Experts offer tips on learning languages

Learning foreign languages can be rewarding in many ways. Unfortunately, people just give up when they find it boring to memorize words and grasp basic grammar to acquire a certain level of skill to communicate in a foreign language. Is there way out?

The answer is yes and no, according to top experts on foreign language acquisition who visited Seoul to take part in a major conference last week. They said something much more than learning vocabulary and grammar should be done to be proficient in foreign languages.

"Try a subject that deeply interests you," said Hannelore Lee-Jahnke of ETI, a Geneva-based translation education institute, in an interview with The Korea Herald. "Once you start learning foreign expressions about the subject that you`re interested in, you can learn the foreign language more effectively."

The underlying idea is that forcing students to memorize words totally unrelated to their life is not only ineffective but also a waste of time. Start with an interesting topic, and once fun and curiosity start to work, linguistic skills will follow, she said.

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Lee-Jahnke is one of a group of international experts, mostly working in translation and interpretation, who joined the International Conference on Translation and Interpretation Studies last Friday at the LG Convention Hall of Ewha Womans University, an event organized by the university`s Graduate School of Translation and Interpretation and the state-run Korea Literature Translation Institute.

In Korea, English education is a huge business, with parents willing to spend a great amount of money as long as their children become fluent as early as possible. Textbooks, reference books, video tapes and private institutes are thriving, and a growing number of students are going abroad to learn English faster and more efficiently.

But the sweeping zeal for learning English often ignores the essential question: What is it to learn a foreign language?

Martin Forstner, chairman of CIUTI, a major body for translation schools across the world, said the four-point qualifications for becoming professional translators can offer some tips on learning foreign languages.

First, successful and professional translators should have a firm grasp of their mother tongue. Second, they should be proficient in one or two foreign languages. Third, they should be armed with what is known as "translator`s competence." Fourth, they should have culture competence related to the foreign languages in question.

Forstner stressed people often ignore the importance of learning culture related to the target foreign language. But language cannot be separated from culture, and be it a professional translator or a student who has to learn a foreign language should invest heavily in learning culture.

For some overzealous Korean parents who want a quick result when it comes to learning English, Forstner`s advice might sound far-fetched. But disregarding the cultural aspect of foreign languages is not a smart move. After all, pushing children to memorize vocabulary or grammar rules will not lead to a high level of language proficiency.

"The first question we have to ask is, what is the purpose of learning a foreign language? And children should be in a playful environment to express themselves actively," said Barbara Moser-Mercer, director of ETI.

She emphasized that motivation is important in accelerating the learning process, and using the foreign language in real situations - preferably in the country where it is used in natural settings - is equally important.

"I once met students from Moscow who had a really high level of foreign language skills, and their proficiency level is amazing. But they sounded somewhat artificial because they didn`t learn the language in action," Moser said.

In other words, knowledge about the cultural background of the target foreign language and interaction with native speakers are essential. But what about those who rely on self-study and find it hard to go beyond a certain level?

Moser said it is natural that students who learn foreign languages confront a period of slump. That`s what is called "ceiling effect," a period in which one`s foreign language ability seems stagnant. But it is a period when one`s proficiency is actually consolidating before entering a higher level, she said.

Moser also recommended identifying a very specific weakness - pronunciation, for instance - and work on it intensively. "If you want to pronounce sentences clearly even though speaking at faster pace, practice it for 10 minutes a day for three months, not five hours a day. And you`ll get the result you want," she said.

Fortunato Israel, director of renowned Paris-based translation school ESIT, said "immersion" is the key to learning foreign languages effectively. "Using languages actively does not mean knowing words and grammar. It`s about delivering thoughts and messages effectively."

Israel said a variety of tools like TV programs, DVDs and other multimedia are helping people to learn foreign languages. But more important is whether one can understand not only the language but also social and cultural backgrounds.

The problem is that language is not fixed. It constantly changes and evolves, with new expressions popping up on a daily, if not hourly, basis. "Learning a language is like looking at a well that has no bottom. Even native speakers find it hard to get a perfect linguist intuition about their own mother tongue," Israel said.

Despite the inherent limitations, Moser of ETI said getting to know new foreign languages opens up the possibility of thinking in a new manner, liberating one`s thinking mode from the mother tongue and expanding it into new territories. And that`s just one of many reasons for learning foreign languages with enthusiasm.

(insight@heraldm.com)



By Yang Sung-jin