Learning a foreign language: how did I learn to speak like the French?
Norman Poh, University of Surrey
What was the context/situation/challenge?
To learn a new foreign language.
What forms of learning / personal development / change emerged from the situation?
I learnt to speak fluently but at the same time, understood how difficult it is to be completely illiterate -- deaf and dumb in some ways. Before, I detested learning a foreign language as my idea of it was to pass exams. After learning French from zero on arrival, I began to appreciate how important it is to learn a new language: to embrace the culture and to communicate. Now, wherever I go, as soon as I speak French, penetrating this group of people becomes extremely easy.
What words/concepts/feelings would you use to describe the immersive experience?What did being immersed mean to you?
Completely uprooted -- a temporary detachment from daily chores/routines -- in order to learn a new experience.
What principles or lessons can be drawn from this story?
I suppose that in order to learn something, one must put a full commitment in doing it; distraction and interruption are sure guarantee to failure. Taking a lesson as a challenge rather than a burden ( i.e., as in "taking too much of my time") should be the right attitude.
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