I teach Spanish and I can say that listening comprehension is DEFINITELY more important than people realize. Sometimes you as a tourist can get by with speaking in phrases that are easier, but understanding what people TELL you (getting directions, prices, etc) is the first skill children's brains master when they are learning their first language. Same pattern happens with 2nd language.
After studying Spanish for 2 1/2 years while living in Spain, trying various learning methods, my biggest frustration has been that virtually none of the instructors or methods taught me how to really listen. It's as if conversations are only one-way ("Learn the top 50 phrases!"). And this is where you get into trouble. You practice what you want to say, you initiate a conversation, but when you get the response which is often somewhat incomprehensible, you become like a deer in the headlights, either because the response is not what you anticipated, the words come at you too fast, the words sound jumbled, the accent is unfamiliar, or all of the above. I'm not suggesting anyone can teach you every possible response. But, you can be given guidance on such things as how to listen to the dialect(s), anticipating run-on words, the two or three most likely responses and key words related to the subject, common idioms, etc. In other words, as the student is establishing a foundation of basic grammar and vocabulary, put the textbook aside and offer preparation for how the language is actually spoken in real conversations, which is often fast and rarely linear. I hate using sports analogies but it's sort of like a quarterback learning to read the defense. One can never know exactly how they'll come at you but you can learn what is most likely and, if nothing else, to expect something unexpected, be ready to adjust accordingly, and stay on your feet.
Great comment, well said. I'm deep in my learning. I'm taking on live 5 or 6-day a week instruction with great teachers. Plus some reading, watching videos, movies, etc. on my own. I've got the time, it's great fun and a challenge. After a year of multi-modal work I'm basic conversational, have a good vocabulary, can read very well, watch and translate in my head if it's not too fast, etc. So, made a ton of progress. BUT, I still have many instances talking to my teachers, whose accents and diction I understand very well, where they just say something or a combination of things or sounds that I simply cannot decipher. I have had instances where - and it's not like they don't know who they are dealing with - they have to repeat something with me 5 times. Dumbing it down each time. Until finally, I understand what the hell they are saying! Listening to and then participating in a real conversation is wickedly difficult even if you have verbs, conjugations, and vocabulary. It is very easy to get stumped by a phrase, idiom or mash-up of sounds that end and start words. Happens literally every day. I have to stop them, rewind and try again until I really HEAR it. Once you do, it just clicks in. If I was doing this on my own, or taking a class a week? No chance!
@@josedrullon Agree totally and that's what I would do if starting again. And it needs to me more than classroom textbook conversation. FInd someone on italki, or a chat group, or an intercambio (I found one from Argentina who wants to improve her English so we have an exchange that's mutually beneficial).
Not sure how you ended up in my feed, but liked the video. I like your second point, skip don’t stop, I never really thought it through (although I naturally did/do it). If you get stuck, just keep going and your comfort level with the language continues to grow. At some you “backfill” the grammar gap, or unknown expression, etc., but it’s easier the further you move along the growth continuum. It might be subconscious, or maybe a conscious effort to grab a resource and look it up. But I’ve noticed that sometimes you’re just not ready to learn and assimilate something new, but later on, you are. Not necessarily because it’s too hard at first, but more likely because it’s too much and may be too nuanced for your level. Well, that was a ramble. Keep up the good work. I’ll check out your channel.
Thank you for the tips this motivated me. I needed to here this. I have not practiced my Spanish in about a week and I feel like I forgot everything. Now I know I just need to refocus. Thank you. ❤❤
It would really help your channel if you were to make the text larger. Much larger. I think most people focus on the talking head portion of these videos when the meat of the learning is your voice and the text displayed. That said I know this is free and I appreciate it. Thank you and do as you please. 😊
You are correct! When people are making overheads for a presentation, they are afraid of using the large fonts. Absolutely critical. One of the main things I have to correct when training people. Regards from Indiana!
SKIP AND DONT STOP YESSSSS. This feels productive but you ultimately spend so much time on the first few sentences and you get too bogged down in pausing that it wastes time. Your best to listen to a 1,000 words while knowing 30% than trying to understand or "memorise" and learn singular words or short chunks without context
Tienes que ver las noticias, cambiar la configuración de tu teléfono y conversar con cualquiera que lo haga en el idioma que estás intentando aprender.
I don´t know about "before" but, one of the main things that REALLY pisses me off about "Spanish" is having to state "Spanish of Spain and ONLY Spain" over and over on nearly everything. I finally have sympathy for Language Simp saying "American" and totally agree. English is for England, Castellano is for Spain, but the idiots on the Internet do not agree. So, that´s very annoy and, I did "waste" a year learning generic "who cares Spanish" without realizing the NUMBER ONE first step is to decide WHICH Spanish. While I´ll give you a pass on Colombian Spanish, because they try very hard to be "neutral", you are still using the flag of Spain for your lessons. That kind of annoys me because you're asserting a better Spanish "as if". The problem with the latino varieties is, the majority of the population never went to school. They make words up. I mean, how can you misspell "Vaya" with "Baya" until you´re just a dumbss.
The problem is they speak so fast these people so its had for me to listen word by word lol...i have been learning portugese and i can make a few sentenses evn in text but wen i hear someone speaking ...i realise i actually dont knw anything lol
I teach Spanish and I can say that listening comprehension is DEFINITELY more important than people realize. Sometimes you as a tourist can get by with speaking in phrases that are easier, but understanding what people TELL you (getting directions, prices, etc) is the first skill children's brains master when they are learning their first language. Same pattern happens with 2nd language.
100%. Listening comprehension work was what I spent most of my time on when learning Spanish
After studying Spanish for 2 1/2 years while living in Spain, trying various learning methods, my biggest frustration has been that virtually none of the instructors or methods taught me how to really listen. It's as if conversations are only one-way ("Learn the top 50 phrases!"). And this is where you get into trouble. You practice what you want to say, you initiate a conversation, but when you get the response which is often somewhat incomprehensible, you become like a deer in the headlights, either because the response is not what you anticipated, the words come at you too fast, the words sound jumbled, the accent is unfamiliar, or all of the above.
I'm not suggesting anyone can teach you every possible response. But, you can be given guidance on such things as how to listen to the dialect(s), anticipating run-on words, the two or three most likely responses and key words related to the subject, common idioms, etc. In other words, as the student is establishing a foundation of basic grammar and vocabulary, put the textbook aside and offer preparation for how the language is actually spoken in real conversations, which is often fast and rarely linear. I hate using sports analogies but it's sort of like a quarterback learning to read the defense. One can never know exactly how they'll come at you but you can learn what is most likely and, if nothing else, to expect something unexpected, be ready to adjust accordingly, and stay on your feet.
I think one should apply what you have just written after the first six months of learning the basics.
Great comment, well said. I'm deep in my learning. I'm taking on live 5 or 6-day a week instruction with great teachers. Plus some reading, watching videos, movies, etc. on my own. I've got the time, it's great fun and a challenge.
After a year of multi-modal work I'm basic conversational, have a good vocabulary, can read very well, watch and translate in my head if it's not too fast, etc. So, made a ton of progress.
BUT, I still have many instances talking to my teachers, whose accents and diction I understand very well, where they just say something or a combination of things or sounds that I simply cannot decipher. I have had instances where - and it's not like they don't know who they are dealing with - they have to repeat something with me 5 times. Dumbing it down each time. Until finally, I understand what the hell they are saying!
Listening to and then participating in a real conversation is wickedly difficult even if you have verbs, conjugations, and vocabulary. It is very easy to get stumped by a phrase, idiom or mash-up of sounds that end and start words. Happens literally every day. I have to stop them, rewind and try again until I really HEAR it. Once you do, it just clicks in.
If I was doing this on my own, or taking a class a week? No chance!
@@josedrullon Agree totally and that's what I would do if starting again. And it needs to me more than classroom textbook conversation. FInd someone on italki, or a chat group, or an intercambio (I found one from Argentina who wants to improve her English so we have an exchange that's mutually beneficial).
Not sure how you ended up in my feed, but liked the video. I like your second point, skip don’t stop, I never really thought it through (although I naturally did/do it). If you get stuck, just keep going and your comfort level with the language continues to grow. At some you “backfill” the grammar gap, or unknown expression, etc., but it’s easier the further you move along the growth continuum. It might be subconscious, or maybe a conscious effort to grab a resource and look it up. But I’ve noticed that sometimes you’re just not ready to learn and assimilate something new, but later on, you are. Not necessarily because it’s too hard at first, but more likely because it’s too much and may be too nuanced for your level. Well, that was a ramble. Keep up the good work. I’ll check out your channel.
Thank you for the tips this motivated me. I needed to here this. I have not practiced my Spanish in about a week and I feel like I forgot everything. Now I know I just need to refocus. Thank you. ❤❤
Great advice, thank you!
I learned several languages with the Assimil system and for me it’s the perfect way ❤❤❤
Thanks very much, I can identify with your challenges. 😊
Great advice that works for learning any language. I have most definitely been caught up in some of these mistakes with my other languages 🙂
It would really help your channel if you were to make the text larger. Much larger.
I think most people focus on the talking head portion of these videos when the meat of the learning is your voice and the text displayed.
That said I know this is free and I appreciate it.
Thank you and do as you please. 😊
You are correct! When people are making overheads for a presentation, they are afraid of using the large fonts. Absolutely critical. One of the main things I have to correct when training people. Regards from Indiana!
#4 was my big mistake. I still think that learning grammar is important, but comprehensible input is more important.
Acquisition with listening to comprehensible input.
SKIP AND DONT STOP YESSSSS. This feels productive but you ultimately spend so much time on the first few sentences and you get too bogged down in pausing that it wastes time. Your best to listen to a 1,000 words while knowing 30% than trying to understand or "memorise" and learn singular words or short chunks without context
Tienes que ver las noticias, cambiar la configuración de tu teléfono y conversar con cualquiera que lo haga en el idioma que estás intentando aprender.
I've thought about changing my phone language to Espanol but I'm not quite ready!
Speak speak speak, and make sure your face muscles are activated.
I don´t know about "before" but, one of the main things that REALLY pisses me off about "Spanish" is having to state "Spanish of Spain and ONLY Spain" over and over on nearly everything. I finally have sympathy for Language Simp saying "American" and totally agree. English is for England, Castellano is for Spain, but the idiots on the Internet do not agree. So, that´s very annoy and, I did "waste" a year learning generic "who cares Spanish" without realizing the NUMBER ONE first step is to decide WHICH Spanish. While I´ll give you a pass on Colombian Spanish, because they try very hard to be "neutral", you are still using the flag of Spain for your lessons. That kind of annoys me because you're asserting a better Spanish "as if". The problem with the latino varieties is, the majority of the population never went to school. They make words up. I mean, how can you misspell "Vaya" with "Baya" until you´re just a dumbss.
💐🔥🌹🔥💐
There's no U in Colo-mbia :)
The problem is they speak so fast these people so its had for me to listen word by word lol...i have been learning portugese and i can make a few sentenses evn in text but wen i hear someone speaking ...i realise i actually dont knw anything lol
Just politely ask people to speak more slowly.
ua-cam.com/video/ex5qTcyd4jk/v-deo.htmlfeature=shared