learn French. I have been able to learn common phrases to be polite as well as numbers (all through UA-cam)for monetary reasons and that served me well on my multiple trips to Paris, but as you mentioned apps and UA-cam do not allow me to have conversations. I am going to try and enroll in a college course for that.
I enjoyed this video. Interesting points were brought up. There are so many dialects for each language.😊❤
You are sooooo engaging.
I would love a friend like you mr Bear.
You look fantastic. Keep doing what you're doing!
I see where a lot of ppl complain about Duolingo but for me it is an invaluable tool. It is not perfect but I am so happy to be learning Spanish. It is teaching the basics of words and sentences structure but I use it along with my two other programs. Independently, neither will get the job done, but together I’m pretty proud of my progress. I also know that as I become more proficient I will need to change to a more in-depth program. Whatever it takes, and whatever works for you. The main thing I’ve discovered is I learn more if it’s fun. Good luck fellow language learners. 😊
Language apps are like map apps: they can be useful for short term survival, getting from point A to point B. Be mindful of your surroundings and lower your expectations.
Learning every new language is like reprogramming your mind. I have managed to learn 4 languages to a degree of more or less fluency and I am learning 2 additional languages, but regarding the first ones the situation differs: I took for several years German lessons in the Goethe Zentrum, up to the C1 level and reinforced that with Duolingo, but is of course much easier (as Spanish is my mother language) for me to listen to (while understanding) and speak French or Italian, in the case of Italian even when they speak fast.
Anyway, last year, when I went to a conference in Bonn, outside the conference I tried to speak as much German as possible during the first few days, but it was complicated due to the fact that I am very shy, and therefore I stumbled a bit with it. So people in the end started talking to me in English or even Spanish, which made me feel frustrated after so many years of learning it, besides the fact that I do love the language. But that rough start is understandable, since even in my mother language it is quite difficult for me to make me understood, I don't even have an accent like from the country I'm from. But then, in the last days, and especially during a hike I made around the towns of Bacharach and Oberwesel, I had the chance to have more substantial conversations in German, even in a winery it was the only way to go, due to the fact that they spoke no English, after that I felt like a champion. I think that if I got back to Germany (which I'm really looking for) I'd maybe have a faster progress, after -like we say in Costa Rica- that first "jumping into the water", language-wise.
So, in short, don't feel as a loser if you can't get fast to the point of fluency you wish you had. Just try it and you will be improving as days (and even better, weeks or months) go by.
0:59 Talking at people rather than talking with them. That sounds a lot like a certain gentleman in high office who uses cue cards prepared by his staff😂🤣
I saw at 8:09 in the clip, that they have an other way of Swedish in Finland (minority language in the country). "Parkering tillåten utan betalning för fordon med stadsstyrelsens lov". It´s understandable, but not the same swedish as in Sweden. That was funny to read.
Having taught English in Japan for many years the most important point I try to make with my students is that communication is usually an imperfect, messy process. You will make mistakes and you'll probably be embarrassed sometimes. But success isn't measured in perfection. It's measured in having the confidence to make those mistakes and risk being embarrased in order to get the job done to the best of your ability in that moment. I think the only way to learn and improve is to embrace and enjoy the mess, risk and chaos...
And some words might be a bad word in another country that speaks the same language. My godmother is Colombian, and her new in law is Mexican. They had a meeting to figure out what words are fine in Colombian Spanish, but are rude in Mexico, and vice versa.
What are the biggest cultural differences between Mexico and Colombia, in your experience?
I have never been to either one. I’m talking about certain words. Unfortunately I don’t have any examples. I do recall one of my Spanish teachers pointing out that Latin American countries are a bit like English countries in the sense that a word that means pool (swimming pool) in Argentina might be a different word in Panama. If you were trying to explain a swimming pool but don’t know the word for it in the specific country you’re in, the locals might be confused.
Duolingo and Babbel have their place in the study of a language not one’s own, as do the standard classroom language class, one-on-one tutoring, small group classes, on-line classes, apps, listening to music, watching movies and tv, etc. They are all “tools” to an end. To what end do you want to “study” a foreign language? Do you want to be able to communicate on a basic level in certain situations when on vacation? The aforementioned will help. If you just want to wing it, there’s always Google translate. If you want to “acquire” a language, you have to study it, use it, eat, drink and live it. And when you sleep and start to dream in that language, you are getting there. It’s called immersion. You will make mistakes along the way, a lot of them. It’s just part of the show in which every language learner has/has had a role. Whatever your language goals, enjoy the ride to attaining them. It’s worth it.
I remember calling a friend from Turkey who I’d met in the US. I called him one day and his brother answered. My friend wasn’t home but his brother suggested that I “check him by his handy” - British-English with a Turkish accent was seriously confusing.
Was trying to learn hungarian on duolingo and it to me wasnt trying to teach me to talk to people and get by. It was more teaching me what boy and girl was. Like when will i use that when talking to the locals 😅😅
I'm currently learning Portugese 🙈
I taught myself Thai by immersion. Sitting in crowds of Thais and just listening.
Just how fluent in English are most "service employees" in Thailand?
Somehow, two or three drinks help me speak a foreign language more fluently.
I keep an English grammar book next to the Italian grammar book.
Hey Mark, awesome video
Great video! Thank you!
I am North American. I was warned that Spanish speakers talk REALLY fast. And it's true. However, when I spent some time in London, it took me 3 days to get used to the speed at which they spoke English, not to mention the many different accents. Occasionally someone (usually a clerk) would get irritated at me for asking for repeats (in my own language!), but most of the time I would get chuckles and they would slow down for us drawling Americans. Speech wasn't so rapid outside of London. It was all quite entertaining for me.
Great video. Thanks.
It´s +20C (68 Fahrenheit) in Turku @this video posted (20.7.2024).
Lucky for me that I do speak Spanish and some German....And French...Quebec style..
2:35 "Interpreting for the neds, Rab McGlinchy"
Everyone messes up at some point, regardless of how good they'd normally be - I think it's a case of use what you've been taught and try to improve the next time ... the efforts are always appreciated!
great vid
Mark touches on it here, but in my experience the number one thing is people convincing themselves that if they can’t speak perfectly they won’t speak at all. So much of language acquisition is learning by doing.
The channel Asian Boss has several videos on the topic. They speak with Japanese and Korean people who had twelve years of English classes and still can’t speak the language. The interviewees often said their schools approach a foreign language like a math problem: memorize the rules and apply them a certain way to get _the_ right answer. If and when the student does try to use their English they get so caught up in composing the perfect sentence that they freeze.
4:13 - Paul Harvey talked like that. So does William Shatner. 😊
I like your video
I learned Italian years ago (like 30-something....) and spoke it well but of course lost a lot of it BUT I understand more than I can say. I figured I would brush up on my Italian with duolingo. However, Duolingo is often flat out incorrect or they simply insert new words but don't tell you how they conjugated them. When I have to choose words out of a list, I can easily make the sentence but if I had to find the words myself, I couldn't. I do try to speak there and even when I KNOW it's wrong, I just say it. (it still infuriates me...) I can't stress enough: once you learn a language well, use it. Talk to yourself 🤣watch TV shows in that language, read books (even children's books) and never stop speaking it. Ever. I made that mistake and it cost me.
@gumerzambrano was totally on it. Try reading books written in your target language with the target accent aloud. It helps you to improve your pronunciation, because your inner monologue is great, but your mouth isn’t so quick to get it right.
Yep, just get the rough idea. You can go far just getting the context.
Well done on the weight loss
You are the best.
What about Rosetta Stone? I've had better luck remembering things I've learned from that in a month than using Duo Lingo for a year.
The default for Duolingo is teach people how to speak informally. I would prefer the opposite default, and even give users options, like let them learn informal "x" % of the time, vs formal "y" % of the time.
Lol you are spot on, I'm german and English is my second language, my daughter tried to learn with the apps German and she thought she was doing so well, then I talked with her I did not use slang just high german and she was lost😂, but I am told all the time that I do NOT have a german accent 😊 even though I came to the usa as an adult
ありがとぎじあます! Maraming salamat!
How many types of english do you think there is in 'merica? Lots. When I travelled throughout Europe my spanish helped me everywhere but Spain. Language can be useful or a hindrance. Depends on the person. Fun vid as always.
Language can vary within the same country. People in Barcelona speak a different language than they do in Madrid. Your high school Spanish doesn't work there.
You also learn that you have a different personality in a different language. I am much more formal in Spanish than I am in English,and people know me that way…..
Here’s a few tips. First off, if push comes to shove, English works almost everywhere in Europe, but do three things:
1. Apologize for not speaking French, German, Greek, etc.
2. When speaking in English to a non-native speaker, slow down to less than a quarter of your normal speed;
3. No matter how badly the person is convinced to try speaking English, tell them it’s good with a nice active. Many people lack confidence in English, so positive impact usually has a positive impact.
When learning a language:
1. Learn to imitate the accent of a language speaker communicating in English; Inspector Clouseau is great to learn French. You just need the vowel sounds; they’re easy to learn the pronunciation.
2. In school we had to learn the most common thousand words in the language (as explained); they’re the same list in English. If you have those, you’ll have well over 95% of what native speaks will say to you. The rest you can, as said by our fearless host, deduce from context.
3. Just speak. If someone repeats a word or a sentence that you say before answering it, they’re correcting something, subconsciously. Pay attention. We correct children speaking English without a problem, but it’s different with adults, it’s done a lot more subtly. Just try and speak. You will eventually come up with sentences that you can use over and over; things will grow from there!
I learned / self-taught myself Japanese in the Navy, and learned to never ask for explanations, always ask simple yes/no questions. Don't ask "Where is the train station?" You won't understand "Go past the school, turn left after the barber shop, and cross the bridge." Point where you think it is and ask "Is the train station in this direction?". If they hesitate and point elsewhere, it's a long ways away; thank them, go in that direction, and ask somebody else.
I also memorized a short sentence for fast talkers, something like (from 30 year old memory) "Watashi no mimi wa yukkuri desu kara, mo ichido ite kudasai" -- "My ear are slow, could you repeat that please?" It was just goofy enough to get their attention, break the ice, and repeat it more slowly.
"Watashi no mimi ga osoinode, mōichido itte moraemasu ka?" would me my go to. But yours is way goofier ;) "Please come again". I like it.
Also asking questions with yes/no is a pretty good tip. I'll keep that in mind for my "broken languages". Thanks!
I used to call this the "method of successive approximation." With each question, you get closer and closer. (computer science-numerical analysis)
@@jacko.6625 Yes, trial and error tourism. I guess it's human nature.
Castillaño in Spain? They speak so quickly. I struggle. Especially in Andalusia. I just about managed to buy a train ticket. I can understand a lot of Spanish though.
I'm native spanish speaker, and i have a really hard time understanding people from Chile
They kinda ruined learning foreign languages for me at school, exactly because of the focus on being perfect. Okay, French not so much, I always got good rates even when I didn't understand much of it, let alone speak it well. And English, well, kinda got away with it, though probably more because of MTV than from what I learned at school. But then German.....even before the first lesson at school I had been watching German television, I had been reading German books and magazines, and whenever we visited Germany, as a kid I could have a decent conversation. But at school.....I only ever got _ungenügends_ . I truly hated that, and dropped all language lessons (apart from English, one was mandatory) as soon as I could.
Now decades later I've been trying to learn at least some Japanese.....but it's just mot going well. Recognize many of the issues you mentioned, especially the talking to instead of talking with people. But as limited as it is, it still has proven very useful so many times!
It’s not a goal for me to use the correct verb form. Just like when people try to speak English when, say, Spanish is their first language. If I/they can get the gist, that’s all that matters.
You can run into the same Allemanic German dialects in Southern Baden-Württemberg, just not as strong as Swiizerdietsch. Basel German is basically Badisch (Oberrheinish) and Elsässisch. It gets worse from there.
In ukrainian I always start with asking to speak slowly with me and first things I learned was how to say that and how to ask to repeat again and to say that I just speak a little bit.
Learning a foreign language can help you make friends in a foreign country.
Good video Mark. I have to think that if I tried to talk to Porteños in Buenos Aires, vocabulary would be an even bigger problem than grammar (assuming you acquire Spanish basics in American schools). Was that true for you?
Topic Suggestion: Voting Absentee from Out of the Country. 😎Just sent our papers in to register to vote in the Presidential Election from Brazil.
I've learned foreign languages for years. I prefer Italki, speaking with a native. Nothing like it. Some dialects, also, drop syllables or vowels.
I speak Spanish 🇪🇸, French 🇫🇷, German 🇩🇪 and Tagalog 🇵🇭, which is my recent language.
➕ such foreign language applications do not teach much about culture. Example with Spanish. That language uses the verb estar to describe what is alive or dead, not ser. The sentence Manuel esta muerto is proper Spanish, not Manuel es muerto. Why? Many Spaniards are Catholic. In Catholicism, being dead 💀 is temporary because of the Afterlife.
The subjunctive and grammatical cases are 2 other obstacles for learners of languages.
When speaking German, my husband just speaks it without worrying for example, the correct gender article. He just uses "der" for everything, lol. The locals like him and think he is slightly drunk or something like that, lol. I on the other hand, would think in my head and trying to get the correct grammar before I say it. So it takes me forever to say anything.
This is correct! I live in the United States and was taught Spanish and French. I recently started to brush up on both languages on Duolingo and it is not accurate at all!!
Not accurate? I'm a native Italian and French speaker and I've taken a look at lessons on Duolingo in both languages just to see what they're like out of interest. While it's true that Duolingo is far from ever being a complete solution to learning a language all by itself, I didn't see anything at all that was incorrect or inaccurate, grammar-wise or in any other way I could tell. What did you specifically find inaccurate, out of curiosity?
@@tbirdparis it doesn’t teach common phrases that most French or Spanish people speak. To myself it’s too broken.
@@sarahgoodwin7282 oh ok I see what you mean. Yes it's definitely not great in that regard. I've been using it to learn some Greek and I'm really not sure how often I will ever need to know how to say "the pink elephant is hungry"... :)
@@tbirdparis that’s the only way to speak to locals in my opinion. I don’t feel respectable in speaking in any other way. I am very blessed to be able to speak in three different languages and learning the non conventional ways is beautiful!! Viva Mexico!!!
Grüße Gott! I live in New Jersey and sometimes lean on my knowledge of German to avoid sales pitches, or sometimes people I don't know I want to engage with. One time, and old man was tapping my shoulder and arm, and I decided to become a German for a day. I turned to him and said "Was ist los?" to his astonishment. To my surprise, he thought I was a German. And I don't look a bit German. I am Italian and Greek. So, we were conversing in German, and I did tell him I was an American. He was doubtful and I told him "Ich ube mein deutsch." When I said something he did not understand, he asked me to switch to English. It turns out he is from Russia and lived in Germany for six years before he came to America.
Speed is important. If I was not a native English speaker, I think that I would have difficulty following along with this video.
I'm not a native English speaker (I only learned it at school, long, long time ago...) and had no problems following the video. If it were French - probably yes, because the French speak VERY quickly, without a period or comma 😁
Kiitoksia paljon. Se oli oikein mielenkiintoinen puheenaihe.
Just got a Babbel ad
Mark, snow in July?