Cornell Director Reveals Way to REALLY Learn a Language (backed by research)

[@DJ-nw2ef]

The short version: A) Generally, immerse yourself in the language, as much as possible, in any way possible. B) Specifically, find a real native speaker to talk to, face-to-face if possible. The other 32 minutes are just these same two points repeated a half-dozen times each.

[@EmilianMiron]

Oh boy so much bla bla indeed.

[@derekofbaltimore]

I feel like.. Just my opinion.. That its because the interviewer seemed to continue to railroad the answers downa certain path.

[@DJ-nw2ef]

@@derekofbaltimore Yes, one gets that impression, but I also think the difference between the two was that Brookes-Green was looking for some sort of explicit program, whereas Kraemer was saying that lots of activities could be useful, so long as they provided lots of exposure to the language, as well as opportunities to use it in real life. Hence, his focus of things like smartphone apps, and hers on native speakers. So, they just talked around each other for half an hour, to no particularly good effect for us in the audience.

[@derekofbaltimore]

@DJ-nw2ef that makes sense -him looking for an explicit program

[@steelcom5976]

C) Just play around with it.

[@nicholasschroeder3678]

Im an ESL teacher and trilingual. The real way to learn a language is to actually want it badly enough to put in all the time and work. How you go about it matters little--you'll figure out what works and what doesn't work for you. People, though, want systems--like learning to dance or paint by the numbers--that will be make it automatic and easy. It doesn't work that way. You create your own way.

[@RobertKaucher]

LOL! I've never heard someone distill that idea so clearly. That's the true secret sauce right there. People talk about the need to having a clear, strong motivation but I started learning Italian in 2015 and passed a C1 exam in 2018 having never been to Italy. When someone asks why, it's because I wanted to. Why Italian? Because it seemed like a cool language to learn.

[@lamorena6379]

No

[@Gigusx]

@@lamorena6379 Yes

[@lamorena6379]

@@Gigusx I don’t even remember writing “no” and to what? 😂 that must have been an accidental post. LOL

[@spage80]

In my opinion the reason the traditional approach was used is because it was easier to grade The teacher is made to justify any evaluation given so they use methods that are easily documented.

[@cpnlsn88]

One of the points used in language (certainly in England) in education is it was as a failure mechanism to know who to exclude from the next rung of education. Who needs to go to a grammar school (11 plus)? Who needs to do A levels? Who is good enought to go to University? I can see that this might especially be the case in teaching Latin but this then came to influence 'modern languages' as well. And as you say, the grammar translation method tended to the more quantitative approach which aids the impression of scientific appraisal of success/failure. Obviously this isn't suitable for the modern age.

[@benwoodward]

exactly

[@Escape_The_Mundane]

Tatsächlich wissen wir heute, dass die deutsche Sprache so alt ist wie Latein, der altdeutsche Vorläufer Allemaniens. Sueben und Markomannen. Sie sagen, dass im Urdeutschen zwei Drittel der Wörter in der Sprache ein Substrat aus einer unbekannten vordeutschen Sprache haben.

[@jcvp2493]

Yes, it's easy to evaluate, but it also works in that it brings similar results to the majority of people under the same curriculum. The problem is that people often don’t feel motivated for various reasons and also don’t do extra learning. They think they can coast through language learning like other subjects; but you can't.

[@haqisangk]

Please keep this series!

[@matt_brooks-green]

Will do 👌

[@deutsch_mit_lari]

What a great episode! Thank you for dedicating your time to creating this channel and spreading knowledge on language learning. It’s so valuable! I’m a traditionally trained teacher myself, and I’ve drastically changed my teaching approach over the years, thanks to all the research that has been done on this topic! A huge thank you for your amazing work!

[@matt_brooks-green]

Thank you so much. I genuinely really appreciate it!

[@TonyLudlow]

Thank you for this video, Matt! I really related to Dr. Angelika Kraemer's comment about how her German is stuck in decades ago. I returned to the States in 1998 after 10 years in Japan. From that time til 2 years ago, I had no opportunity to speak or study Japanese, so, I forgot a LOT. Two years ago, I decided to scrape the rust off my Japanese and have learned that my Japanese is the 90s version!

[@lizberezin2919]

Yes, i left Russia as a child when it was still Soviet Union, and since then Russian changed a bit. Luckily, it changed in the direction of Englishisation and westernisation, so i have no problem there :)

[@emmcdermott574]

I really enjoy the interviews in this series, it's great motivation to keep going when the "experts" support what I'm trying to do. Thanks!

[@matt_brooks-green]

Great!

[@smonster]

I really love this channel... so underrated. You are the only one as far as I know that actually interview scientists in the field.

[@matt_brooks-green]

Thank you so much!

[@igorgoliney9494]

French was the fourth language for me. I acquired it for 300 rubles in the 80s. The second language is too easy, everybody speaks Russian, the third one, English, I have been learning it since early 70s and yet cannot claim that I’ve mastered it, probably because I have never tried an acquisition. French differs from Ukrainian, Russian, or English insignificantly, it has very few words of its own, only a perverted pronunciation and some grammar. Now I study German, and it is by far the most difficult one. The hope that reading So Sprach Zarathustra would be enough, did not materialize, I finished the German course on Duolingo, I use LingQ for more than a year, I watch videos on KZbin, I try to watch movies, and yet I have not reached the level of the comprehensible input. I have to admit that never tried to acquire the language. It is a hobby, and I am too poor to pay money.

[@GRUPOMUSICALCALYPSO]

You have motivation... Go ahead!!

[@antinoo8]

Great video! Thanks to your advice, I am progressing a lot faster in my third language apprentice.

[@jimmetcalf6408]

I learned the rules of English grammar when learning German in 9th grade. It seems to me that grammar is a meta-language and doesn’t make sense until we have begun to use the language correctly or not. E.g. in MIchigan English many people use the object pronoun for the subject especially in compound subjects: Tom and me went to the store. Good grammar is about “sharpening the sword”, i.e. using it more powerfully. Using the language powerfully is the real point. That’s what makes Huckleberry Finn so great. Twain knew how to break the rules.

[@od.vandeveer]

Young kids ( babies ) start by listening, because they can't speak. There has been some research that they do understand and can learn sign language before talking. And then they are not afraid to make mistakes talking. Adults (like me) are afraid to make mistakes and often revert to english. I have had a lot of help understanding by listening, like the news of other television programs in the language I wanted to learn.

[@Karakulak1071]

I use closed captions when I watch foreign programs

[@od.vandeveer]

@@Karakulak1071 works fine in the beginning but I find it distracting later on , besides real people don't have closed captions. What I do like is setting it to the language I am learning.

[@derekofbaltimore]

This idea that babies only listen before speaking... Maybe im misunderstanding but that to me is clearly not true. Babies continuously babble and attempt partial syllables and very poorly stated words. Because they dont know they are words they just know that they can get a reaction out of the parent. Over time the brain refines and learns what sounds lead to what reactions but they are constantly speaking. The concept as presented -babies listen then suddenly speak- is actually based on the limited imagination of the parents/adults. "they" only see language as one set of sounds and whenever those sounds come out, on purpose or at random, the adult believes speaking is occurring

[@Karakulak1071]

@derekofbaltimore There are 4 learnings in a language, you can understand from that where the child stands. To know how to listen To know how to speak To know how to read To know how to write As for grown ups, they can pick up the learning process anywhere they want.

[@derekofbaltimore]

@Karakulak1071 you are saying these go in that specific order for kids? Maybe you mean one starts (doesn't finish with mastery) before the next one starts..? Because id argue that listening and speaking hapoens almost simultaneously. Id argue that parents overestimate how much understanding a child has when listening as well. Just because they respond to one sentence or phrase or word doesn't mean they understand the next example. The listening experience has not been completed by the time they begin speaking

[@FloatingIdeasonanarrowboat]

I've just started trying to learn Swedish. What I found is that most translation I get from learning resources do not give me word by word translation. What I get is the equivalent English phrase. I want to be able to absorb the grammar and think in the new language. I'm dyslexic but I am also good at inferring the meaning of differentiate sentence structures.

[@CaptainWumbo]

In future it may be nice to ask your guests for more details about what studies support what they think, how were they done what were some specific outcomes. It's not that interesting just hear someone's interpretation without the thing being interpreted, not knowing where things drift from fact to opinion. Some speakers will offer that without prompting but anyone in academia should be happy to share some interesting studies. I personally would like to hear more about how to learn languages when things are not ideal, seems like it would help more people. I think it's still possible but requires different mindset and level of patience.

[@jcvp2493]

That happens when a layman doesn’t know what to ask and asks for something that shouldn’t be requested, like an explicit program, while dismissing the simple answer: use the language to learn the language.

[@barbaranorvell5929]

Great interview. Thanks to you both

[@Karakulak1071]

I learned Spanish the old way in highschool, mostly it was memorizing conjugated verbs, the vocabulary is almost like French my maternal tongue, so that was easy. After three years I could read anything and I was able to compose a beautiful text. That's a long time ago so I didn't have access to music or television or News. So when I met a Spanish in person I couldn't understand anything he was saying and I couldn't put words together fast enough to make a sentence. As you probably know that angered me. So now I am learning my fourth language which is Turkish, I am focusing on listening and pronouncing the words even if I don't know what they mean. I use music, series, news etc. At least I can hear the word and make it out and I can look it up. With Turkish you absolutely need to know the grammar if not you'll make no sense. Even great AI translators make mistakes going from Turkish to English. Sometimes their translations are the opposite of what was being said. Good learnings everyone

[@alexanderfful]

Full subtitles would be very helpful.

[@tonyaldridge8917]

There are so many of these videos and they all reveal that no one has the answer no one absolutely no one

[@alancabra]

Too long getting to the research. Was there ever any research mentioned?

[@PumpkinMozie]

She learned English as an adult??? My jaw dropped. I thought she was native.

[@purdysanchez]

That's crazy.

[@Miracleorganiqueomega]

How many languages does this woman speak?

[@johntolkien9629]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="1270">21:10</a> My family are amused by my English - having lived in Germany for > 40 yrs 😂

[@Beery1962]

It's very easy for extroverts to say "Find a teacher". For an introvert, for someone with autism, or for someone with social anxiety, such advice is not all that realistic. As a person with all three of those issues, I have always found it far more realistic and doable (even with the costs involved) to travel to Germany and talk with Germans than to find a teacher in England (where I lived my first 27 years) or here in the US where I've lived for the last 30 years). Something about the naturalism of meeting people on the street or in stores, hotels, etc, just seems so much less anxiety-inducing than hiring someone to teach me.

[@Escape_The_Mundane]

It is easy to learn new language, just become friends with german, they will probably give you free language tips, or watch movies on Netflix in other language, or read book or read internet like Google or wikipedia.

[@Beery1962]

@@Escape_The_Mundane Again, "make friends with..." - very easy to say, but introverts aren't extroverts - we don't just "make friends" with just anyone. That's not how it works for us. We need a special connection to happen before we make friends, and we regard it as kinda distasteful to make friends with someone to get something out of them. As for watching media, that method is passive, not interactive, so it is slow. Language acquisition works best when it happens interactively.

[@Escape_The_Mundane]

@@Beery1962 Hallo, ich werde dein Freund sein!

[@Beery1962]

@@Escape_The_Mundane Das ist nett, aber es ist nicht moeglich, so, ein Freund zu sein.

[@Escape_The_Mundane]

@@Beery1962 Ich komme aus Deutschland in der Nähe von Baden-Württemberg. Aufgrund von Covid und der Ukraine ist Europa derzeit immer noch arm. Ich sage: Steht für Europa ein, steht für die Menschen ein!

[@paulpenfold2352]

I'm going to carry on using "foreign languages".

[@woodruffwalker1868]

In the UK in schools in the last century people learnt in a traditional way . Grammar as a scaffolding then vocab ,question and answer. So many historical figures spoke many languages eg Lawrence of Arabia. The French latterly waffled on about ‘immersion’ which meant lazily gabbling at students in a language. This was garbage. It doesn’t work with adults trying to learn a language . There is NO analogy with the child’s experience. It has been shown to not work. But people make a lot of money trying to tell people there is an easy fix-NOT.

[@izzlabel]

at what point are you an adult? i just love that 🤣🤣🤣

[@osogrande4999]

saying “foreign language” hurts snowflakes now apparently. Good.

[@Beery1962]

KZbin is automatically deleting perfectly innocuous comments. I'm not sure what's going on here, but I wanted to make a point about cultural language, but it keeps deleting my post.

[@matt_brooks-green]

Weird. No ideas what's going on there

[@zafaranwar5505]

Can AI generate new language constructs that can help people to communicate with mathematical principles and teach that to the people?

[@jefersonsouza3689]

Really struggling to find input-based Swahili contents.

[@SemenRetentionKing-k8i]

🌈🌈🌈 I make my own content comprehensible. 🌈🌈🌈 Swahili is one of 4 languages I am learning.🌈🌈🌈

[@parasitius]

The comments on AI made literally no sense to me whatsoever. Imagine someone trying to learn English from the internet and they're a fan of Instagram. Dear lord. I don't remember a single sentence on the ENTIRE PLATFORM, all written by humans, that isn't composed using extremely broken grammar. Children of immigrants don't speak the same broken English as their parents exactly because of the robustness of the capacity for language. Having typos in your Anki deck or AI missing a beat (as rarely as it does) is not going to impact your grammar mastery at the end anywhere nearly as badly as learning exclusively from the garbage 2nd language speakers on Instagram would. And probably, not at all, assuming you go on to read actual books written by natives and/or listen to audiobooks by read by natives.

[@philipdavis7521]

Nice interview. It’s interesting how much emphasis some of your guests put on having one on one teachers - lots of input oriented advice seems to avoid that - YTers like Matt v Japan hardly mentions it except to criticise his old teachers.

[@matt_brooks-green]

Yeah, it's certainly a good observation. There's obviously no right or wrong here and it's down to personal preference. I have definitely benefitted from teachers explaining things which perhaps took me ages to notice just through input (or perhaps I didn't notice at all)

[@grk70s]

learning a language requires a very good memory. Either you have it or you don't. Also the talent.

[@SemenRetentionKing-k8i]

🌈🌈🌈I agree.🌈🌈🌈

[@kdpunshon3073]

Good point. I have a very bad memory and trying to learn Spanish is the hardest thing I ever tried to do.

[@mrkit2u]

wow so much talk about absolutely nothing. Rarely do I give a video a thumbs-down, but here we go. Also a huge eye-roll re instructions not to say "foreign languages" anymore.

[@namor637]

Not terribly informative……. lots of reverberating

[@misscamay]

nothing new just a different person…don’t waste your time

[@elliscaicedo9045]

43% are bilingual hahaha believe me it is very rare to find people who speak two languages

[@sebastianschmidt3869]

Depends on the country...many people live in countries with more than one official language, so learning more than one language in school or at home is quite normal for them.

[@elliscaicedo9045]

Yes, in almost all countries in the world, English is taught in schools, but more than 96% or more do not continue learning and forget everything they learned, but in school they only teach you level A2, barely people know level A1, that does not mean that you are bilingual.

[@PaulHewsonPhD]

I've yet to meet an African who speaks less than three languages. At least two local languages and the former colonial /current trade language. So I can believe the numbers presented

[@randomixvlogs1358]

go here in the Philippines. we speak Tagalog, which is our mother Tounge, we speak English because English is like a normal language here and lastly, a lot of Filipino still speaking Spanish because we were invaded by the Spaniards that's why we acquired the language and because call center with Spanish account is still in demand here.

[@ronlugbill1400]

In the developing world in Asia and Africa, many people speak their native language, then learn the colonial language when they start school and they might also learn a third language if they live in an area where it is spoken. Any many countries have two or more official languages. In my experience in Asia, many people are bilingual or multilingual.

[@SemenRetentionKing-k8i]

🌈🌈🌈 I did not find this video useful at all. Your best bet is experiment in different ways that works best for you in learning foreign languages. 🌈🌈🌈🌈

[@maletu]

She REALLY doesn't want to say what she thinks is effective! Having a motivation to communicate is NOT a method. Boring.

[@rich3419]

But her children will learn grammar and not the b.s. approaches and businesses being pushed by her and other lazy teachers. Can't stand how absolutely lazy teachers have become. Zero care about the future of their students.

[@carlsmith8815]

Some good points in this dialogue. As a person who at 50 was monolingual and at 75 has a working knowledge of four languages including my native language . I have issues with this lady. The first is that she should have stated when she encountered and became proficient in English. I suspect it was first as a child and then proficiency in early adulthood. The point of this program is about adult learning. The vast majority of language teachers and the same goes for mathematicians have a natural gift or opportunity and start young. Then go on to teach . So the topic of adult learning is something that in real terms they haven't experienced or happens to other people. Hence they worry about political correctness and changing labels and accepting dubious notions . The lady made a rather hazardous play of making some very shaky assumptions about the prevalence of bi and trilingual people. The first is what percentage of her nearly 50% learnt their second language as adults and how proficient are those people in second and third languages if indeed they learned them as adults. My experience as a learner and as a teacher in the UK and in Europe is that it is only the elites that usually have two or more languages at their disposal. Even in those European nation states that have two or more national languages. . There are many traditional societies where there is a tribal or local language and regional and even a national one in.current use. One or more might be encountered in adulthood and how much is actually acquired . The broad thrust of this video l endorse . Engage and above listen, but listening is far more difficult than reading or even writing . Listening and speaking are akin, but listening is probably more difficult for adults than even speaking.

[@TheUnicleo]

I watched a half of the video, and gave up finding what was the soulution any way in her speech.🥱