Learning a foreign language might be a challenge for multiple people, although the benefits of the process are immense. Individuals who decide to learn a second language are perplexed about strategies that can help them. In my opinion, the most effective way to learn a foreign language is to participate in a combination of activities, including attending a language school, reading books, and watching movies.
One of the options to learn a foreign language that one might encounter is attending a language school, which has both benefits and disadvantages. As such, generally, language classes concentrate on grammar learning, which is an advantage since some concepts might be too challenging to learn on one’s own. However, there is a tendency to emphasize grammar over other competencies, which results, for example, in poor vocabulary (Ménard, 2017). The second benefit of the schools is providing feedback on various foreign language use. Yet, schools appoint several or multiple members, the individual needs and interests of whom might differ, contributing to a learner’s apathy or lack of achievement (Ménard, 2017). Thus, attending a language school cannot be a single activity for learning a second language, although it provides some helpful services.
Reading books in a foreign language might be a complementary practice for learning. According to Barca (2018), reading contributes to vocabulary expansion while providing learners with content that they might find interesting. As a result, reading is a more personalized way to immerse in a foreign language. Moreover, there are books with different intensities of difficulty and adapted readings for specific levels of language competency (Barca, 2018). However, one cannot read exclusively from other learning practices since they would not know grammar or could not use the learned vocabulary without speaking. Furthermore, books often contain literary use of language instead of its everyday equivalent. Thus, reading in a foreign language is perfect for extensive vocabulary building and personalized learning, but it does not contribute to an individual’s speaking and grammar skills.
Finally, one can think about watching TV and movies as a method of learning. Yet, this strategy also has similar issues as the previous ones since it enhances a particular skill without contributing to others. According to Babbel (n.d.), movies and TV can educate one to connect vocabulary with corresponding body language and introduce one to a more organic form of language with actual lexicon and slang. Hence, movies are helpful for embracing the everyday use of language and teaching a learner about the pronunciation of the words. Thus, it is valuable to watch movies in a foreign language in addition to reading and attending a school.
To conclude, the best to learn a foreign language is to join one’s efforts in several activities. I believe that one can attend language schools to learn grammar and participate in speaking. In turn, reading foreign books is a method of expanding vocabulary and customizing language immersion for a learner. Finally, watching movies and TV informs a person about a language’s pronunciation and everyday use.
References
Babbel. (n.d.). How to use movies to learn a language. Babbel Magazine. Web.
Barca, I. (2018). 5 hacks to learn languages by reading literature. Fluent in 3 Months. Web.
Ménard, M. (2017). Should you join a class? 6 pros and cons of language classes. Speechling Official Blog. Web.