Learning the Language

A huge part of the reason I chose to come to Spain was to improve my proficiency in the language.  I have been studying Spanish for nearly 5 years now and I’m anxious to gain fluency. At Portland State I am studying to become a Speech Therapist. I love language and learning everything about it. A large part of my degree involves studying the science of language and the process of acquiring it. I would love to be able to apply this knowledge to Spanish as well.

From the moment I started studying Spanish I tried my very best to pack as much information in my brain as possible. I’ve made flash cards, songs, and acronyms to retain as much of the language as I could. I did well on tests and papers. I loved reading literature and analyzing the language as best I could. I was sure that I was ready to move somewhere where I could use this skill in my daily life.

Arriving in Spain I knew it would take me a while to get use to everything. I didn’t expect to be able to communicate fluently, and I definitely wasn’t able to. My approach to learning language was to memorize information and acquire knowledge. My problem was that I never really put my knowledge into practice outside of an academic setting. This became very apparent when I would talk with my family, Spanish students, locals on the street, or sometimes even waiters in a restaurant. I could talk for hours about literature and linguistics but this didn’t mean that I knew the Spanish language.

My original strategy on learning the Spanish language helped me with my academic career, of course. Now I was going about my day surrounded by the language. I realized I knew a lot about the language but to really know the language itself I had to live it. I had to ask questions, learn new vocabulary, and above all practice as much as I possible could. I had to change the way I approached getting better at Spanish.

Now, I have obtained a better understanding of the balance and attitude I must have towards learning the language. When I’m with my friends who speak English, I continue speaking Spanish. When I don’t understand a word in a conversation, I speak up and ask so that I can increase my vocabulary. I’ve progressed away from my textbooks and towards daily life in a Spanish speaking country.

Here is a picture of me and another american girl with two of our Spanish friends.

How do you best learn? Do you prefer to practice or do things? Or would you rather observe and try to understand? Why do you think that is?